10-Night Scotland Knitting Tour
with Mountain Hollow Farm
SOLD OUT!!!
Our tour is officially sold out!
Send an email to info@mtnhollow.com if you’d like to be added to our waiting list.
Have you dreamed of visiting the magical landscape of Scotland? What a better way to visit than to do it with friends who have a passion for knitting, just like you!
Join us for 10 nights, May 23 – June 2, 2020, exploring Scotland in a luxury touring coach on a scenic sightseeing tour focused on knitting. You’ll visit Edinburgh, Galway, Dundee, the Highlands, and more! You’ll visit the iconic Edinburgh Castle, Loch Lomond, Johnstons of Elgin Mill (and several other historic & current mills), sample Scottish whisky (Scotch), learn new knitting techniques, visit the Claddach Farm, step back in time at the Highland Folk Museum, and so much more!
Because they did such a fantastic job on our Ireland Knitting Tour in 2018, we’ve partnered again with the Irish Tourism Group to create an unforgettable Scottish experience.
Your non-knitting companions are welcome, too. They will have the opportunity to do other fabulous activities during the knitting workshops.
Highlights of the Tour
Edinburgh (3 nights: the first 2 and the last night)
Scotland’s capital city, Edinburgh, is like no other: gothic buildings, an imposing castle, winding cobbled streets, cozy pubs, and fantastic shopping districts spread out over 7 hills and the side of an extinct volcano.
Edinburgh attractions on the tour include:
- A presentation by Scottish textile designer Kitty Bruce-Gardayne about the local textile industry and some of the destinations on our itinerary.
- McAree Brothers Knitting and Crafts Shop which has been serving the people of Scotland since 1878.
- The Royal Mile, which connects two royal residences (the Edinburgh Castle and the palace of Holyrood House) and is home to a vast range of visitor attractions, shops, restaurants, cafes and pubs.
- Edinburgh Castle, a historic fortress which dominates the skyline of the city of Edinburgh and houses the Crown Jewels.
- A knitting workshop with Emily Wessel, one of the 2 designers behind Tin Can Knits, who will introduce you to her ‘Strange Brew’ pattern in the Fair Isle style. You will learn how to select colors, the size of yarn, and how to construct a yoke. Depending on your level of experience, you can either start your own yoke design or knit a swatch.
New Lanark (1 night)
New Lanark, a fully restored UNESCO World Heritage Site, is a village that was founded in 1786 around cotton mills and housing for the mill workers. Robert Owen took over the mill in 1800. He provided decent homes, fair wages, free health care, a new education system for villagers, and the first workplace nursery school in the world!
Learn about cotton production and working conditions in the cotton industry, from the cotton fields right here in America to the noisy factories of 18th and 19th century Britain.
Glasgow (2 nights)
Scotland’s largest city, Glasgow, is vibrant and welcoming; bursting with character, personality and great experiences. It is world renowned for its art, architecture and culture.
Glasgow attractions on the tour include:
- The village of Sanquhar, where you will visit A’ the Airts, a Community Arts and Crafts Centre and attend a demonstration on how the traditional Scottish Sanquhar patterns are knit.
- The Sma’ Shot Cottages, where you will gain insight on how a typical weaving family lived and worked in the 18th century.
- Provand’s Lordship, Glasgow’s oldest home and one of only four surviving medieval buildings in Glasgow.
- Free time to relax or explore the fantastic yarn shops, museums, or Merchant City, one of Glasgow’s most vibrant areas brimming with art, culture, fashion, and restaurants.
Inveraray (1 night)
Inveraray is the gateway to the Highlands and Islands. The Royal Burgh of Inveraray is a classic example of an eighteenth-century Georgian planned town and an area of spectacular natural beauty.
Inveraray attractions on the tour include:
- Loch Lomond, a freshwater Scottish loch which crosses the Highland Boundary Fault, often considered the boundary between the lowlands of Central Scotland and the Highlands.
- Auchindrain Township, the most complete and well-preserved example of a Scottish Highland farm township, where you will step back in time and see how ordinary people lived and worked.
- A demonstration by the Inverclyde Waulking Group. Waulking is the traditional art of finishing newly-woven tweed by soaking and thumping it rhythmically to shrink and soften it by hand while singing Gaelic work songs.
Elgin (2 nights)
The beautiful Highlands town of Elgin is full of rich medieval history, from the stunning ruin of Elgin Cathedral to the charming cobbled market streets. It is, arguably, one of the most picturesque towns in North Scotland. And it’s nestled in the world-famous whisky region.
Elgin attractions on the tour include:
- The Dalwhinnie Distillery, set in the splendid mountain scenery at the heart of the Cairngorm National Park. You’ll be treated to a tour of the distillery and whisky tasting paired with handmade chocolates.
- Highland Folk Museum, a living history museum where you’ll experience how Highland people lived and worked from the 1700s up until the 1950s! Our tour will focus on fiber arts.
- Fair Isle Knitting workshop with Sarah Berry. She will teach you stranded knitting techniques in this half-day workshop.
- Johnston’s of Elgin Mill tour. Johnston’s of Elgin have been proudly making the finest cashmere clothing, accessories and fabric in Scotland since 1797.
Dundee (1 night)
The seaport town of Dundee, Scotland’s sunniest city, emerged as a world centre for jute manufacturing and grew rapidly in the 19th century after the discovery that jute fibre, when mixed with whale oil, could be woven into sacking for bags and carpet backing.
Today, Dundee is a dynamic city with the UNESCO City of Design designation.
Dundee attractions on the tour include:
- The Knockando Woolmill, a historic mill at the heart of the community, with local farmers bringing their fleeces to be converted into fabric or knitting yarn. The mill has been completely renovated and is now a ‘Grade A listed site’ (UK’s version of a historical landmark). During your visit, you will be able to see the production process first hand, including a working Victorian loom.
- Verdant Works, a world class museum in a beautifully restored mill building, which tells the story of Dundee’s industrial textile heritage. In its heyday, the industry employed 50,000 people and supplied much of the world’s demand for jute goods.
- Di Gilpin, international fashion designer, will teach you about the History of Gansey Knitting in Scotland. Afterwards, she will lead a workshop exploring a variety of gansey patterns.
- Claddach Farm, home to the Cheviot, Texel, and Bluefaced Leicester sheep, as well as other rare breed animals, whose fleeces are used to create Di Gilpin’s Fife Blend wool.
Pricing
The price for the above tour is £2999 (Great British Pounds) per person sharing a twin or double room.
Single rooms will be an additional £779 per person.
Non-knitters receive a £200 discount.
20% of the total cost is due at the time of registration. The balance will be charged 42 days before departure. You can make other payment arrangements, and add days to the beginning or end of your tour.
This rate does NOT include airfare, as each traveler makes their own travel arrangements to and from Scotland. We recommend that you set travel alerts with one or more of the travel sites such as Travelocity to find the best airfare.
More Information
Click the button below for more information. We will immediately send you an email with a detailed description of the tour and instructions for reserving your spot on this amazing vacation.
Our tour is officially sold out!
Send an email to info@mtnhollow.com if you’d like to be added to our waiting list.
