20 Attractions to Explore Near Falkland Palace & Garden

Also known as Falkland Hill, the 424m East Lomond is a popular outing and is easily “summited” from the high car park on its eastern side. Other well used routes are from Craigmead to the west and Falkland to the north. The southern approaches from Glenrothes and Holl tend to be a bit quieter. The remains of Iron Age hill forts can be found around the summits of both East and West Lomond as well as at Maiden Castle, a grassy knoll that lies between the two.

West Lomond is the highest point in Fife. It is thus a very popular hill no doubt contributed to by the ease of the ascent along the “motorway” from Craigmead. Its cone-shaped summit, which is the remains of a volcanic plug, rises above an escarpment of Carboniferous sandstone and limestone layers, capped with a quartz-microgabbro sill. One of the nice trekking destination and also you can spend some good time in the middle of nature.

Riverside Park is idyllic territory for a saunter with the small ones and offers plenty of space to let the big ones detach and play games a short distance away or hit the skatepark! Just be sure to bring your helmet and serious padding for the concrete equipment. The park has several play areas and town art sculptures, adventure play areas, seasonal toilets and fitness equipment. It also features a few statues and objects from Boblingen, Germany, the twin town of Glenrothes.

Balgonie Castle is a 14th century tower-keep and later courtyard built on a river cliff overlooking the River Leven a short distance east of Glenrothes in Fife. It is privately owned and has been partially restored, and is open to visitors by appointment. Balgonie has a special place in my heart because it was where my wife and I were married in 2006.

The Scottish Deer Centre in Fife is a popular tourist attraction set in 55 acres of lovely Fife countryside that aims to educate and entertain visitors with a diverse range of animal species, with an emphasis on deer. The park is currently home to 14 different species of deer as well as birds of prey, wildcats and wolves.

Balvaird Castle is perched on a hilltop overlooking the A912 as it makes its way over the eastern arm of the Ochil Hills, about a mile south of junction with the better known road leading through Glen Farg. Its location falls short of the sheer rocky impregnability of a Stirling Castle, but as a statement of dominance and control it still takes some beating.

The Fife Pilgrim Way is a new long distance route opened in July 2019, connecting West Fife with East Fife via routes used by medieval pilgrims. The overall route brings together a network of existing paths, tracks, core paths and rights of way into a single journey across the heart of Fife. Much of the route is on hard surfaces , hence trainers may be a better choice than boots for footwear.

Crawford Priory is an impressive, Gothic mansion, started in 1809 and extended a few years later, but now a derelict and deteriorating shell. The present building replaced an earlier house that dated from the middle of the 18th century, and had a sumptuous interior. There are no significant remains of the internal gothic design save a cast iron balustrade in the D-shaped main stairhall in the east side of the building.

Scotstarvit Tower is a tower house in Fife, Scotland. It is situated 2 miles south of Cupar, between Tarvit Hill and Walton Hill, south of the River Eden, near the A916 road. The six-storey L-plan tower, still largely intact, was built in the third quarter of the 16th century by the Inglis family. It was bought, in 1611, by Sir John Scot, author of the satirical The Staggering State of the Scots' Statesmen.

Loch Leven is a fresh water loch located immediately to the east of the burgh of Kinross. Roughly circular in shape and about 3 miles in diameter, it is one of the shallowest of the Scottish lochs—with a mean depth of 15 feet —and has become important as a nature reserve. The loch is a roosting area for geese in winter and a resting area for ducks. It is renowned for its fishing.

Burleigh Castle was the seat of the Balfours of Burleigh for more than 250 years. You can explore the roofless ruin of a 500-year-old tower house. its chief delight is its remarkable corner tower. Round at the base, its rectangular top floor is corbelled out – an eye-catching piece of Jacobean architecture. It was adapted and expanded in the late 1500s. The Balfours lost the land and castle in 1716.

Lochleven Castle is a late 14th or early 15th century tower where Mary Queen of Scots was imprisoned in 1567. This ruined castle on an island in Loch Leven, in the Perth and Kinross local authority area of Scotland. Possibly built around 1300, the castle was the site of military action during the Wars of Scottish Independence. Today, the remains of the castle are protected as a scheduled monument in the care of Historic Environment Scotland. Loch Leven Castle is open to the public in summer, an

The Hill of Tarvit is a 20th-century mansion house and gardens in Fife, Scotland. They were designed by Sir Robert Lorimer and are today owned by the National Trust for Scotland. The house is situated on a hillside a mile and a half south of Cupar, Fife. It is set in 40 acres of garden and 279 acres of open estate. This includes woodland, parkland, farmland and open heath, with extensive views. The house today and wider estates are owned and operated by the National Trust for Scotland.

A ruined castle standing on cliffs immediately to the east of East Wemyss in Fife, MacDuff's Castle is said to have been originally constructed by the MacDuff Earls of Fife in the 11th Century. The surrounding estates passed to the Wemyss family and the present structure was built in the 15th Century as their seat. The castle was abandoned by the mid-17th C. when the family moved to Wemyss Castle, lying 2 miles to the southwest. There was once a passage which descended into the Well Cave below,

Wemyss Castle is an old castle and mansion, long held by the Wemyss family, on cliffs above the sea on the north shore of the Firth of Forth. After the second world war the walled garden at Wemyss Castle became largely redundant. Since 1993 it has been lovingly overhauled and redesigned by Charlotte Wemyss. The six-acre walled garden has become a symphony of spring and summer flowers. Clematis, roses and ornamental trees are the stars of the show supported by herbaceous planting.

The Wemyss Caves house mysterious carvings from as early as 300AD. In the face of natural and human threats, archaeologists are racing to decode them before they vanish. The Caves are historically precious due to the high number of carvings which are inscribed on their walls. The earliest of these are thought to date to the Bronze Age, whilst the vast majority are connected with the Pictish period.

Benarty Hill, locally simply Benarty, rises above and to the west of Ballingry, in the west of Fife, Scotland. The summit ridge forms the boundary with Perth and Kinross. It is a prominent feature of the view from the M90 motorway, and from Kinross and Loch Leven. The lower slopes are steep on all sides, but the extensive heath around the summit is relatively flat.

Loch Ore is a loch situated in Fife, Scotland. It forms the core of Lochore Meadows Country Park. It is used mainly for leisure purposes, especially yachting, although the uneven depth can make the likes of speed boating problematic. The loch is the training site of many sports teams, including the University of St Andrews Boat Club. The loch holds many events, such as the annual Scottish Open Water Championships where the swimmers compete in a 5 km, 2 km and 4×1 km relay swim, and Saints Regatt

The Loch Leven Heritage Trail is a largely traffic-free path around Loch Leven linking Kinross with RSPB Loch Leven and back to Kinross. It lies between Edinburgh and Perth, in the east of Scotland’s Central Lowlands. The path is mostly level and barrier-free, making it suitable for walkers, cyclists and wheelchair users of all abilities.

Leven Beach is a family-owned holiday complex situated between Leven and Lundin Links on the South coast of Fife in Scotland. The beach is close to the town centre and has lovely views across the Firth of Forth. With parking, toilets, picnic tables overlooking the beach, a skate board park and children's play area and a nearby outdoor gym, this makes for a great family day out.