My wife and I went on our first European vacation last summer.

Scotland is the next bucket-list location we want to visit. Since we have several active members in the forum who live in Scotland, I figured this would be a great source of reliable info.

The cruise we wanted only sailed in early August, so that's when we were there. That was a huge mistake. First, it was hotter in Rome last summer than it was in Texas - over 100F (38-40+C) the entire time we were there. The difference between Rome and home is air conditioning - its freezing inside in Texas summers, but not in Rome......... Plus everything was ridiculously crowded.

There are an overwhelming number of choices of guided tours of Scotland. But there are several specific things I want to do that no single trip offers.

So what would be the best month to visit ?

My research so far shows that we have almost zero likelihood of melting like we did last time. I honestly had no idea it was always that cold in Scotland year round.

I've read midges (small flying bugs) are annoying and prominent in summer. Are they really everywhere ? Is it really something to plan around to avoid ?

So the balance seems to be temperature vs crowds (and bugs ?).

Is there a happy medium ?