A Scottish Pilgrimage
June 2005
Trip Summary
Group Leaders: The Rev. Canon Stephen N. Brannon &
Dr. James J. Rawls
ACIS Group ID: 20372
U.S. Gateway City: San Francisco
Departure Date: June 10, 2005
Return Date: June 21, 2005
Length of Trip: 12 days
Highlights: Edinburgh Castle, St. Margaret Chapel, High Kirk of St. Giles, Royal Mile, Palace of Holyroodhouse, home of John Knox, Rosslyn Chapel, Holy Island (Lindisfarne), Stirling Castle, Dunblane Cathedral, Dryburgh Abbey, home of Sir Walter Scott (Abbotsford House), Melrose Abbey, Loch Lomond, the Isles of Mull and Iona (Inner Hebrides)
Program Fee: $3179*
+$95 US: ACIS Registration Fee
+$180 US: Airport Tax/Departure Fee
What to Expect on Your ACIS Trip:
• Round-trip air travel on scheduled airlines
• Accommodations in well located 3 and 4 star hotels
• Surface transportation and airport transfers by private coach
• 10 breakfasts, 9 dinners, and 2 lunches
• Professional sightseeing guides
• Full time tour manager providing commentary and managing travel logistics
• Medical and cancellation insurance
• 24-hour emergency hotline
*Based on double occupancy. To guarantee this price, you must register by August 31, 2004. Registration will be limited to 30 participants. Please refer to the “Terms and Conditions” contained within the ACIS Registration form for additional travel information.
A Scottish Pilgrimage
Day 1. Friday, June 10 - Overnight Flight
Departure from the United States.
Day 2. Saturday, June 11 - Carberry Tower
Arrival in Edinburgh. Transfer to Carberry Tower. Reception and welcome dinner.
Day 3. Sunday, June 12 - Carberry Tower
Attend morning services at the Church of Scotland’s High Kirk of St. Giles. Free time on Edinburgh’s Royal Mile. Afternoon visit to mysterious 15-th century Rosslyn Chapel.
Day 4. Monday, June 13 - Carberry Tower
Morning tour of Edinburgh Castle. Afternoon visits to John Knox House and Old St. Paul’s, the mother parish of the Scottish Episcopal Church. Tour Royal Palace of Holyroodhouse.
Day 5. Tuesday, June 14 - Carberry Tower
All-day excursion to Holy Island, the remote outpost of Lindisfarne, home of seventh-century Celtic missionaries St. Aidan and St. Cuthbert.
Day 6. Wednesday, June 15 - Carberry Tower
Morning tour of Stirling Castle, girlhood home of Mary Queen of Scots. Free time in Stirling. Afternoon visit to thirteenth-century Dunblane Cathedral.
Day 7. Thursday, June 16 - Carberry Tower
Excursion to the ancient ruins of Dryburgh Abbey and scenic Melrose Abbey. Afternoon visit to Abbotsford House, the baronial home of author Sir Walter Scott.
Day 8. Friday, June 17 - Tobermory
Travel through the Central Highlands along the “bonnie, bonnie banks of Loch Lomond.”
Arrival by ferry on the Isle of Mull.
Day 9. Saturday, June 18 - Tobermory
All-day excursion to Iona, the Cradle of Celtic Christianity, the mystical island where St. Columba lived in the sixth century where the Book of Kells was fashioned.
Day 10. Sunday, June 19 - Tobermory
Holy Communion at rural St. Columba’s Scottish Episcopal Church on the Isle of Mull. Free afternoon in picturesque village of Tobermory. Gala farewell dinner.
Day 11. Monday, June 20 - Edinburgh
Ferry back to mainland, enjoying lunch in the quaint seaside town of Oban. Afternoon visit to the grave of Robert “Rob Roy” MacGregor. Free evening in Edinburgh.
Day 12. Tuesday, June 21 - Departure
Transfer to the airport for return flight to the United States.
A Scottish Pilgrimage will be a journey through some of the most beautiful countryside in the highlands and islands of Scotland. Our pilgrimage will be a journey inward as well, a journey to deepen and renew our faith.
We’ll explore the origins of Celtic Christianity, visiting world-heritage sites of breathtaking beauty along with unexpected hidden gems that most tourists never see. We’ll explore charming out-of-the-way places associated with such fascinating figures as Columba, Aidan, Margaret, John Knox, George MacLeod, and Mary Queen of Scots.
We plan to keep the pace leisurely and relaxed, allowing time for individual prayer and meditation at the sites we visit. Accommodations near Edinburgh will be at Carberry Tower, a Scottish castle that once served as the home of the aunt of Queen Elizabeth II. Carberry’s tranquil grounds include spacious lawns and stately gardens. In the village of Tobermory, on the Isle of Mull, we’ll stay in a grand Victorian hotel overlooking the sea.
Registration will be limited to 30 participants. You’re invited to an informational meeting and Scottish Tea at Trinity Episcopal Church, 275 East Spain Street, Sonoma, California at 4:00 pm on Sunday August 15. You also may contact us at Trinity, (707) 938-4846 or snbrannon@aol.com .
The Rev. Canon Stephen N. Brannon is Rector of Trinity Episcopal Church in Sonoma, having served as a parish priest and university chaplain since 1969 and as Chancellor of Province VIII of the Episcopal Church from 1989 to 2000.
Dr. James J. Rawls is a graduate of Stanford University and received his Ph.D. in history from the University of California, Berkeley. A licensed lay preacher in the Episcopal Church, he is the author or editor of more than two dozen books.
Completed registration forms should be returned to ACIS with $95 registration fee. An additional payment of $400 will be due 30 days later. Participants must be paid in full by February 15, 2005 to avoid late fees. The above prices are based on a group number of 30. If the number of participants falls below this, a small group surcharge may be assessed.
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