Burns Country

Scotland’s most celebrated bard Robert Burns is renowned the world over. Author of famous poems such as Auld Lang Syne and Tam O’ Shanter, Burns was born in Alloway (a mile and a half south of Ayr, 20 minutes from the Inn) in 1759 and died 37 years later in Dumfries, just over an hours drive away.

Almost since his death in 1796, the birthplace of Robert Burns in the leafy village of Alloway has been a place of pilgrimage for many visitors each year. The work of Burns is characterised by its references to the places in which he grew up, and his poetry and songs weave a fascinating trail through the Ayrshire countryside known today as Burns Country. It was this landscape that Burns celebrated in song ‘Behind yon hills where Stinchar flows, ‘mang moors an’ mosses many-o’ and paths along that very river take walkers through the peaceful valley. Burns remained attached to the rural environment into which he was born and shunned the bright lights of fashionable Edinburgh to live close to the land.

The neighbouring county of Dumfries and Galloway also boasts a rich connection to Scotland’s national poet and the surrounding areas such as Galloway Forest Park or Mabie Forest offer great opportunities for walking and cycling. This region of Scotland offers plenty of scope too for visitors looking for an activity-filled day tour from the inn.

Highlights

The National Trust for Scotland has now agreed to take over the Alloway Heritage Park in which Burns Cottage is sited.

You can find as much Burns memorabilia here as you need - and more!

• Burns Cottage in Alloway, 20 minutes away - where Burns lived till he was seven years old. This white cottage was actually built by Burns' father
• Burns Museum right beside the cottage, which houses priceless manuscripts and letters from the Scottish Bard
• Burns Monument , with its Corinthian pillars on the banks of the River Ayr
• Alloway Auld Kirk and Land O'Burns Centre ( Burns Heritage Park ). Set among the delightful scenery of historic Alloway in Ayrshire, Burns National Heritage Park is an opportunity to experience Scotland's National Poet.
• Nearby Mauchline - where Burns once farmed at Mossgiel Farm
• The Burns museum and memorial tower at Mauchline
• Bachelors' Club, a few miles west of Mauchline and just down the road from the Inn at Tarbolton, where Burns founded a debating society in 1780, and which is now a National Trust museum
• Irvine, 20 minutes from the Inn , where Burns worked as a flax dresser from 1781 to 1784, has a Burns Museum