Ilaria Fenato is a 28-year-old traveler from Rome, Italy. Although she is a beautician by trade, her real love is photography. Traveling the world as she photograph’s and writes about it, Ilaria’s mission is to communicate the emotions of each journey through her art.

Recently Ilaria visited Scotland for the first time and now she’s here to give us some of her quick Scotland travel tips and insights, from a budget travelers’ point of view. In this interview you will learn:

• Where to stay in Scotland
• What to do in Scotland
• The challenges you may face as a traveler in Scotland
• The cost of traveling in Scotland
• The top travel resources to book your trip to Scotland online
• Why you should visit Scotland

Budget Scotland Travel Tips and Insights For First Timers

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To start, could you please give us a short introduction about yourself, where you’re from and what you do?

My name is Ilaria, I’m 28 years old and I’m an Italian traveler.

I live in Rome and I’m a beautician but my real love is photography.

I love to write about my travels and make photos that remind me all the lovely moments and the beautiful places that I loved and explored.

When did you first visit Scotland and where did you go?

I visited Scotland last week for the first time, and I went to Edinburgh, Inverness, The Highlands and Isle of Skye.

What was it that made you fall in love with Scotland and did it inspire you to return?

I fell in love with Scotland watching a Tv series “Outlander”. I started with that, and I continued with movies, books and everything about Scotland.

Which Scottish cities are your favourite and why? Would you recommend these as travel destinations? If so, where do you recommend staying?

It’s difficult to choose…but I recommend that you visit Edinburgh and Portree. Edinburgh is magical! It has everything you want: fun, music, parks, shops, festivals, gardens, amazing traditional food, history and a lot of creative people in the streets of the old town.

Portree is the opposite… It’s a calm and quiet harbour in the Isle of Skye and a nice base for excursions into the island.

Your absolute top things to do in Scotland?

• Climb the Old man of Storr (Isle of Skye)

• Visit the Edinburgh Castle

• Drink a local beer in a pub

• Visit the Highlands

• Try the strong traditional food

What challenges have you faced in Scotland and how did you overcome them? Should people planning to visit Scotland be aware of these challenges?

The only challenge was the Scottish accent but they are very kind so it was a really small problem.

In your opinion, what is the best way to travel in Scotland and why?

I always travel with a small budget and prepare the trip on my own, so I recommend renting a car (or using the bus), buying a map and going out to live the day!

Based on this, what is the approximate cost of traveling in Scotland (accommodation, food, transport, entertainment)?

Scotland is more expensive than Italy.

I’m a very adaptable person and I don’t travel with much money so I decided to sleep in local people’s houses.

It’s cheaper and more interesting!

I spent around 800 euros for a week and this amount included everything.

Your top go-to resources for booking flights, accommodation and tours in Scotland?

I flew with Ryanair, found accommodations with Airbnb and read a lot of information on Visitscotland.com and other travel blogs first.

Can you share with us three important Scotland travel tips to know before visiting?

1 – Bring waterproof clothes with you. With all that strong wind you’ll break your umbrella in 30 seconds.

2 – Try to speak with locals. They are wonderful storytellers.

3 – Try to learn everything about its history… It will put you in the right mood to understand the spirit of the country.

And finally, do you have any last words to inspire everyone reading this to travel to Scotland?

Scotland is a magical country! Live it, breath it and let yourself fall in love with it!

Ilaria, thank you for sharing your quick budget Scotland travel tips!

To learn about Ilaria’s next adventures around the world and view her incredible photography, remember to check out her blog, Ilaria Fenato -Viaggio con la Fotografia, follow her on Instagram: @ilaria_fenato and on Facebook: Viaggioconlafotografia

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Now it’s over to you reading this! Leave your answers in the comments section below…

• Are you planning your own trip and looking for more Scotland travel tips? Leave your questions below and we’ll help you out!
• Have you already been and know some more Scotland travel tips to add to the list? Let us know!

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