Newton Stewart Accommodation

Wigtown Booktown Bookshops, Whithorn History of Christianity, Wigtownshire

To the south of Newton Stewart the triangular headland known as the Machars offers a combination of ancient prehistoric hut circles, cairns, pilgrimage centres and a renowned privately owned distillery Bladnoch. Wigtown is a hub for books, earning the nickname Wigtown Booktown. A literary festival (10 days) is held annually in the town at the end of September and a huge number of bookshops exist within the town. For full bookshop listings and details on the literary festival see the Wigtown weblinks right for details. Well worth seeking out is the Torhouse stone circle situated just 4 miles west of Wigtown on the B733 road. This bronze age site is free to enter all year round, and consists of 19 boulders. These type of stone circles are found mostly in the north east of Scotland, making the Torhouse stone circle unique and unusual to the area. (see Historic Scotland weblink/Ancient Monuments section for details).

Take the Wigtown town trail and discover the history of the Covenanters/Wigtown Martyrs as well as viewing the monument on Windy Hill with excellent 360 degree views of the rolling Machars countryside, the Galloway Hills, Wigtown Bay and the Solway, as far as the Lake District mountains on a clear day. The Wigtown martyrs' grave is situated in the Parish churchyard whilst the martyrs' stake can be found in the saltmarshes. There is a bird hide at the former Wigtown Harbour at Wigtown Bay Nature Reserve - the largest Local Nature Reserve in Britain. A ranger is based in Wigtown's Country Buildings/ Town Hall and a Wildlife Viewing Room (free) is on the top floor with a panarama window offering views again over Wigtown Bay as far as the Lake District mountains and to the Galloway Hills. Note also here the TV screen where visitors can watch live CCTV footage from the wetlands and also from the Osprey nest. Checkout the Osprey weblink right for more details.

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.

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Wigtown Booktown, Wigtown Bookshops, Second Hand Bookshops

Wigtown is the Scottish equivalent to the Welsh Hay-on-Wye - it's books, books and more books all the way here. Wigtown now has around 15 bookshops give or take (and 30 book related businesses), and is Scotland's National Book Town. Literary festivals and book festivals are held here annually (see Wigtown Book Festival weblink right held every October, Wigtown's increasingly renowned literature festival is held at the end of September - see the Wigtown Booktown webguide right for details on this, plus listings of bookshops in the town).

Much of Wigtown's bustle takes place around its medieval main square - you'll find a fair few of its bookshops here. (watch Sundays as most of the bookshops are closed). The Wigtown Information centre is also on the main square, where you can pick up a good map detailing where all the town's bookshops are.

Set within the peaceful, rather beautiful low-lying Machars area of Dumfries and Galloway, Wigtown is certainly the main centre and town. A good specialist shopping town, alongside bookshops selling both new and second hand books there's a choice of delightful gift shops, art and craft shops and some fine pubs and restaurants too. Kids will love 'The Box of Frogs' Children's Bookshop on North Main Street which holds both second hand children's books and new ones. For those who love spending hours browsing through bookshops Wigtown is your dream location.

Bladnoch Scotch Whisky Distillery, Dumfries and Galloway Whisky Tours

Just to the South East of Wigtown alongside the River Bladnoch sits the Bladnock Whisky Distillery and Visitor Centre. One of the few privately owned Scottish Whisky Distilleries, the Bladnoch building dates from 1817, and you can take guided tours of the whisky distillery, and of course purchase either via the weblink right, or in the gift shop on-site. More bookshops, a campsite and visitor centre are all on-site.

Using the old 'water of life' recipe, Bladnoch whisky is made by combining malted barley and yeast with water from the River Bladnoch just near the distillery. Bladnoch Scotch Whisky is a lowland single mal Scotch whisky, and can be purchased from the visitor centre, alongside other famous Scotch Whisky brands. Check the Bladnoch website right for opening times. The setting down here next to the river and nearby bridge is stunning!

Bladnoch Distillery, Bladnoch, Wigtown, Scotland, DG8 9AB. Tel. 01988 402605. (weblink right for details)