Surrounded on two sides by 100 miles of unspoilt coastline and on the third by the 4000-foot tops of the Cairngorms, Aberdeenshire offers mountain and moor, salmon-stocked rivers, granite towns, sturdy slate-roofed villages and unpretentious local people - a haven for wildlife, watersport enthusiasts, photographers and kite flyers. The area also boasts Scotland’s third city, with one of Scotland’s most enchanting skylines, and Balmoral Castle, the Scottish home of the Royal Family since 1852. Don’t forget to sample the "water of life" and visit one of the eight distilleries on the world’s only Malt Whisky Trail.