Scotland; Aberdeenshire; Cairngorms National Park and Royal Deeside; village of Braemar: Braemar Castle; built 1628 onwards by John Erskine; Earl of Mar; still in possession of Clan Farquharson; since 2008 open to visitors; In 1848; Queen Victoria and Prince Albert visited the area along river Dee between Braemar; Ballater and Banchory; enjoyed the visit and decided to replace an old castle and built Balmoral Castle. Cairngorms National Park was established; in 2003 and extends 4;528 square kilometers. Major communities in the park are Aviemore; Ballater; Braemar; Newtonmore; and Tomintoul. In 2018; 1.9 million tourists visited the area.