Everyone drives through Angus on the A90 between Edinburgh and Aberdeen. Not many stop — which is exactly why Forfar, a town of under 14,000 people, still feels like a proper local discovery rather than a stop on a tour-bus circuit.
Start on High Street, where the walkable centre packs in independently owned shops such as Quarryside Crafts with Bags of Accessories for handmade pieces, the well-rated women's boutique Lusso, and old-school bakeries selling the town's signature snack: the Forfar Bridie, a seasoned beef-and-onion pastry you should absolutely eat warm and on the spot.
History runs deep here. Half an hour's walk from the high street brings you to Restenneth Priory, free to enter and quietly spectacular. Its story may stretch back to a Pictish church founded in the early 700s; by the 12th century it was an Augustinian monastery, and a 46-foot spire added in the 15th century still anchors the skyline. It's also a royal burial site — the infant son of King Robert the Bruce is interred here. For castle fans, Glamis Castle sits just 6 miles away: grand, still a working family seat, the childhood home of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, and, if you believe the Shakespeare version of events, the setting of Macbeth.
Forfar also punches above its weight on art. The Meffan Museum and Art Gallery combines works by Angus artists with a strong collection of early medieval Pictish carved stones. Around town, the Forfar Murals Trail links colourful painted facades celebrating local folklore, farming traditions and historical figures — an easy, free way to spend an afternoon on foot. Time your trip for the second Saturday of the month and you'll catch Forfar Market at the Community Campus, where regional makers sell prints and crafts alongside produce and jam.
Practically speaking, it's about 70 miles north of Edinburgh and 53 miles south of Aberdeen, so a car makes life easiest. Without one, there's a direct bus from Edinburgh Airport, or you can shuttle into Aberdeen and catch a coach down. Come between May and September for the mildest weather and long daylight — and pack a raincoat, because this is still Scotland.
