Gretna Green Accommodation

Postcard from the Devil's Porridge Exhibit, Eastriggs near Annan. 'The only kind of matches allowed in a munition factory'.
A gruff looking Thomas Carlyle, Statue in Ecclefechan near Annan

Annan Tourist Information & Attractions

Pretty Annan in Annandale, East Dumfries & Galloway is a popular Solway Firth base for walkers and cyclists. It also has a rather good social history museum, with nearby birthplace home of Thomas Carlyle at Ecclefechan.

The eastern area of Dumfries & Galloway, or 'sunny vale of Annan' referenced by the fleeing Richard Hannay in John Buchan's 'The Thirty-nine Steps', 'with its constantly changing prospect of brown hills and far green meadows, and a continual sound of larks and curlews and falling streams' is a beautiful area well worth exploring.

Featured Scotland Accommodation

Pet Friendly Carrick Cottages - Kirkcudbright

Sleep 4-9 a selection of pet friendly self catering cottages in several areas of Carrick and Brighouse Bay. Close to beaches and great country walks.

£260 to £660 Prices per week

Annan Museum, Dumfries & Galloway Social History

Staying on the social and local history trail around East Dumfries & Galloway, the little Annan Museum (which is free to enter) is well worth a look in. Local history is laid bare here, stretching from the prehistoric to the First World War.

Recent exhibitions have included 'Workin' Lasses - 70 years of Memories' This one explored the memories of the working lives of women in the area through photographs, oral history and memorabilia. Regular craft fairs and events for children are also on offer here at Annan Museum. Check the Annan tourist web guide right for more details.

Annan Museum, Bank Street, Annan DG12 6AA. Tel. 01461 201384. (situated right in the centre of Annan, just off the High Street).

Annan Cycling & Walking Annandale & Eskdale and Thomas Carlyle

Annan in the past has been closely linked with the Solway - both fishing and maritime trade make up the history, with many Scottish emigrants departing from Annan Quay in the past. Today Annan makes a superb picturesque base for both walking and cycling. It's an attractive town situated as it is at the mouth of the River Annan. The town has associations with Thomas Carlyle who studied and taught at Bridge House (Annan's town Academy) between 1802 and 1820. The town academy building survives today, and plans are afoot to restore it. Carlyle's birthplace is situated not far from Annan in Ecclefechan and is open to the public (weblink right for details). Notable visitors to Annan include Robert Burns as exciseman and Bonnie Prince Charlie who stayed in Annan's High Street at an Inn where the L'Auberge now sits. Many of Annan's fascinating Victorian architecture is listed

Cyclists would do well to base themselves here. The Sustrans National Cycle Route 7 runs right through Annan offering superb cycling trails both down towards Carlisle and west along the Dumfries & Galloway Coast. Cycling trails in the area are not too challenging, mostly crossing low lying hills situated between the plain and the Southern Uplands. The area then is a good choice for family cycling holidays.

Pick up a copy of the 'Cycling in and around Annandale & Eskdale' leaflet from any tourist information centre around Dumfries & Galloway. (the nearest to Annan is in Dumfries). One cycling route in this leaflet guides you from Annan High Street along the coast via Ruthwell Savings Bank Museum and Ruthwell Cross towards Caerlaverlock Castle. (28 miles, the full stretch will take around 4 hours and its an easy route with no steep hills).