Scottish Island Highlights
Trip Overview
Experience Scotland’s iconic landmarks and offbeat charms on this nine day tour. You’ll see the famed beauty of the Isle of Skye, you’ll hear about the infamous tragedy of Glencoe, and you’ll get to know the legends of Loch Ness and Loch Lomond. And there’s more. You’ll discover the ancient history of Scotland as you explore the fascinating standing stones of the Ring of Brodgar on Orkney. Because you’ll also venture far from the well-trodden paths to the northern wilds of Orkney, and the peaceful shores of Iona and Mull. It’s a tour that’s perfect if you want an unforgettable experience of both Scotland’s local secrets and world class highlights. With comfortable accommodation and transportation taken care of, all you have to do is sit back, relax, and enjoy the breathtaking landscapes of Scotland.
- Chauffeur
- 1Country
- 9 Days
- 8 Nights
About This Tour
Day 1: Stirling Castle - Loch Lomond - Inveraray Town
Stirling Castle is famous for its crucial role in Scottish history as a key royal residence, strategic military fortress, and a symbol of Scottish independence. Its commanding location on a volcanic crag allowed it to dominate important routes, and it was the site of key royal events like coronations and the birth of future monarchs.
Loch Lomond is famous for its spectacular scenery as the largest freshwater lake in Britain, a vast area of rolling hills and iconic peaks like Ben Lomond, and its location within the first national park of Scotland. It is also known for its connection to the popular folk song “The Bonnie Banks o’ Loch Lomond,” rich natural heritage with diverse wildlife.
Inveraray is famous for Inveraray Castle, an iconic Gothic Revival structure that serves as the ancestral home of the Clan Campbell, and for the town itself, which was meticulously rebuilt in the 18th century by the 3rd Duke of Argyll to showcase stunning Scottish Georgian architecture.
Day 2: Oban - Isle of Mull - Iona
Oban is famous as the “Seafood Capital of Scotland” for its incredibly fresh catches and as the “Gateway to the Isles” for its ferry services to the Hebrides. It’s also known for McCaig’s Tower, its namesake distillery producing fine whisky, and its picturesque harbor offering stunning coastal views.
The Isle of Mull is famous for its abundant and diverse wildlife, including famous encounters with white-tailed sea eagles and otters. It is also known for the picturesque harbor town of Tobermory, with its brightly colored buildings seen in the CBeebies show Balamory.
Iona is famous primarily as a significant ancient center of Christianity in Scotland, especially through its founder, St. Columba, who established a monastic community there in 563 AD. It was a leading missionary center and a hub of learning, art, and culture, producing famous illuminated manuscripts like the Book of Kells.
Day 3: McCaigs Tower - Kerrera - Falls of Lora
McCaig’s Tower is famous as Oban’s most prominent landmark, built in 1897 by local banker John Stuart McCaig to provide work for local stonemasons and to serve as a monument to his family.
Kerrera is famous for the scenic beauty and historical significance of Gylen Castle, a 16th-century ruined tower house with stunning coastal views, attracting artists like J.M.W. Turner. The island is also known for its beautiful natural landscape, popular walking trails, and as a key destination for island-hopping and nature walks near Oban, Scotland.
The Falls of Lora are famous as a powerful, tidal phenomenon on Scotland’s west coast, where the mouth of Loch Etive meets the sea through a narrow, rock-blocked channel. They are spectacular natural white-water rapids that form daily as the tide flows in and out through this bottleneck, especially during spring tides.
Day 4: Castle Stalker - Glencoe - Fort William
Castle Stalker is famous for its prominent appearance as Castle Aaaarrgh in the 1975 film Monty Python and the Holy Grail. While historically significant as a medieval tower house on a tidal islet in Scotland, its pop culture connection is the primary reason for its widespread recognition. It also served as a filming location for other projects, including Highlander: Endgame and the TV show Sense8.
Glencoe is famous for its dramatic and wild landscape, which has made it a popular filming location for movies like Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and Skyfall. Its stunning mountain scenery and historical significance as the site of the Massacre of Glencoe in 1692 also contribute to its fame.
Fort William is one of the best-known destinations in the Scottish Highlands, famed as the ‘Outdoor Capital of the UK’, the home of Ben Nevis, and featured in Diana Gabaldon’s Outlander stories.
Day 5: Portree - Kilt Rock - Fairy Glen
Portree, the main town on the Isle of Skye, is a bustling port and a thriving cultural centre. Set round its natural harbour and fringed by high ground and cliffs, the town is a popular tourists’ holiday destination and the harbour continues to be used by fishing boats as well as pleasure craft.
Kilt Rock is famous for its distinctive cliff formation on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, which resembles the pleats of a Scottish kilt due to its unique basalt columns. It is also renowned for the Mealt Falls, a dramatic waterfall that plunges directly into the sea from the clifftop, making the site a spectacular and popular natural landmark and tourist attraction.
The Fairy Glen is famous for its surreal, miniature landscape of unusual cone-shaped hills, rock formations, and small lochans created by an ancient landslide, which gives it a mystical, otherworldly appearance that has led to its designation as a mythical place and has also been used for filming.
Day 6: Sligachan Bridge - Donan Castle - Urquhart Castle
The Sligachan Bridge is famous primarily due to the legend of its enchanted waters, which are said to grant eternal beauty if your face is dipped in them. While it is a historic 19th-century stone bridge built by Thomas Telford and a picturesque landmark in the Isle of Skye’s dramatic landscape, its fame is largely sustained by this and other related local folklore and myths.
Eilean Donan Castle is famous for its breathtaking, iconic scenery on a small island in the Scottish Highlands, its centuries-old history as a stronghold and its recent reconstruction. The castle gained global recognition from its appearances in popular films, including the James Bond movie The World Is Not Enough and the film Highlander, which cemented its image as a quintessential Scottish landmark.
Urquhart Castle is famous for its dramatic setting on Loch Ness, its strategic role in centuries of Scottish history, and its association with the legend of the Loch Ness Monster, or Nessie. The medieval fortress endured many conflicts and passed between Scottish and English forces, experiencing significant damage during the Jacobite Risings before its final destruction and subsequent ruin.
Day 7: Inverness - Dunrobin Castle - John O'groats - Gills bay
Inverness is famous as the “Capital of the Highlands,” a gateway to Scotland’s wild landscapes, and its proximity to the legendary Loch Ness, home of the Loch Ness Monster. The city is also known for the historic Battle of Culloden site nearby, its connection to Shakespeare’s Macbeth.
Dunrobin Castle is famous for its striking, French-château-like architecture with conical spires, its history as one of the oldest continuously inhabited houses in Britain dating back to the 1300s and home to the Earls and Dukes of Sutherland, and its beautiful, formal gardens that were inspired by the Gardens of Versailles.
John O’Groats is famous as a symbolic destination at the far north of mainland Britain and the starting or ending point for the epic “End to End” journey, particularly the Land’s End to John O’Groats (LEJOG) challenge across the country. It is renowned for its dramatic coastal scenery, abundance of wildlife, and iconic signpost, which marks distances to various locations and serves as a photo opportunity for visitors.
Gills Bay is famous as the Scottish mainland departure point for Pentland Ferries Ltd, which provides a vital ferry link to Orkney across the notoriously strong currents of the Pentland Firth. It is also known for its challenging surf breaks, which are considered world-class.
Day 8: Kirkwall - Skara Brae - Ring of Brodgar - Stromness
Kirkwall – Skara Brae – Ring of Brodgar – Stromness
Kirkwall is famous as the capital and largest town of Scotland’s Orkney Islands, a hub for Neolithic and Norse history with significant archaeological sites nearby. It is dominated by the magnificent St Magnus Cathedral, founded in the 12th century.
Skara Brae is famous for being the best-preserved Neolithic settlement in Western Europe, providing unparalleled insight into the daily lives of its 5,000-year-old inhabitants. Its well-preserved stone structures.. The site’s importance is recognized by its status as part of the Heart of Neolithic Orkney UNESCO World Heritage Site.
The Ring of Brodgar is famous as one of Scotland’s largest and most spectacular Neolithic stone circles, recognized as a UNESCO World Heritage Site within the Heart of Neolithic Orkney.
Stromness is famous for its well-preserved historic maritime townscape with narrow, winding streets, its role as a crucial port for Hudson’s Bay Company voyages, its important connection to Orkney’s rich archaeological heritage like the UNESCO site of Skara Brae.
Day 9: Ardvreck Castle - Ullapool - Corrishalloch Gorge - Culloden Moor - Carrbridge - Eilein Castle - Lochleven
Ardvreck Castle is famous for several key historical events, including the capture and betrayal of the Royalist hero James Graham, the Marquess of Montrose, in 1650 after the Battle of Carbisdale. The castle is also known for its dramatic setting on Loch Assynt, its association with local clans like the MacLeods and MacKenzies.
Ullapool is one of the most scenic villages in Scotland which offers a perfect respite to those travelling in the north of the Scotland and is one of the most popular tourist destinations in the Highlands. Ullapool is the most beautiful village in the UK according to the travel experts.
Corrieshalloch Gorge is famous for being one of the most spectacular and dramatic natural “box canyons” in Britain, formed by ancient glacial meltwater that carved a deep chasm through the Scottish Highlands. Key features attracting visitors are its Victorian suspension bridge, offering views of the powerful Falls of Measach, and its designation as a National Nature Reserve for its unique flora and fauna.
Tour Highlights
- Stare into mountainous horizons in the West Highlands
- Stroll through the handsome harbour town of Oban
- Discover the history of Celtic Christianity
- See one of Scotland’s most unique geological wonders at Fingal’s Cave
- Be awestruck by the majestic slopes of Glencoe
- Arrive in the most ‘tropical’ town in Scotland, Plockton
- Traverse the legendary landscapes of Skye
- Learn about the tales and battles that shaped the island’s culture
- Snap a few photos at the gorgeous Eilean Donan Castle
- Try and spot the Loch Ness Monster
- Explore mainland Scotland’s most northern scenery
- Go to an ancient site that is older than the pyramids, Skara Brae
- See the wild ocean clash with redstone cliffs
- Take a look at the stunningly located ruins of Ardvreck Castle
- Stroll around the beautiful harbour town of Ullapool
- See the ancient standing stones made famous by Outlander, Clava Cairns
- Learn about one of the most brutal events in British history at Culloden
What’s Included?
- 8 Seaters luxury private Minivan
- Professional Chauffeur/Guide
- Complimentary bottle of water
- Free Wi-Fi onboard
- Admission Tickets (if option selected)
- City Congestion and Parking
- Hotel pick-up and drop-off
- 10 hour full-day private tour
- Chauffeur accompanies the clients on tour.
- Driver can't enter sites
- Tips / Gratuities