The Scottish destinations named in list of world's best places to travel in 2025

They are around 900 of them off the coast of Scotland, drawing in hundreds of thousands of visitors every year.

Now Scotland’s islands have been included in a prestigious list of the top places in the world to travel next year.

Rough Guides has listed a 25-strong collection of the islands in the “best places to travel for slow travel relaxation” category.

The British travel company describes the category as destinations for visitors "looking to take a 2025 vacation that makes it easy to slow down and simply be".

The Rough Guide entry says: “Sparsely populated, with landscapes of wild, windswept heather-covered moors, pristine beaches, crystal-clear lochs, and small villages, it’s nigh impossible to not slow down on the Scottish Islands.

Each island offers a completely different vibe, so they make a great addition to your Scotland itinerary.”

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The Scottish Islands sit alongside Sicily, Barbados, Denmark and the French Riviera.

Vicki Miller, chief executive of VisitScotland, said: “Scotland’s islands are hugely popular with visitors the world over and their inclusion in Rough Guides 25 best places to travel in 2025 is a further example of their global appeal.

“Our islands’ stunning scenery, rich history and unique wildlife and culture demand to be explored at a gentler pace so it’s no surprise that they have been highlighted as one of the best for slow travel relaxation.”

She added: “This is in line with our own sustainable tourism strategy which is focused on growing the value of tourism rather than volume of visitors and encouraging visitors to take their time and immerse themselves in local culture and connect with nature.”

The well known guidebook goes on to list Orkney, with its UNESCO World Heritage Neolithic sites, and the Isle of Skye‘s Fairy Glen as destinations not to miss.

Offering a “tip” from the editor, the book said: “If you're into walks on the wild side (and whisky), take a trip to the Isle of Islay. We spent a week here walking, bird-watching and enjoying a few distillery tours - it wasn't nearly long enough, to be honest".

Skye is the second most popular place to visit in Scotland, after Edinburgh.

SkyeConnect, which represents businesses and individuals with interests in Skye's tourism industry, predicted one million visitors to the island this year, which has about 13,000 residents.

Some island communities have raised concern about increasing numbers of visitors to the islands without the financial support to improve local infrastructure.

Tour operators on Lewis were urged to leave out major visitor attractions from their itineraries, including the Neolithic Calanais Stones, next year over fears of erosion at the site.

Other international destinations to make the Rough Guides list include Nicolosi, in Sicily, Speightstown, Barbados and Skagen, Denmark. Villefranche-sur-mer, on the French Riviera and the Georgian city of Batumi also make the 25-strong list.