Drumcarrow Craig

The walk up Drumcarrow Craig rewards you with proper views across Fife once you've done the legwork. It's not a mountain - more a steep outcrop that rises sharply from the farmland west of St Andrews - but the effort is modest and the payoff is genuine. On a clear day you can see right across the Firth of Tay towards the Ochil Hills. The summit itself is bare rock with gorse scrub, nothing fancy, but the perspective of the surrounding countryside makes it worthwhile.

Walkers will get the most from this one. It takes maybe forty minutes up from the road, bit steep in places but nothing requiring kit beyond decent boots. Families with younger kids might find it a slog - there's no padding or interest along the way, just gradient and grassland. History types won't find much here either; it's geology and views, that's all.

Free to access, naturally. Early morning or late afternoon gives you the best light and fewest people about. If the weather's turning, don't bother - the wind picks up something fierce on the exposed top and the views vanish within minutes.

Stay at Craigtoun Meadows or Cairnsmill, both within walking distance of the trailhead, and you've got a solid half-day's walking sorted before exploring St Andrews itself. It's the kind of place you slot in between the town and the coast - not a destination on its own, but a proper little workout with decent rewards.