10 Things to do in Kinross That You Shouldn't Miss

** The car park and toilets are currently closed due to building works, with public access to the trails via the Loch Leven Heritage Trail. For more information please check the RSPB Loch Leven blog on our website. We are sorry for the inconvenience. ** Set on the southern shore of the loch, RSPB Scotland Loch Leven nature reserve offers a great day out for families, nature lovers and wildlife watchers alike. Formerly known as Vane Farm, the RSPB bought the reserve in 1967 as a centre for environmental education and it is still a fantastic place for children to explore and discover nature today. Visitors can climb the trail through the woodland to the top of Vane Hill for a spectacular view over the Kinross-shire hills and countryside, or meander down to the wetland trail where three hides allow people to get really close to nature. In the summer, ospreys fish on the loch, and in the winter, thousands of pink-footed geese, swans and ducks make the reserve their home.

This site is closed for now. We’re working hard to gradually reopen the places you love while making sure the experience is safe for everyone. The island fastness of Lochleven is associated with many colourful events and has been visited by countless distinguished personalities during its history. The castle will be forever associated in the memory with another Stewart sovereign, Mary Queen of Scots. She first visited in 1561 as a guest of the owner, Sir William Douglas. But her last stay, in 1567-8, was as his prisoner. It was at Lochleven that she was compelled to abdicate her throne in favour of her infant son, James VI. The castle walls held her for less than a year. In May 1568 she escaped across the loch and before that month was out she was in exile in England. She never saw her native land again. Accessed by small passenger boat. Sailings run on a shuttle basis to and from the island on demand.