Dunnottar Castle is set in a fantastically scenic location and is probably more famous now than it was as a functioning fortress.
Visiting Dunnottar Castle
Dunnottar Castle is an easy visit, being just off the A92 and well signposted with a small car park. Facilities are a bit limited but I’m sure there are cafes in nearby Stonehaven. You can see a lot of the castle exterior by walking around the headland but to see the interior and walk around the tip of the peninsula you have to pay. Prices were reasonable though.
My Experience
It was a cold January day in 2016 on this particular visit and we only had about 30 minutes as we were getting the ferry across to the Shetlands. We walked around the headland leading to the castle itself and down onto the beach. As you can see from the photos, this is a site with steep paths and lots of uneven ground as well as sheer drops from the cliffs!
The second batch of photos are from a late summer visit and we walked around a bit more to give a better idea of the setting. The third set are from a May 2012 visit where we actually went in to the castle.
Dunnottar Castle Photo Gallery
History
There doesn’t seem to have been much action at Dunnottar considering the ongoing border walls. Wallace captured the castle and burned the English garrison alive in the church apparently. Until Cromwell the castle was militarily quiet and he besieged and captured it in 1650 and it was used as a prison, in 1685, for Covenanter prisoners.
References
The Wiki page here is rather good.
The actual castle site here is excellent, giving a good introduction to the area and options for visiting.