1 Best Sight in Aberdeen and the Northeast, Scotland

Given the general destruction caused by the 16th-century upheaval of the Reformation, abbeys in Scotland tend to be ruinous and deserted, but at the 13th-century Pluscarden Abbey the ancient way of life continues. Monks from Prinknash Abbey near Gloucester, England, returned here in 1948, and the abbey is now a Benedictine community. Daily mass is at 8 am (10 am on Sunday) and is sung by the monks using Gregorian chant.