November always seems a strange month, Halloween brings in that Autumnal feeling then Bonfire Night comes in so fast you barely notice the time go by. However, the clocks change and you then have the darker evenings and that build up towards Christmas.
All this means that Moray is looking sensational at the moment with bright blue skies, lots of sunshine and daytime temperatures of 17C yes 17C in North East Scotland in November! It is a wonderful time to enjoy the Autumn colours, to see the sunshine turn the leaves golden and look at the yellow larch trees highlighted against the evergreen pines. Autumn in Scotland is a wonderful time to be visiting, touring, horse riding in the sunshine or just enjoying the countryside.
Accommodation businesses and Travel Agents have lots happening at this time of year. It is a good time to re-visit websites, make plans for the next year. Recently I have been learning new things at the Moray Speyside Tourism Conference, meeting new Travel Agents in Amsterdam at a Visit Scotland Development meeting. Lots of new alliances have been made with new ideas and more news to follow. It is so encouraging to know that Moray is the fastest growing tourism destination in the UK, one of the best places for Dolphin spotting and don’t forget the dark skies and auroras as just a few of our many attractions.
However with Christmas fast approaching we have some exciting Christmas markets coming up – for example Brodie Castle next month and Logie Steading, Speyside Cooperage has a delicious sounding Christmas coffee shop lunch available from mid-November. Moray is also renowned for world famous cashmere and Johnstons of Elgin have they famous Sale at the end of November – invitations for this prestigious event are not to be missed!
So, if are thinking of coming to Moray early Autumn/Winter there is always something to do at this time of year – a lovely colourful drive, a walk in the Autumn leaves by the river, a mince pie in a charming café, a spot of Christmas shopping in a Castle and a wee dram at the end of the day – that will do me nicely!