Scotland 2022

Scotland, UK 2022 Introduction

This trip was special for several reasons. First and foremost, because we planned it specifically to celebrate our 25th Wedding Anniversary. Secondly, it was our first trip abroad after the COVID pandemic travel restrictions of 2020-2021. It became very clear to us during the pandemic how important travel was to our mental well-being and ability to process the world around us.

The trip itself had four distinct phases:
1) Travel to and time on our own in Edinburgh.
2) Seven days of guided tour around the country. The tour company says nine days, but two of those are defined as "arrive" and "depart" when there is no touring beyond a meet and greet dinner.
3) Time on our own in Glasgow before returning to Edinburgh.
4) A day trip to visit historical sites in the countryside near Edinburgh and then traveling home.

The guided tour was the Country Roads of Scotland offered by Insight Vacations. We had an excellent Tour Director, Cam, and Coach Driver, Mark. Click to see a map of tour route. We know group tours aren't for everyone, but once again we made some wonderful new friends and enjoyed seeing so much of Scotland without having to worry about transportation, hotels, or the majority of our meals. Even with the time on airplanes and the coach tour, we each still walked close to 70 miles over the two weeks.




Saturday, 6/11/2022 – Leaving Des Moines

Our flight didn't leave Des Moines until mid-afternoon so we spent Saturday morning finishing the packing and running a couple last errands. We headed to the airport a little after 1p, breezed through security, and learned it's cheaper to buy bottled water from the vending machine than in the store. We had two connections to make and because of schedule changes, we were a little concerned about only having 70 minutes in Chicago O'Hare and 85 minutes in Washington Dulles. We made all our connections and it turned out another family of four was on the same flights all the way from Des Moines to Edinburgh. As is usual, Julie was able to sleep for an hour or so on the red-eye leg of the trip but James couldn't sleep at all.




Sunday, 6/12/2022 – Arriving in Edinburgh

Our flight was scheduled to land at Edinburgh around 10:45a but we made good time and touched down (or thumped down) about 20 minutes early. Since the flight arrived sooner than expected, it was not really a surprise when we had to stop on the tarmac because another plane was still in our gate. It was surprising when, after sitting there 15-20 minutes, the captain comes on and states we are going to a different gate because the plane that is in the way is having mechanical issues and can't be moved. So, landing early turned into stepping off the plane about 30 minutes late.

James was able to breeze through immigration using an automated kiosk, but the one Julie used seemed to be having trouble since 4 or 5 people in a row (including her) had to stand in line to speak with an immigration agent. She didn't have any problems once she got through the line and then we waited another 15-20 minutes for our bags to come into the customs area.

We then headed out to the arrivals area where there was supposed to be a driver with our name on a sign to take us to the hotel. By the time we got out to look for the driver, it was a little over an hour after our "arrival" time. After making several circuits of the area, we were flagged down an information agent who helped us get in touch with the car service. Unfortunately, our driver had to leave to pick someone else up, but was returning to the airport for another incoming flyer who needed to go to the same hotel. We waited near the Starbucks around 25 minutes before the driver showed up. Then, we waited another 20 minutes while he tried to find the other passenger. After the passenger didn't show up and knowing how long we'd been waiting, the driver collected us and we left the airport. We got maybe 3 miles off airport property when the driver received a call that the other passenger was stuck in customs. We pulled off the highway into a bus stop so he could wait a few minutes to see if we needed to return to the airport. The decision came back to not wait since they couldn't get a hold of the other party to verify how quickly they might be ready for pick-up. The silver lining in the delays was when we finally arrived at the hotel a little after 2p, they had a room ready instead of having to check the bags and come back later to get into our room.

After using the facilities and resting for a bit, we went on a short walk. Our hotel was in the Leith area where a lot of rehabilitation was happening turning the old docks into gentrified living areas with lots of pubs and shops. It started to sprinkle so we returned to our room where Julie took about a 2 hour nap while James checked some things and then laid down himself for about 60 min. After our brief respite, we reconfigured our checked bags and carry ons for coach versus air travel. We then went on a longer walk looking for someplace to get a bite to eat. We ultimately came back to the restaurant in the hotel. While we were eating, we noticed one of the hotel staff with a "Lift out of order" sign walking quickly by the door. Sure enough, when we went to go to our room, the elevator was out and we had the pleasure of some after dinner exercise climbing the stairs to our 5th floor room.




Monday, 6/13/2022 – Our Day in Edinburgh

Monday morning we headed to breakfast a little before 8a. We had purchased tickets for one of the hop-on/hop-off bus tours in Edinburgh so we walked to the nearest stop around 10:30a. The tour bus took us through lots of construction zones before heading into the historic City Center. We rode the bus about 2/3 of the way around the route before exiting at the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh.

James, in one of his less stellar moments, had forgotten to transfer the batteries for the bigger camera from the folio with all the charging cables to the backpack. We still managed to take a bunch of pictures using the smaller camera and our phones. The park was quite large with areas dedicated to different biomes. It also has some historic structures on the property. Incidentally, we had never really thought about what the inside of a giant hedge fence would really look like.

After a couple hours at the gardens, including lunch, we boarded the next hop-on hop-off bus and rode another 2/3 of the route back to the historic city center. We exited near the Queen's Palace of Holyroodhouse. It's at the bottom of the Royal Mile that runs up to Edinburgh Castle. Across the street is the very modern Scotland Parliament building. We walked about 2/3 of the mile up the hill and then cut to the right to find another bus stop for our tour company at St. Andrew Square.

After riding the bus about 1/2 of its route, we disembarked where we had first boarded in the morning and walked back to the hotel. We freshened up a bit and around 4:30p climbed back down to the lobby where we met most of the other travelers on the guided tour. After some introductory remarks from our Tour Director, we all headed out to a very tasty dinner at a nearby pub. We returned to our room a little before 8p.




Tuesday, 6/14/2022 – Edinburgh With the Tour Group

Today our tour started in earnest with everyone meeting for breakfast around 8a. We then boarded the coach for a driving tour around the city of Edinburgh. This included winding in circles through historic neighborhoods passing some exclusive private schools. We also drove around Arthur's Seat (hill to the south of old Edinburgh) which offered some amazing views of the coast line as well as inland. The coach dropped us off near the entrance to Edinburgh Castle where our local guide took us in and shared some history about the castle itself.

After our tour ended we had free time to walk around the castle and the Royal Mile. We chose poorly and spent most of our time waiting for food as the little eatery we chose was understaffed and we arrived during a rush. We regrouped at 2p on the coach for the return trip to the hotel to organize ourselves for an early departure on Wednesday.

Tuesday evening we attended a Scottish dinner and cabaret show. During dinner James sampled a optional haggis "bon bon"; haggis formed into an inch and a half diameter ball, then fried. There were five musicians who sang and played instruments from the fiddle to an accordion and, of course, the bag pipes. A troupe of four young female dancers demonstrated several traditional Scottish dances. We returned to the hotel late (which is why we needed the afternoon to get ready) and went straight to bed.




Wednesday, 6/15/2022 – North To the Highlands

Wednesday started a little earlier with breakfast at 7a and the coach departing the hotel a little after 8a. After navigating out of the morning Edinburgh traffic, we traveled west to cross the Firth of Forth and then northeast to St. Andrews. Most people today know St. Andrews because of the famous golf courses. They were in the process of preparing to host the 150th British Open in July (2022). Long before golf became a mainstay, the city was home to the third oldest University in Great Britain (behind Oxford and Cambridge). This is where Prince William went to school and met his wife Kate. The city was also a destination for religious pilgrims travelling to the massive cathedral built between 1160 and 1318. Unfortunately, the cathedral was pretty much abandoned during the Protestant Reformation around 1559 and all that remains today are ruins.

After a little time to explore the city and stretch our legs, we reboarded the coach and headed northwest into the highlands. We stopped at Blair Atholl to visit Blair Castle, the ancestorial home of the Duke of Atholl. It was an impressive building that has been modified many times since the first tower was built during the crusades and sits in an extremely picturesque setting. The current Duke lives in South Africa; his grandfather, in order to avoid inheritance taxes, set up a trust and "gifted" the lands and buildings to the government for use as a park/tourist attraction. There was a lot of history on display in the building and acknowledgement of the family's service in several wars. It was also clear hunting was a major part of family tradition.

After afternoon tea at the castle, we completed the day's travels arriving in Inverness a little before 5p. We had some time to kill before our group dinner so we walked a little over a mile into the downtown area to look at Inverness Castle. Unfortunately, it's currently undergoing a significant refurbishment and is closed to the public. Some of the workers were leaving so James captured a decent shot through the construction fence at the main entrance. After a dinner filled with amusing conversation with some of our fellow travelers, we retired to our room to prepare for the next day's journey.




Thursday, 6/16/2022 – Up the Northeast Coast

Another 7a breakfast and 8a departure. The first driving segment of the day took only about 20 minutes as we headed out of Inverness to nearby Loch Ness. The coach only stopped for 20 minutes or so for a photo op. Nobody reported seeing Nessie.

We then took the short drive to a more somber location, the battlefield of Culloden (Kul - lod - den). This was the location where the last of the Jacobite uprisings was ended by the British in 1746 and resulted in dissolution of the highland clan system in Scotland. The battle, while technically brief (40 minutes) resulted in 1000 Jacobite fighters dying while the British only lost 50 soldiers. The British troops continued to pursue the remaining supporters of Charles's army showing no mercy to anyone they believed supported the Jacobite cause. There is a very nice visitors center on the site, but as little as 15 years ago there was little more to mark the event than some flags identifying the primary battle lines, a few plaques talking about the battle, stone markers in the field recognizing the clans who fought there, and a cairn erected in the 1950s.

After leaving Culloden, we headed northeast along the coast. We stopped for lunch in a quaint town where many of the displaced highland residents went when they were forced to leave their lands after the uprising. Many people who had been farmers learned new trades to support the fishing industry along the coast, moved to larger cities, or even left for other countries. We ate take-away fish and chips in a small park along the river.

We then headed father up the coast to the city of Wick. Here we went our separate ways for a bit as Julie headed to a Heritage Center which had artifacts and information about Wick's history including its fishing fleet which made it the herring capital of the world in the early 1800s. James on the other hand enjoyed a tour and tasting at the Pulteney Distillery Co where they make Scottish Whisky (note: in Scotland they do not put the "e" before the "y"… that's an Irish thing).

The two groups met again on the coach and we stopped by the hotel to drop things off before heading back out to a Cèilidh (Kā-lee), which is Gaelic for "gathering". We all crammed into a small room at a pub and listened to music and stories by a local storyteller. It was really entertaining and he brought out a local teenage, girl bag-pipe player to play several songs. We then returned to the hotel for supper before retiring to our rooms. This far north, the hotels are not quite as "modern"; to turn on the light in the bathroom, there was a pull string off to the side of the room.




Friday, 6/17/2022 – Over The Water To The Orkney Islands

Today we traveled farther north over the water to the Orkney Islands. After 30 minutes on the coach, we took a 50 minute ride on the pedestrian ferry from John O'Groats to Brough Ness on South Ronaldsay Island. The water wasn't too rough and the weather was clear enough to see things on several of the other islands as we passed. There we boarded another coach with a local driver/guide who drove us around several of the islands. The landscape is relatively barren with trees only really existing where they are protected from the commonly high winds by buildings.

The islands we visited are connected by "barriers" constructed during WWII to prevent German U-boats from approaching the British Naval ships stationed in the islands. These barriers were actually constructed by Italian prisoners of war who could not be forced to do the work, but agreed to help since the roadways connecting the islands were a public works/service project. There were over 600 captives from the campaigns in North Africa who helped build these causeways using stone, mesh, and then 5- and 10-ton blocks of concrete requiring pully systems to move the blocks into place. The laborers were allowed to build a chapel using spare materials from the construction work or items salvaged from sunken ships in the area. The Italian Chapel has been maintained with its beautiful painting work inside that many people confuse for real stone work.

As we drove around the Scapa Flow (the harbor created by the barriers and islands) we could see where one of the North Sea oil rigs was being retrofitted. We visited the town of Stromness where we had time to visit a few shops and grabbed lunch. We then continued up the west side of the "Mainland" island to see Skara Brae; a stone age village partially uncovered by a windstorm in 1850 and then excavated by archeologists. This village has multiple "houses" with what appears to be intact stone furniture and a workshop providing insight into the daily lives of the people who lived there. What happened to them is not known, but there are other neolithic age sites nearby including a stone circle at the Ring of Brodgar and a burial chamber that is aligned so sunlight enters the door at sunrise on the winter solstice.

While visiting the sites and driving into the city of Kirkwall, the sun was shining, but the wind had picked up and was blowing consistently over 25 mph with higher gusts. After a break for shopping and a visit to the Cathedral, the bus took us back to the ferry stop where we rode a little over 50 minutes in slightly rougher waters. Our Insight coach was waiting to return us to the hotel for supper and then bed. Dealing with the winds all day wore us out.




Saturday, 6/18/2022 – Across the North Coast Into The Western Highlands

Most of the day was spent on the coach. We left our hotel in Wick a few minutes after 8a. Our route took us along the northern coast before turning south into the heart of the highland countryside. We stopped a few times along the way for much needed breaks and occasionally for traffic in the road. The population is so low that many of the roads are single lane with "passing points" spaced out where people could stop and allow vehicles going the other direction to pass.

Our path took us past many scenic lochs (lakes) and streams through the upper plains between the highland mountains. We occasionally caught glimpses of ruins on distant hillsides. Our day ended on the western coast after we crossed over the bridge to the Isle of Skye. We arrived at our hotel right at 5p having spent over 6 hours on the coach during the day. While it was more stressful on the driver, we were all ready to stretch out in our rooms after supper that evening.




Sunday, 6/19/2022 – Morning on Skye and then South to Glencoe

The day started with a tour of the Isle of Skye. It lived up to the moniker the "misty isle" with low clouds obscuring the peaks of the mountains. The consistent wet atmosphere does create some picturesque waterfalls and we could see that under better conditions the landscape would be incredibly picturesque. Once our tour of the isle wrapped up, we began our journey south.

We stopped at an overlook to take a few pictures of Eilean Donan castle. The clouds broke up a little as we moved farther south creating dappled views of the mountains. Our next stop was a viewing point for Ben Nevis, the highest peak in Great Britain. This area was the original training grounds for the British Commando units in WWII that became the model for many special operations groups in modern militaries and there is a statue commemorating their service. After a lunch break at the equivalent of a Scottish Highlands tourist trap, we stopped at the Glencoe Nature Preserve Visitor Center where we learned about what the National Trust for Scotland is doing to preserve both the human history and natural environment of the 22 sq mile reserve. They had even recreated a building based on archeological studies done in the preserve.

After the preserve the coach transported us to our hotel in Glencoe for the evening. It was built at the ferry crossing as a hotel in 1877 and is still functioning today. They made some improvements (electricity), but the main stairwell sounds like it still relies on the original supports. A modern bridge replaced the ferry crossing, but views of Loch Linnhe are stunning.




Monday, 6/20/2022 – South to Glasgow

On the last day of actually touring with the group, we were given a little extra time in the morning with breakfast at 8a and departure at 9a. When we found our seats on the coach, there was a card from our Tour Director wishing us happy anniversary along with a box of chocolates. We drove south to a photo stop overlooking part of the Glencoe preserve with "The Three Sisters" mountain peaks. The weather was absolutely beautiful with mild temps and clear sunny skies.

Our next stop was on Loch Lomond. Everyone from the tour boarded a boat and we took a slow tour of the northern end of the Loch. Our tour director commented this was the first time he'd been on the cruise where people crowded on the open air deck; usually everyone crowds in to the enclosed lower deck because of rain or mist.

After the boat ride, we boarded the coach for the last leg of the journey into Glasgow. We arrived at George's Square around 1:30p where we could grab something to eat and take a couple pictures of the City Chambers building (City Hall). We wandered around some shops with friends from the tour before meeting the coach at 3:30p for the ride to our hotel.

Most of the group met one last time for a special dinner in Glasgow. Some of them had to be in the lobby at 3a to make earlier morning flights while others were hoping the British Rail strike wouldn't impact their plans the next day. We simply headed to our room to relax since we had two more days in Glasgow on our own.




Tuesday, 6/21/2022 – Happy 25th Wedding Anniversary

The first part of the day was spent resting. While we really enjoyed the tour, we did a lot of things mixed with long(ish) periods of sitting on the coach. We just needed to rest. Around 10:30a, however, the fire alarm put an end to that as we quickly made ourselves presentable enough to be seen in public. The alarm only lasted a few minutes after we were downstairs, so we decided to finish getting ready and do something with the rest of the day.

We pre-purchased our tickets for the train to Edinburgh on Thursday and timed our walk from the hotel to the train station to make sure we knew when we needed to leave. It took 8 minutes sans luggage. We then headed down the pedestrian shopping area nearby checking menus to see if anything caught our eye. Nothing really jumped out at us and we ended up eating pizza and pasta from a spot in the food court of a nearby mall aptly named Pizza Pasta. We walked through a few shops and then jumped on the Hop-on Hop-off City Sightseeing bus.

We rode the bus to the stop closest to the Glasgow Cathedral. The Cathedral was consecrated over 800 years ago (1197) and is one of the few Catholic buildings to have survived the reformation. We hadn't booked a time, but the gentlemen at the entry allowed us in as long as we were out before the next group showed up ten minutes later. Like many gothic cathedrals the ceiling soars above the occupants and light coming through the stained glass defines the character of the interior space. Directly behind the cathedral is the necropolis. This hill contains crypts of many influential and powerful people from Glasgow's history. The cathedral and necropolis made up the core of the original city.

We then hopped back on the bus and rode around for 75 minutes completing the circuit of the city. We saw several landmarks along the way including a crane used to load locomotives onto cargo ships, event centers that have been built to revitalize areas where shipyards and docks used to exist, and museums in both modern and historic buildings.

We were still pretty wiped out from the tour so we spent the evening playing cards and eating cookies and Ritz crackers in our hotel before calling it an early evening.




Wednesday, 6/22/2022 – More Sites in Glasgow

We slept in again on Wednesday, but not as late as Tuesday. After a late breakfast, we took the subway to the station nearest the botanical gardens. They have multiple "glass house" green houses and several walking trails. Compared to Edinburgh's, Glasgow's gardens felt less manicured but that also made them feel more natural.

After walking around the gardens for an hour, we traipsed through western Glasgow, crossing the grounds of Glasgow University, to the Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum. We ate a light lunch in their café before perusing several of the exhibits. The facility has a wide range of subject matter from masks and discussions of how people express themselves to Rembrandt's Man in Armour painted in 1655. On the Museum side of the building there's a spitfire airplane suspended from the ceiling over animals from several continents. We happened to be there during the afternoon organ recital as well.

Once we felt cultured, we jumped on the same bus we'd ridden on Tuesday to return to George's Square. We arrived in time to join the afternoon tour of the City Chamber's building. The public spaces of the building are quite ornate with two marble staircases (one lighter and one darker in color). There were event rooms with Tasmanian light wood and Mahogany dark wood as well as a high-ceilinged dining hall. There was also a picture gallery with portraits (photo or painted) of many of the City Provosts that have served 3 year terms for the past 200 years.

At this point our feet were starting to hurt so we decided to return to the hotel for a wee rest and to figure out what to have for supper during our last night in Glasgow.




Thursday, 6/23/2022 – Return to Edinburgh

This was the day we made our way from Glasgow to Edinburgh. Our plan was to take the train, but a couple weeks before our trip, the British Rail workers announced a planned strike for June 21, 23, and 25. Fortunately, the one train route still in operation in Scotland during the strike days was the one we needed between Glasgow and Edinburgh.

We left the hotel a few minutes before the 11a checkout time and walked the 10 minutes to the station with our luggage. It was a little creepy seeing the train station so empty leading up to our noon departure. Much of the rail line is bordered by trees or berms, but we caught a few glimpses of the country side. Once we made it to Edinburgh it was another 10-15 minute walk to our hotel. Google said 8 minutes, but they apparently don't account for elevation change or schlepping wheeled luggage and backpacks. Fortunately the hotel had a room ready so we were able to take our stuff directly to our room once we arrived a little before 1:30p.

After resting for a bit in the room, we did a test run from the hotel to the location we needed to meet our day trip group Friday morning. This landed us on the Royal Mile where we did some shopping and general browsing. We ate at a pub and walked around a shopping center near the hotel before turning in for the night.




Friday, 6/24/2022 – Seeing Sites Just Outside of Edinburgh

After breakfast in the hotel, we journeyed back to the Royal Mile to start our day-trip to several historic locations just outside of the Edinburgh area. Our tour started at 9a and headed north out of downtown. Our first stop was at an overlook where we could see the three bridges that have been built to cross the Firth (estuary) of Forth (river) that runs just outside of the city. The first provided a rail route in the late 1800s for materials and people during the industrial revolution. The second was for vehicles; unfortunately the design wasn't as good as it could have been so they had to build the third before the second collapsed. The second was ultimately repaired and is now limited to bus, taxi, and government traffic.

The next stop was Dunfermline Abbey. This is the resting place of King Robert the Bruce who won freedom for Scotland from the British in the 1300s. The abbey was damaged, as many Catholic buildings were, during the protestant reformation so it wasn't until the 1800s when the east end of the abbey was refurbished that people discovered the tomb. There is a marker now and in the late 1900s a new top was added to the abbey to identify the interred royal.

Leaving Dunfermline, we headed backward in Scotland's time line to visit the battlefield of Bannockburn. This location was the decisive battle where Robert the Bruce defeated Edward I's army to earn freedom for Scotland. There is a monument there that includes a larger than life statue of The Bruce.

We then traveled to Stirling Castle where the Stuart kings of Scotland lived before taking the combined crown. The views from the castle of the surrounding countryside were incredible. The detail of the palace component completed by James V (of Scotland) were incredible even after hundreds of years of weathering. One of the sites visible from the castle was a tower commemorating the victory by William Wallace over the British at the Battle of Stirling (our guide made it extremely clear that, while it may be an excellent movie, Braveheart does not accurately represent almost any aspect of William Wallace's life). The castle also had amazing gardens and a massive banquet hall that was last used (for its intended purpose) at the baptism of James VI who would become James I of Great Britain when the crowns were combined.

The last stop on the tour was Roslyn Chapel. This is another example of amazing gothic period architecture and the incredible skill of stone masons. While the inside is beautiful, pictures are not allowed so all we have to share are some photos from the exterior. In truth, what exists was meant to be the choir of a much larger cathedral, but the patron died and again the protestant reformation put an end to development of elaborately detailed religious sites.

After the tour ended around 5:30p, we enjoyed one last supper in Scotland before returning to the hotel to organize our bags for the trip home on Saturday.




Saturday, 6/25/2022 – Back to the United States

The hotel coordinated a cab to take us to the airport. Not knowing what the process would be like in Edinburgh, we decided to err on the side of caution and left the hotel around 8a for our 12:30p departure. It took us right at 30 minutes to get to the airport even though the traffic was "heavier than usual" because of an agricultural show occurring near the airport. The signs for our flight all said we couldn't check in until 9:30a so we went and stood at our favorite spot from arrival day, near the Starbucks.

The plane from Dulles was a little late so boarding didn't quite start on time. Then, apparently, there was some paperwork issues so the flight lifted off the runway exactly one hour after the scheduled departure time. The pilot made some time up and we are pretty sure they pad their schedules flying across the Atlantic so we actually arrived at Dulles only ten minutes late. Our layover was scheduled for two hours so we weren't really worried. With our Global Entry (through the Trusted Traveler Program) we got through the passport check very quickly and the crews in Washington, DC actually had the luggage off the plane fairly fast. We arrived at the gate for our Chicago bound flight 90 minutes before scheduled departure. That was the end of the good news for the day.

When we landed and could turn our cell signals back on, we were greeted with notifications our Chicago flight was delayed an hour. We didn't think much of it because we had three hours in Chicago. After we got to the gate, the delay jumped to two hours, we were leery, but still willing to let things ride. The issue was our cabin crew was on a flight coming from Portland, Maine which was delayed. When the delay hit two and a half hours, we decided we should stand in line at the nearby United Customer Service Counter. We were in line for 30 minutes before talking to an agent. We worked with her another 30 minutes to get us booked on a flight from Chicago to Des Moines leaving at 1:30p Sunday with hotel and food vouchers. By this time the delay was just shy of four hours. We ended up getting to the hotel in Chicago almost exactly 23 hours after James's alarm had sounded in Edinburgh and about the time our scheduled flight was landing in Des Moines.




Sunday, 6/26/2022 – "Bonus" Vacation Day

We got out of bed around 7:30a and prepared for the day. We called for a cab to pick us up at the hotel at 10a. Once at the airport we got through security quickly and then sat at the gate until 11:30a when we decided to eat lunch. The plane arrived on time, the crew was all there, and the flight from Chicago to Des Moines was uneventful. Interestingly enough, there was an earlier flight from Chicago to Des Moines with only one seat open so we weren't able to take it; however our luggage made that flight and was waiting for us when we got to the Des Moines airport. We took an Uber home arriving a couple minutes after 3p.