Welcome to Secrets of Scotland, an online guide to the hidden gems in Scotland.
You won’t find tourist traps or locations found in guidebooks on this website- no, this website is filled with hidden gems and off-the-beaten-path attractions and locations just waiting to be explored!
This website is also filled with small Scottish businesses and local tour providers- the folk who know Scotland intimately and can’t wait to show you bonnie Scotland.
This website is dedicated to giving you, the reader, an authentic, unforgettable experience exploring Scotland!
Meet the team behind Secrets of Scotland
This website is run by award-winning journalist and travel blogger, Yvette Webster and her husband, Craig Webster.
Yvette became interested in Scotland while researching her family history. Her 3x great grandparents immigrated from Lochaber in Scotland to New Zealand during the time of the Highland Clearances.
They established their new home in Turakina, near Palmerston North, and farmed the land there. Yvette grew up around this area, but in 2018 she retraced her ancestors’ footsteps and moved to Scotland.
In order to get to know her new home better, she hiked the length of Scotland solo that summer. Initially, she planned to live in Scotland for two years to research her family history, but then she met her husband, Craig.
Craig is a UAV pilot and enjoys exploring some of the most remote parts of his country.
They live in West Lothian with their dog, Angus.
How to use this website
This website has two sections: our library of hidden gems in Scotland and our Scottish tourism business directory.
How to use the library
You can explore our library of hidden gems by clicking the ‘’Explore Hidden Gems’’ link in the menu or by clicking here.
If you are looking for a specific town, city, or attraction, you can also use the search function, which is located at the bottom of each page in the footer of this website.
We recommend you download the free app What3Words to find the locations on this website. What3Words has given every 3m square in the world a unique three-word address- it is a useful app for navigation, especially in remote areas.
Because many of the hidden gems on this website aren’t listed on modern maps such as Google Maps, we have included the three-word address at the end of each article.
We’ve also included latitude and longitude coordinates for the traditional users! You can simply cope and paste these numbers into Google or your GPS device and the location will pop up.
How to use our Scottish tourism business directory
You can explore our recommended Scottish tourism businesses by clicking the ‘’Promo Codes’’ link in the menu or by clicking here.
Each business has kindly offered a discount code on their tour, product or service. You must quote the unique code to the business provider at the time of booking in order to receive your discount.
These discounts are exclusive to members of our Scotland Travel Tips Facebook group, or our mailing list.
>> Sign up for our mailing list here
You will be notified when we add discount codes to this website, and you will also receive our monthly Hidden Gems of Scotland newsletter.
Disclaimer: This website includes affiliate links to products and businesses we love and recommend. By making a purchase through the links on this website, or by using one of our special discount codes, we receive a small commission from the sale at no extra cost to you.
How to support this website
Our vision for Secrets of Scotland is to have a comprehensive online resource of all historic sites in Scotland. This will, of course, take many years and countless hours of work to achieve, and so we would love your help and support!
Here are some ways you can support this website:
Share on social media. If you enjoy any articles on this website, share them with your friends.
Write for us. If you would like to submit a short article on a historic site or attraction in Scotland, click here to contact us.
Advertise your business. If you own a Scottish tourism business or know someone that does, get in touch with us.
Buy us a virtual coffee. Buy us a virtual coffee (or whisky!) on Ko-fi. All donations will go towards our caffeine habit and the costs associated with running this website.
Follow us on social media. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram.
Spotted an error? Get in touch with us so we can fix it ASAP.
