Scotland Guided Tour, 6 Nights, From $1,229

The Real Deal Six nights' accommodations, round-trip airport transfers, breakfast daily, four dinners, one lunch, escorted sightseeing tours with a professional Scottish tour director, admission fees, transportation by bus, and most hotel gratuities and tips for baggage handling, from $1,229 per person—including taxes.

When Depart Apr. 21, 2009; add $70 for Oct. 6; $220 for May 12; $250 for June 16, Sept. 15, 22; $260 for July 21; $330 for Aug. 4.

Princes Street Garden and Edinburgh Skyline, Scotland (Malcolm Fife/Photodisc) [enlarge photo]

The Fine Print All taxes are included. International airfare is not included, nor is a gratuity for your tour director. Based on double occupancy; single supplement starts at $300. Read these guidelines before you book any Real Deal.

Book By No deadline; based on availability.

Contact Brian Moore International Tours, 800/982-2299, bmit.com.

Why It's a Deal The Brian Moore package starting rate breaks down to about $205 per person a day and includes accommodations, a welcome reception, hotel taxes, some gratuities, some meals, airport-hotel transfers, admission fees, guided sightseeing tours including a boat cruise, transportations by bus, and the services of a professional tour director. You also get the convenience and reassurance of having all the details arranged by a company that specializes in travel to Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Tour Highlights A guided city tour in Glasgow. Burns Cottage, the birthplace of Scotland's "ploughman poet", Robert Burns, and part of the Robert Burns National Heritage Park in Alloway, Ayrshire. Culzean Castle, where President Dwight Eisenhower spent some of his holidays. A cruise on Loch Lomond with a stop by Urquhart Castle overlooking Loch Ness for a photo op. A visit to a local kilt maker and the Culloden Battlefield in Inverness, where Bonnie Prince Charlie's army was defeated in 1746. Observe a Scottish shepherd at work as you travel southward to Pitlochry to visit Scotland's smallest distillery, Edradour. St. Andrew's University, Scotland's oldest, dating back to 1413. Edinburgh city tour featuring Princess Street, the Georgian squares and terraces of the new town, the historic Royal Mile, Holyrood palace (the queen's official residence), and Edinburgh Castle, where you'll eat lunch and then see the Scottish crown jewels and enjoy views of the city.

Lodging Two nights each at the 321-room Jurys Inn or a similar hotel in Glasgow, the 88-room Best Western Inverness Palace Hotel and Spa or a similar property in Inverness, and the 107-room Royal Terrace Hotel or similar in Edinburgh.

More If you'd like to extend your stay, you can do so before the start of the tour for an additional $85 per person per night for a twin room at the Jurys Inn in Glasgow or after the tour from $125 per person for a twin room at the Royal Terrace Hotel in Edinburgh.

Before You Go For up-to-date information and sightseeing suggestions, visit the official website of the Scottish Tourist Board. The best time to visit Scotland is from April through September, when the days are long and most tourist attractions are open. But since the weather tends to be unpredictable, bring lots of layers and both sunglasses and an umbrella.

Getting There According to a recent Kayak search, the lowest fares for flights arriving in Glasgow on April 21 and departing from Edinburgh on April 28 start at $693 from Chicago (multiple carriers), $889 from New York (American), $1,014 from Miami (American), $1,034 from Houston (Continental), and $1,102 from L.A. (Continental). If round-trip fares from your home city are in the $1,000 range, it might be cheaper for you to purchase an international fare out of a major gateway like Chicago and then arrange transportation to that gateway separately.

More on Scotland:

• Scotland's Big Bard Year: Robert Burns's 250th Anniversary

• Walking Scotland's Kintyre Peninsula

• How to Buy a Kilt in Scotland

• Glasgow: Eating on Tour With Franz Ferdinand