The sport of skiing began in Scotland before the end of the 19th century - but was a far cry from today’s ski and snowboarding holidays. Today, Scotland has five ski centres, all within easy reach of winter holiday accommodation or resorts.
Fishing, especially game fish angling, is a very popular leisure activity in Scotland and in places a major contributor to the rural economy.
Scuba diving in Scotland is a very popular sport and there are many active local clubs – so that local knowledge of tides and conditions is usually easy to find if considering shore diving.
If you are serious about off-road driving, then Scotland offers plenty of choice, with many opportunities to go off-road, under supervision, on testing trails.
Cycling in Scotland has seen a great upsurge in recent years, with a large number of waymarked routes opened. For example, Fife alone claims over 300 miles (480km) of dedicated cycleways as well as the 105 mile (168km) Kingdom Route for dedicated tourers.
Scotland is a great setting for sailing and watersports of all kinds and has well-developed watersports facilities with centres in many parts of the country – from sea kayaking around Barra in the Outer Hebrides to wind-surfing on Loch Ken in Galloway.
