Dear readers, please note that this is a sponsored post, for a UK-based travel company. Hey, a girl’s gotta live – and travel!

Loch Ness and Nessie are probably the first things that come to mind when the word loch is mentioned. So it was for me when I first visited Scotland back in the early 1990s. I had my head full of legends upon legends about this mythical creature and its watery home. I even camped by the lake with my ex-boyfriend and we did a special ritual to invite Nessie to pop her head out. But that’s just us. Even if you aren’t interested in spotting the monster, Loch Ness is a beautiful place to visit.

But the lochs of Scotland are many beyond Ness, and a source of great beauty and pride for Scots.

If you decide to visit Scotland for a tour of the lochs, instead of hassling with the larger London airports, fly out of Bristol, perhaps with an overnight stay at a hotel near Bristol airport. On the other side, once you’ve landed, choose between several airport hotels at Glasgow, should you wish to overnight. Then head out to Loch Lomond, a freshwater Scottish loch, which by surface area is the largest lake in Great Britain.

Loch Lomond offers active travelers the opportunity to enjoy the outdoors. Choose between all sorts of water activities such as wake-boarding, water-skiing, and canoeing. Lessons are available for those who are not so sure-footed on the water. The loch is also large enough to play hose to everything from kayaks and speed boats to cruisers, and even yachts. If you prefer to stay out of the water, do a casual walk around the Loch to take in the vistas.

Once worn out, dine out at one of Loch Lomond’s lakeside restaurants. These range from high-end establishments and country inns to local pubs with simple grub and plentiful ale. Have a meal at one of these spots along the shoreline, perhaps followed by a stroll at dusk.

You can enjoy more of Scotland’s famed lochs around Edinburgh. Loch Leven is just an hour-long drive from the center of the city. Enjoy the wild countryside around this freshwater lake and then hop on a ferry that goes across to Loch Leven Castle, famed as the prison that once held Mary, Queen of Scots. While here, don’t skip The Meadows, a pretty park that was once Burgh Loch.

Before exploring more of Scotland’s lakes, such as Loch Dundas or the manmade loch in Edinburgh’s Holyrood Park, rest up at one of the hotels near Edinburgh airport. And if you end up spotting a monster at one of the lochs, do report!