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Part of my new beginning was to go back to school so I could become a dietitian. I graduated recently with my BS in nutritional science. Hardest degree I've ever completed BTW.
During school, I didn't have the time or money for traveling. Now that I'm looking for employment, I want to travel. First on my bucket list is Scotland and Ireland.
I'm looking for all kinds of advice. Who are the best travel agencies to work with? Should I even use a travel agency? What events, locations, etc should I put on the itinerary? What did you like best and why? How much money should I save for the trip and souvenirs? What did haggis taste like? How long (days) should I plan out for each country? Best language apps to use to learn some basic Irish, etc.?
Any information is appreciated. I'm planning to go December 2025, so I have plenty of time to get it together...I think.

I'm looking for all kinds of advice. Who are the best travel agencies to work with? Should I even use a travel agency? What events, locations, etc should I put on the itinerary?

We never have, but we don't tend towards the traditional tourist trap things. I get the flights first a year or so in advance so it's time to start watching the pricing. The holidays tend to come at a premium. You can set a check in google flights to update you when they change. That's how I know that I can get round trip to London in early Jan 2025 at 642 which is much lower than average. I prefer to book with the airline/hotels directly than deal with travelocity et al. We also move around too much to get much advantage from booking flights and hotels together. I try to book accommodations before we get six months out and try to use cancelable reservations where possible. Was bit by that for one stay in Ireland in March 2020. WE did Galway-Cork-Dublin across 9 days in 2022. I'd probably ditch cork for Killarney for the next trip. We did take a bus tour through Killarney and the ring of fire from Cork. We have a goal to get back to Scotland soon. We did a 30-hour side trip to Glasgow from London in 2018.

Duolingo works for us. Currently working on Italian. Did Welsh for this years trip.

Grubs, In your opinion why would you skip Cork? Was it not worth the time, or is it because you've BTDT already? Also, if I'm going to noth Scotland and Ireland, is 6-7 days enough time, too much? Is taking a side trip to England worth it? What do you most recommend if we do go to England? Thank you very much. Yes, I am waiting until after the holidays to start watching for prices to drop so I can book in advance.

I would avoid side trips, but some of that is personal preferences. We're pretty laid-back travelers. Like we might run around one day but take the next off just enjoying being present. It's hard to truly enjoy the ambiance when you are stressing about getting to the next sight or locale. There's plenty to see and experience in either location, and trying to fit it all in on one trip can be overwhelming.

We had thought about doing an Ireland/Scotland combo in 2020 and when we rescheduled in 2022. When I started plotting out the days it was clear it wasn't going to work. We did do a two-day trip to Wales on our last trip and were planning on a few days in Edinburgh. We all agreed that we should have spent more time outside of London. We've been to London three times in the last eight years, so going further afield more makes sense. A coworker came back from doing Scotland, London, Liverpool in the same 10 days and I felt exhausted just thinking about that.

Cork was just a city. Kind of Dublin light. The countryside is a lot of the beauty of Ireland. We didn't do anything special there. We were there for three days, but one of those was taken up with the Ring of Kerry tour. It would have been better basing out of Killarney or an adjacent area. We liked the feel of Killarney and Galway more than Cork or Dublin for that matter.

It's a worthwhile exercise to start plotting out a schedule now even if you are not actually prepared to book. I plot everything out in a sheet in hour blocks. When you include minimum travel times, down times, and slack for the unexpected a week doesn't go as far as you would think.

My two cents is from way back in the 1970's, so maybe won't be worth much, but touring around Northern Scotland was just so much different and memorable seeing ancient cliffside castles and misty hills, sheep running up roads, Loch Lomond, the occasional hamlet. Again it was 40 years ago, so I hope it's not cluttered by wind farms these days, but I always remember how remote we were, compared to the cities of Edinborough or Stirling. (Cool castles to be seen there, too.)

My biggest touristy error was stopping at a Bed and Breakfast on the Southern side of a very long drive around Loch Lomond for evening accommodations. We knocked on the cottage door and an elderly woman opened it for us, showed us to our room and that's when I looked at the clock: 11 pm! In the summer, it stays twilight that far North. She wasn't visibly offended, but I felt so darned awkward.

I was born in Dublin and don't get to go back there enough to see my cousins. Last time I stayed at the Camden Court, very comfy and central, but I see the prices have gone up since 2012 so....

Scotland is on my bucket list. If you're going solo you could check out Alison O'Neill, she runs a sheep farm and has a lovely country house B+B with guided tours for women travellers. Have fun and congrats on your new career! :D

Check out Doolin, it is famous for pubs with authentic Irish music, and it’s very close to the Cliffs of Moor, which is a must see.

I'm diligently taking notes. Thank you everyone!

I really recommend taking the walking tour in Dublin, I think the company is called Sandeman. Loved it cause it gives context, historical and cultural, for the rest of the trip.

We chanced upon the Jeanie Johnston in Dublin - again really worthwhile.

Enjoy your trip and congrats on your accomplishment!

How many miles is the walking tour? Sounds interesting, but im physically limited on how far I can walk after my injury. I can comfortably walk 3 miles, anything more than 4.5 would have me on rest for a few days. I'll check out the sight! Thank you.

I would say it’s definitely under 3 miles. The duration is a few hours but the distance is not that long because you stop and listen to the guide. If standing is a challenge as well then it may be a bit much.
Enjoy the trip regardless!

Right now, standing is more of a challenge than walking for various injuries. However, I hope to be physically healed enough by the time we travel next year to be able to do some of these walking tours. I've already checked out their website and it sounds like a lot of fun and very interesting too! Thanks for the recommendation!

Take a look at Oban, a major town and ferry terminal on the west coast. Nice place, and the surrounding country is beautiful. Drive through Glencoe if you can.

Someone earlier appeared to place Loch Lomond in northern Scotland: I wouldn't say so, as it's the first major loch north of Glasgow. Very spectacular, but if you were to drive from there to Durness (the most northwesterly settlement in Scotland) via the west coast, you'd be looking at a six- to eight-hour drive.

When driving to Oban, from Glasgow we always go on the A83 via Arrochar, the Rest And Be Thankful pass, and the town of Inveraray.

Haha Eric, that was me....darn tourists! I just remember going around the "top" of Scotland through Stirling and then down the Western side, it was quite remote and took a long time to drive as you mention. We never tried to go up to the Hebrides or anything! How's the weather over there today? We have a very Celtic pea-soup fog here today. A bit of snow.