Unflattering insight into what visitors thought of Scotland in days gone by

New book invites Scots to chuckle at the impression left by country’s places and people when tourism was ‘fledgling industry’

Scotland may be a world-class tourist destination these days, but hundreds of years ago some reviews were less than generous.

A new book has gathered together some of the most unflattering observations made by visitors to Scotland in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries.

Charles Maciejewski, 65, a retired Highland policeman, spent four years researching historical journals and tourism guides for reviews of Scotland’s places, people and pastimes.

He discovered comments from illustrious writers such as Daniel Defoe, Dorothy Wordsworth and 19th Century English poet laureate Robert Southey.

The “best of the worst” are included in Scotland The Worst: A Derogatory Guide To The Worst Places To Visit In Times Gone By”.

Mr Maciejewski’s compendium will be launched this week in Inverness, which was found to be the “happiest place in Scotland” in a recent survey but described as “a small dirty poor place” by one visitor in 1746.

He urged Scots to “have a smile, a chuckle and an outright laugh as to the manner in which Scotland and its people were once viewed”.

He said: “As a proud Scot, it’s nice to read complimentary things about our country and ourselves, but it’s also good to be able to have a giggle at ourselves.

“Scotland is a world-class tourist destination now, but what were we like when tourism was a fledgling industry?

“I hope that modern-day visitors will find the places depicted have changed, and mostly for the better.”

Scotland The Worst: A Derogatory Guide To The Worst Places To Visit In Times Gone By, by Charles Maciejewski, is published by Luath Press, priced £7.99.