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 St Andrews |
 Pittenweem Harbour |
 RAF Leuchars Air Show |
St Andrews is Scotland's oldest university town, perhaps best known as the home of golf. It sits on a wide bay on the north-east coast of Fife.
The town is easily explored on foot. The main streets, Market Street and South Street run from east to west and form the hub of the town. Here a mix of university buildings are to be found alongside shops and restaurants, much as in Oxford or Cambridge. The town is also the terminus for the Coast to Coast Walk from Oban.
The ruins of St Andrews Cathedral, once the largest and most magnificent cathedral in the country, lies at the eastern end of North Street.
St Andrews developed as the ecclesiastical capital of the country and became a place of pilgrimage. In 1200 a castle was built for the bishop, part residence, part fortress. In the 1450s the young King James II was a frequent visitor (see our Historical Timeline).
The association of St Andrews with golf dates to the 1400s, with the famous Old Course being constructed in the 1500s. Today, St Andrews boasts the Old Course plus five other public courses in the area. It is also home to the excellent British Golf Museum. Nearby is the St Andrews Aquarium.
Across the estuary of the River Eden from St Andrews is RAF Leuchars, home each September to one of the UK's best airshows. This sits alongside the attractive village of Leuchars, whose Parish Church contains some of the finest Norman architecture in the country.
To the south of St Andrews is the East Neuk, a region of quaint fishing villages which include Crail, Pittenweem, St Monans and Elie. Just inland from the coast are the attractive villages of Boarhills and Kingsbarns. A little further west are the paired villages Upper Largo and Lower Largo.
Anstruther is home to the Scottish Fisheries Museum. It tells the story of the fishing industry from the earliest times to the present day and is open all year. Only half a mile away from Anstruther is Cellardyke, a fishing settlement once more important than Anstruther itself. Inland lies the ancient hamlet of Kilrenny.
Inland between Crail and Anstruther is Scotland's Secret Bunker, a site that was to become the country's seat of government in the event of a nuclear war. Inland from St Monans is Kellie Castle.
Falkland Palace, in the village of Falkland, is a stunning example of Early Renaissance architecture and both palace and gardens are open to the public during the summer months. A little to its north and on the line of the A91 are Auchtermuchty and Strathmiglo.
Cupar, the capital of Fife, is a market town, which retains much of its medieval character. It is situated at the centre of Fife's road network and is on the railway line to Dundee. A little to its south isScotstarvit Tower, close to another attraction the Hill of Tarvit mansion house and to the attractive village of Ceres.
Fife's north coast looks across the River Tay to Dundee. Until the building of the Tay Rail Bridge, a railway ferry operated from Tayport, near the north east tip of Fife, while just along the river, Newport-on-Tay has effectively become a cross-river suburb of Dundee. On minor roads four miles west of Newport-on-Tay are the ruins of Balmerino Abbey. Further east you find the ruins of Lindores Abbey, on the edge of the town of Newburgh.
