I think this shop is brilliant! I am passionate about the Fairtrade Movement, and so I think it's…read morereally good that Dornoch, having had Fairtrade status for a few years, now has a wonderful shop dedicated to selling fairly traded products and helping people work their way out of desperate situations and get themselves a decent standard of living. I can do almost all of my Christmas and general gift shopping there, because there's such a wide variety of stuff from all over the world. Of course, I can't resist all the yummy food, chocolate and sweeties either! :D The atmosphere is always friendly - indeed the door is often opened for you as you go in! They play a lot of world music which makes a great change from the mainstream stuff that one hears in many shops. You're sure to find something really different for presents or even just to treat yourself! Fantastic little shop and I hope to see more Simply The Best shops opening elsewhere in the future :D

A lovely little pottery down on the bay in Cromarty. Lots of great pieces to take home and use…read more Lots of the pottery is made in glorious blues and greens that perfectly reflect the colours of the water in the bay. The pieces are made by a German lady, Bärbel Dister from Hamburg. We have a few mugs, a salt shaker and a lovely spoon rest from here and we always visit when we're in the area.

We found this place by accident last year, purchased a few quirky items (a mug, a spoon rest and an…read moreunusually shaped salt shaker, both in pretty greenish, blueish colour). I just fell in love with these luminous colours, that pick up the blues and greens in the Highlands that we admire so much every day. But of course there's plenty of colours to choose from. This pottery is the perfect thing for me to take home and to remind me of my beloved Scotland when I sit in my office in Hamburg, having a cuppa and wishing I were back in Scotland. Just HAD to come back this year for more! We bought some beautiful mugs, very reasonably priced, small mug £10, big ones £12, there were also huge ones for £17. There's a good choice of items, the owner often sells them in her shop herself. Had a look at the website before we went there this year and found out that Cromarty Pottery, originally opened in 1965, and probably is the oldest still operating in northern Scotland. It is now run by Bärbel Dister, who happens to be from Hamburg, like me lol. I am really suprised about the prices, I just love handmade pottery, and I have bought my fair share in both Scotland and Ireland, most were much pricier. If you consider it's all handmade, every piece is unique, and the colours are just so beautiful people don't mind spending 10-12 quid for a portion of fish'n'chips in a restaurant, but 12£ for a mug is too much? I really don't get it. We'll surely be back on our next holiday, we've agreed to phone in a few weeks before to get a few things in the colours we'd like, maybe even take a class if we can get together a group of 6-7 people.

I love this quirky touristy shop on Aberlour High Street in the centre of Aberlour town just beside…read morethe piazza. You go in for a snoop around and out you come with a few goodies. HOW come? Well, if and when you visit this shop you will find out why :-) It's the power of persuasion of beautifully displayed items that tempt your consciousness and you won't know what happened until it does. I think they petty much sell everything from typically touristy to every day items like whiskey, tea pots, egg holders, chutney, honey, shortbread, chocolate, cakes, teas , napkins, wine, special beer, gin, fish, sausages, salmon, caviar.......and much more. If you have the time don't miss out and stop there for a bit of browsing.

In the middle of a 3 Speyside distillery tour, we needed lunch! There are a few good sit down /…read morenicer restaurants nearby, but we don't typically have a big meal mid-day, so we found Spey Larder to be a good option for takeaway sandwiches (or "Rolls" as they call them) It's a market with a full deli and a great cheese selection. I'm a vegetarian, so got a Cheese Roll on a seeded roll. They make it on the spot for you, so you can let them know what you want or don't want on it. It's quick service with pre-packaged drinks and snacks available if you want. There's no seating, but it's a couple of minutes' walk around the corner to benches which overlook the Spey River. If you want something quicker and perhaps lighter than a full sit-down meal, Spey Larder will serve you well.

This Argos is actually inside the Sainsbury itself. Great that you can order & clock, they do have…read moresome items in stock, but not on display

What an interesting wee shop. We just stopped here by chance while touring around the area and we…read morewere glad we did. Slightly esoteric in its nature, it has a lovely selection of natural remedies, essential oils and jewelry all sold by a very knowledgeable and charming vendor. My wife bought skin creams and an oil burner and I bought a lovely locally made shaving soap bar. We went back again last time we were in the area. Hard not to. It's a lovely wee shop in a lovely little town.

I love this place. A few years ago, on the way to Cromarty,…read morewe came across this little gem, and I am so glad we went in! The smell when you come in is so phantastic, this is not your average tourist souvenir shop, you come in and feel welcome, sort of at home, it's hard to describe. There is so much to discover, I easily spend an hour browsing, even though it's a small shop. Got to chat a bit with the lovely vendor, who is a trained herbalist, and she really knows her stuff, she gave me very good advice for my skin condition and I bought quite some stuff off her, could have bought the whole shop. We went back another time to stock up, sadly we haven't been able to go back to the highlands for a couple of years, I just wish we had a shop like this in Hamburg! There is a big public car park across the road. If you want tips on what to do in the area, the vendor will gladly give you tips, e.g. How to get to the nearby Glen.

The Edinburgh Woolen Mill shop is in Elgin's High Street it is quite small and the freestanding…read morerails put out on the main foor area can make it difficult to navigate if the shop is busy quite a lot of sorry oops excuse me. The stock consists of mid fashion items at resonable prices with a section devoted to bargin rails The area to the rear stocks more Tartan and Tweed items with woolens of the jumper and twin set style. The majority of the clientele seem to be middle age +The staff are pleasant and helpfull

I have driven the A96 hundreds of times. It's NOT known for its good food. But this place is a good…read morefind. It's in the square near the Grampian hotel. A gift shop and cafe. We had lunch. Food was good: soups, sandwiches, salads and sweets. Service was friendly and fast. Recommended.

Lovely dress down cafe only a few minutes from the distillery. Stick to your ribs soup and hearty…read moresandwiches are welcome before sampling whiskey. Prices are resonable and service was friendly and prompt.

Tain Kilt Hire is a fantastic and friendly little place to shop. I've been here many times with my…read morefather and brothers and everytime we go it's always the same friendly service with excellent banter. The lady is lovely, you couldn't have asked for a better person, and she obviously knows her stuff as she does an excellent job of everything she does, weather it be her kilt hire, or the dress making which she also does on the premisis. The shop is a fair size with the main shop with accessories, i.e. ready made kilts, shirts, ties, braces, pins brooches, fascinators, and many other accessories on show, and at reasonable prices. out back she has a changing room and a huge space for her stock and measuring and I guess making her garments. In respect to the kilt hire, she will take your measurements and order, and you can collect it from the thursday and have it until the tuesday, because she is not open on a monday. This is however long enough. The hire itself is very competitive, infact I find it very cheap, especially as it's the real deal that you are getting. The kilts are always delivered in pristine condition, and you can order from a wide selection of tartans. She will even go out of her way to look for a specific tartan if you have one in mind. Parking is a little bit of a pain, but there are car parks minutes away from the shop. Overall I'd definatley recommend the Tain Kilt Hire if you are after the full highland dress for any occassion, very professional service, and she will put you at ease straight away!