Wigtown: Books, History and a Circular Route through Town, Countryside and Coastal Areas

Wigtown is a destination for anyone wishing to combine literature, history and landscape. As Scotland’s National Book Town, the town focuses on books and events, while historical traces lead back to an early medieval royal castle and the Wigtown Martyrs. The Lovers’ Walk, Martyrs’ Stake and Wigtown Harbour circular route complements these cultural impressions with perspectives on town, countryside and coastal areas.

Discover Scotland’s National Book Town

Wigtown has seventeen bookshops and book-related businesses. This means that literature is not limited to a single building or event, but is present in many different forms. Those who enjoy browsing, reading or exploring the stories behind books can therefore plan their stay with a clear cultural focus. This emphasis is particularly helpful for families with different interests, as literary discoveries can be combined with historic sites and outdoor routes without everyone having to spend the same holiday day in the same way.

A special reason to visit is the Wigtown Book Festival. It is a ten-day literary festival in Scotland’s National Book Town and was founded in 1999. The festival includes more than 200 events covering music, theatre, food and visual arts. This creates a broad range of themes for your travel planning: in addition to literary content, stage performances, music, food and visual culture can also shape your stay. Those seeking the festival atmosphere should take this focus into account when choosing their travel dates.

Castles, Memorial Sites and Regional History

Wigtown Castle is designated as a Scheduled Monument. The remains form an early medieval royal castle, visible as an earthwork. This site represents an older aspect of Wigtown that can be recognised in the landscape and complements the more contemporary book culture with a historical connection. For visitors interested in church and regional history, the remains of Wigtown’s Old Kirk are also part of the area’s points of reference. Behind it, in an enclosed area, are the graves of the five Wigtown Martyrs.

The Wigtown Martyrs, Margaret Lachlan and Margaret Wilson, were Scottish Covenanters. In 1685, they were tied to stakes in Wigtown’s mudflats and drowned as the tide rose. Another monument stands on Windy Hill on the western edge of Wigtown. It is the largest monument to the Wigtown Martyrs and offers extensive views across large parts of Galloway. The memory of Louis McGuffie VC is also rooted in the town: he was a recipient of the Victoria Cross from Wigtown. A memorial paving stone for him was unveiled at Wigtown County Buildings in 2018; the gateway arch of the Louis McGuffie VC Memorial Gardens was also unveiled in 2018.

A Circular Route through Town, Countryside and Coastal Areas

For a trip combining exercise and local history, the Lovers’ Walk, Martyrs’ Stake and Wigtown Harbour circular route is a good option. It leads through town, countryside and coastal areas, combining several landscape impressions in one route. The Wigtown Explorer route runs entirely along official core paths. You can give these two options different priorities when planning your day: the deciding factor is whether you want to focus on the circular route with its named points of interest or on a route along official core paths.

The Right Accommodation for Your Travel Focus

When looking for a holiday apartment or holiday cottage in Wigtown, it helps to first define the character of your trip. If the literary town, with its bookshops and festival, is to set the tone, culture and events will be the focus. Those who prefer historical themes can include Wigtown Castle, the Old Kirk and the memorial sites in their plans. For an active trip, on the other hand, the two routes described above and the landscape around Wigtown take centre stage. This allows you to choose your accommodation according to the holiday experience you want, without reducing the town to just one theme.

For further comparison, you can also look at Port William, Carsluith, Kirkbean, Newton Stewart, Kirkconnel, Balmaclellan, Garlieston and Stranraer.

For the higher-level travel overview: Dumfries And Galloway.