I’m sure if you have been following our journeys over the last year you have gotten the idea that I really like castles. Stirling Castle is located in the highlands of Scotland, and we visited it on our British Isles cruise last summer. We went there as part of a tour that also took us to Loch Lomand and around the Scottish highland country side.

A big benefit of being on a tour is that you never get lost, but a drawback is that you can’t determine how long you get to spend in each place. Our tour with Rabbie’s was great, but we were limited in the amount of time that we could spend at Stirling Castle. Even though our time at Stirling Castle was limited, I still have a few suggestions for what you should see while you are there.

Arriving at Stirling Castle

Since I arrived at Stirling Castle via a cruise ship to Glasgow and from Glasgow in the back of a tour bus I can’t really tell you how to get there. Suffice it to say that it is one of Scotland’s most important attractions and you should be able to find directions to it easily if you are arriving on your own.

When you do arrive at Stirling Castle there is a large parking lot in front of the main entrance. From here you will walk into the guardroom square where there is the ticket station and one of several gift shops. Tickets to get into the castle are £15 for adults and £9 for children. You also have the option of buying an Explorer Pass if you are going to be visiting multiple historical Scottish locations.

You can also get a handheld audio tour at the ticket booth. You know that I am a big fan of audio guides, but in this case we did not get one because they told us we would need a couple hours for it and we did not have that long.

Once you have your tickets you can enter the main castle area. Just inside there is a well where the guided tours meet. We were unable to catch one of these tours while we were there, but if you happen to arrive at the right time it seems like a great way to see the castle.

What to See at Stirling Castle

If you are limited on time like we were here are the parts of Stirling Castle that we recommend seeing.

Palace

Located across the courtyard from the well, the palace is really the main attraction of the castle. It has been fully restored to its state during the renaissance. You self guide your tour through the castle seeing exquisite rooms.

Great Hall and Kitchens

The is located next to the palace and is a huge and imposing structure. In the great hall you can stand in line to sit on some thrones if you want to.

More interesting then the great hall to us were the great kitchens which are underground. These are set up to show you what it would have been like to work in the kitchen when Stirling was a functioning castle. The have displays with statues and fake food showing the place in action.

Stirling Heads

Once the palace ceilings of Stirling Castle were decorated with elaborate carved heads. You see replicas of some of these when you go through the palace. But next to the palace in the Inner Close you can go into an exhibit to see what is left of the real things.

The heads are quite impressive and considered to be one of Scotland’s greatest art treasures.

Outer Wall

I like castle walls a lot. So I think that one of the best things you can do at Stirling Castle is walk around the walls a bit. You can get up on one wall near the well when you first come in. This will take you to the grand battery (cannons).

If you go through the little tunnel near the kitchens you will get into an outer area where you can walk along the walls a long ways.

Sum Up

Stirling Castle is one of the most significant castles in Scottish history so it is well worth the visit. There is a lot more you could see than what I mentioned here if you have the time. There are also other sites to see nearby in historic Stirling if you can.