See the sights of Ayrshire and Galloway by bus and train. This unique experience offers travellers a great opportunity to sit back and enjoy some of the breathtaking scenery brought to you by the Community Rail Partnership for Carrick and Wigtownshire.

There are many trips to choose from, travel up one of the steepest railway lines in Britain, see Ailsa Craig and Arran and the three Kingdoms of Ireland, Man and Scotland. You can sample whisky at Bladnoch, see the ancestral homelands of Robert the Bruce, visit Castles and Abbeys and Scotland's Lands End – the Mull of Galloway.

All this with a ScotRail and SAYLSA rail and minibus tour.

Alight at Barrhill station. This tour takes you to Galloway Forest Park which is situated partly in Ayrshire and partly in Galloway.

The area includes Southern Scotland's highest peak, the Merrick, 2359ft (719m), and Bruce's Stone, which commemorates the Battle of Glentrool in 1307 and some stunning scenery around Loch Trool. It is like visiting the Highlands, but in the Lowlands.

There are five walks offering a range of challenges from a simple forest walk to the Merrick climb that start at the Glentrool Car Park.

The Glentrool Visitors Centre is open from April through to October and offers a range of snacks and souvenirs.

Our minibus will collect you from Barrhill station and take you through part of the Galloway Forest to Newton Stewart and on to the distillery at Bladnoch where you can have a guided tour of the distillery and sample a wee dram. Adjacent to the distillery is the Bladnoch Inn which serves a range of meals.

It is one of the best preserved abbeys in Scotland, with remains of the church, cloister, chapter house and domestic premises still visible. Run by Historic Scotland, it is open from April to the end of September.

Set in 200 acres of Country Park, Culzean Castle - built in the late 16th century for Thomas Kennedy - was reconstructed 200 years later by Robert Adam. It was the former home of the Marquess of Ailsa and was acquired by the National Trust in 1945.

When the castle passed out of Kennedy ownership, it was stipulated that the apartment at the top of the castle be given to General Dwight Eisenhower in recognition of his role as Supreme Commander of the Allied Forces in Europe during the Second World War. The General visited Culzean Castle four times, including once while President of the United States.

Tour continues with a coastal drive to Girvan. Return train from Girvan station

The gardens present opportunities for enjoying views over the inspiring Tasmanian Glade, standing under the awesome rhubarb-like Gunnera or wander through groves of eucalypts. Digital audio guides are available to enhance your experience of the Garden. Return along the Galloway coast to Girvan station with an afternoon tea-stop en route.

Alight at Stranraer station. This tour takes you to Scotland's Lands End, the southernmost point of Scotland and features cliffs over 200ft (60m) high that jut out into the Irish Sea.

Standing on top of the cliffs is the lighthouse, built in 1830, with a light 325ft (99m) above sea level. On certain days, it is open to the public and nearby is a museum open daily from April to October. Surrounding the lighthouse is an RSPB nature reserve and close by, the award-winning Gallie Craig Coffee House.

Return along the Galloway coast to Girvan station with an afternoon tea-stop en route.

Alight at Girvan station. This tour takes you to one of Ayrshire's picture postcard villages and on to our local pottery.

At Barr you will be able to have lunch at the recently re-opened King's Arms Hotel and view the village before a drive on to Pinmore and the Peinn Mor pottery. The pottery owned by Keith and Beryl Dawdry is based in the former village primary school and much of their work is inspired by the world of the ancient Celts and the Gallovidian Pictish heritage of the ancient kingdom of Carrick.

After leaving the pottery we take you back to Girvan along the A714 with spectacular views over the Firth of Clyde and the islands of Ailsa Craig, Arran, and Holy Island with Argyle as the backdrop.