National Trust for Scotland sets out plans for reopening its castles and visitor centres
THE National Trust for Scotland (NTS) has set out plans to reopen its castles, houses, museums, visitors centres, cafes and shops from Monday.
Scotland will move to Level 3 of coronavirus restrictions on April 26, allowing tourist attractions to open for the first time since December.
However, the trust will stagger its reopenings, with Culross Palace, the garden and shop at Kellie Castle and Hill of Tarvit in Fife, and the visitor centre at Bannockburn in Stirling, among the first to do so on Monday.
From Friday, April 30, the public will have access to Aberdeenshire castles including Fraser, Crathes and Drum, as well as Haddo House in Ellon.
Pollok House in Glasgow, The Hill House in Helensburgh, Brodick Castle on Arran, and Culzean Castle and the Robert Burns Birthplace Museum in Alloway, both in South Ayrshire, will also open in time for the weekend.
Edinburgh and the Lothians sites to open on the same Friday include Newhailes House, Preston Mill and The Georgian House.
Visitor centres at the Balmacara Estate in the north-west Highlands, Culloden near Inverness, and the Glencoe and Glenfinnan Monument will also open on April 30.
The trust has introduced a booking system at some sites to manage numbers and maintain safe physical distancing. Properties trialling timed entry include Culross Palace, Culloden, Newhailes House, The Hill House, Pollok House and
Robert Smail’s Printing Works.
NTS chief executive Philip Long said: “Everyone at the trust is looking forward to welcoming our visitors back.
“With the easing of travel restrictions, people are eager to visit the places that they love and our teams are hard at work preparing for reopening to give everyone a warm and, of course, safe welcome.
“We’ll be reopening more of our built heritage in late May and across the summer, and our charity is very grateful to all of those whose support and generosity means we can reopen more properties than we’d thought would have been possible this year.”