Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ABERDEENSHIRE & MORAY
Since medieval times Aberdeenshire and its northwestern neighbour Moray have been the
richest and most fertile regions of the Highlands. Aberdeenshire is famed for its Aberdeen
Angus beef cattle, its many fine castles and the prosperous 'granite city' of Aberdeen.
Moray's main attractions are the Speyside whisky distilleries that line the valley of the
River Spey and its tributaries.
Aberdeen
POP 197,300
Aberdeen is the powerhouse of the northeast, fuelled by the North Sea petroleum industry.
Oil money has made the city as expensive as London and Edinburgh, and there are hotels,
restaurants and clubs with prices to match the depth of oil-wealthy pockets. Fortunately,
most of the cultural attractions, such as the excellent Maritime Museum and the Aberdeen
Art Gallery, are free.
Known throughout Scotland as the granite city, much of the town was built using
silvery-grey granite hewn from the now abandoned Rubislaw Quarry, at one time the
biggest artificial hole in the ground in Europe. On a sunny day the granite lends an attract-
ive glitter to the city, but when low, grey rain clouds scud in off the North Sea it can be
hard to tell where the buildings stop and the sky begins.
Royal Deeside is easily accessible to the west, Dunnottar Castle to the south, sandy
beaches to the north and whisky country to the northwest.
