Itinerary
This is a typical itinerary for this product
Stop At: Callander, Callander, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, Scotland
After departing Edinburgh you’ll head north through the central belt of the country. Your guide will entertain by laying the foundations of many a story about Scotland’s past heroes like William Wallace and Robert the Bruce who made this area of Scotland their own. You will spot royal palaces, giant mythical Kelpies and the ancient stronghold of Stirling Castle before we arrive at our first stop of the day in the town of Callander. Known as “The Gateway to the Highlands” Callander is situated on the boundary of the Loch Lomond and Trossachs National park, an area of outstanding natural beauty.
Here you will be able to explore the town’s abundance of authentic gift shops, delicatessen’s and bakeries. An ideal place to stretch your legs and refresh before you rejoin the bus to enter the highlands properly.
Duration: 30 minutes
Pass By: Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park, Scotland
As we enter The ‘Loch Lomond & Trossachs National Park’ our bus weaves through hills, mountains and Glens. These remote places were once inhabited by Highland Clans, not to mention Scotland’s most famous outlaw, Rob Roy MacGregor, whom some consider The Scottish Robin Hood. Look out across the landscape and picture what it was like as you hear the remarkable bloodthirsty stories of betrayal and revenge as told by your guide. If we happen to spot some of our famous ‘Hairy Highland Coos’, we might stop for a selfie.
Stop At: Glencoe, Glencoe, Scottish Highlands, Scotland
Glencoe was also the scene of one of Scotland’s most shocking massacres. Stop at the Picturesque town of Callander "Gateway to the Highlands" and the Hairy Coos. As you gaze at the haunting hills, you notice the Glen is eerily silent. In the 17th century one of the worst acts of betrayal occurred here. Your guide will recount the details of this betrayal for you. You can almost feel the sorrow in the mountains of the ‘weeping valley’. Above all though, Glencoe is one of Scotland’s most beautiful landscapes. A highlight of any tour to the Scottish Highlands!
Duration: 10 minutes
Pass By: Fort William, Fort William, Lochaber, Scottish Highlands, Scotland
The tour then takes you through Fort William and past the spectacular Ben Nevis, the tallest mountain in the British Isles. The Nevis Range towers over the winding road as you continue your journey to Loch Ness.
Stop At: Fort Augustus Abbey, Fort Augustus Scotland
Desperate for a glimpse of ‘Nessie’?
Fort Augustus, a charming, postcard-perfect, Highland village on the Southern shores of the Loch. From here you will have the opportunity to take a fantastic 1-hour cruise on the loch with our friends at Cruise Loch Ness.
The local crew on board share their experiences of Nessie, as you search for yourself. All with the aid of a state of the art Sonar equipment helping you scan the near 900 foot depths of the loch below. Tickets are Adults £16.50, Children £10.00 and are purchasable on the day with cash.
For those who do not wish to take the optional boat cruise, you will have time to explore the village and its beautiful Caledonian Canal lock system, built by the famous engineer Thomas Telford in the 19th century, that descends through the heart of the village into Loch Ness. Walk further along the canal and into the surrounding countryside to enjoy mountainous views and sights of farm animals and possibly red deer.
Duration: 2 hours
Stop At: Commando Monument, Spean Bridge, Spean Bridge PH34 4EG Scotland
Along the route, we’ll stop at the Commando Memorial. In 1942, this setting became the training ground for Britain’s Special Forces. Harsh, unforgiving, and breathtakingly beautiful. A statue of our heroes overlooks the Nevis range. Bring a camera – this is undoubtedly one of our favourite photo-stops in all of Scotland.
Here, weather permitting, you could also spot Ben Nevis. The tallest mountain in The United Kingdom.
Duration: 10 minutes
Pass By: Cairngorms National Park, PH22 1QH Scotland
Heading south we travel through the Cairngorm National Park where Red squirrels, roe deer, red deer, soaring buzzards, pine martens, golden eagles and osprey can be found. Our final stop of the day is Pitlochry
Stop At: Pitlochry, Pitlochry, Perth and Kinross, Scotland
Pitlochry is situated in the heart of the stunning scenery of Highland Perthshire. The town sits below Beinn Bhracaigh (Ben Vrackie), the speckled mountain and beside the River Tummel, in some of the most magnificent scenery in Scotland. With a backdrop of surrounding hills and beautiful woodlands, it is wonderful walking country.
Duration: 30 minutes
Pass By: Forth Bridge, North Queensferry KY11 1HP Scotland
As we re-enter Edinburgh from the North, you will be met with views of Scotland’s greatest piece of engineering, and a UNESCO World Heritage Site, the Forth Bridge. This 19th century engineering marvel was at one point the World’s longest cantilever bridge. Today it neighbours the 20th century Forth Road Bridge and the 21st century Queensferry Crossing which opened in 2017. Three spectacular bridges, from three different centuries, span the Firth of Forth connecting our Capital city and the Kingdom of Fife.
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Deacon's House Cafe, 304 Lawnmarket, Edinburgh EH1 2PS, UK
08:00 AM
12 hours 30 minutes(approx.)
Returns to original departure point
Not wheelchair accessible
Minimum age to travel is 7 years old. Photo ID, such as a passport, may be required. Children (8-17) must be accompanied by an adult.
There are opportunities to take short nature walks, it is recommended to bring suitable clothing and footwear.
This tour in an air-conditioned midi-coach, hosted by a local Scottish guide, rated 5-stars by the official Scottish Tourist Board
There are regular stops on tour to purchase food and refreshments that cater for most dietary requirements
Near public transportation
Most travelers can participate
There are regular stops on tour for comfort breaks
No animals allowed on tour
This experience requires good weather. If it’s canceled due to poor weather, you’ll be offered a different date or a full refund
This tour/activity will have a maximum of 57 travelers
Confirmation will be received at time of booking
Posted By : Tasha_W
Michael was an amazing tour guide. We loved all the stops we made in the Scottish country side. The highlight for us was feeding the highland cows. They are so cute!
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Cole_M
David was a wonderful tour guide, he added a personal touch to the tour all the way and the 12 hour day went by in no time with plenty of stops and Scottish history to fill in the gaps. Thought the stops were short, they gave me a taste of all the great location's the highlands have to offer and I’m already itching to return as soon as I can!
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Phyllis_S
It was a long day but one of the highlights was feeding carrots to the hairy coo family. Our guide Michael brought carrots for all of us feed them. The Scottish mascot has a place in my heart after that afternoon.
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Jenalle_H
David is amazing!! He shared lots of historical stories and fun facts with his personal experiences, really enjoyed this trip, thanks David!!😊
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Christine_R
It was a great day! Martin our guide was fantastic! He used a lot of humour while relaying stories about the history along the way, which made it very engaging to listen to and helped with the time on the bus. He was very focused on stopping for photo opportunities, which was very much appreciated because the views were stunning. We loved the tour although if you do even a quick lunch and the boat tour at Loch Ness you have practically no time to walk around, which isn’t great. An extra 30 min at Loch Ness would have made the trip perfect.
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Bernice_C
Martin had been a wonderful tour guide who entertained us whole day. He had a very good pace and lovely energies to present the tour. I highly recommended to anyone.
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Lauren_M
What I thought would be me dragging my brothers along for this tour ended up being the highlight of our trip for all of us. The sights we saw and stops we made were fantastic. Michael was also very funny and educational. We only wished we had chosen to sit closer to the front to talk with him more!
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : Joseph_P
The tour guy Michael was great. Provided a detailed amount of story behind each location and guidance.
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Posted On : 2024-05-16
Posted By : gloriap574
This was a great tour for a quick overview of the Scottish highlands. I did not think I would enjoy the Loch Ness boat ride but that was very interesting and worthwhile. We really wanted to see the hairy cows and the driver did stop at a place at the end of the tour where we could see them up close. Overall, we did not have a lot of time to do a longer tour so this one was worthwhile. Other reviewers mention how their tour guide won't stopped talking but in our case I wish ours would tell us more about the history of Scotland.
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Posted On : 2024-05-15
Posted By : Allison_G
Trip through the highlands was lovely, albeit dependent on whether or not the bus could find parking at lookout spots. Which side of the bus you were seated on also made a difference (left is the best for the trip north). A little heavy on the time constraints at each location. We really had to rush for food in Loch Ness if we wanted to make the ferry, for instance.
Unfortunately, the worst bit was that our guide was terribly ill. He tried to rally his spirits & did a fine job for how long of a day it was, but he was definitely too sick to be at work that day. There was a lot of coughing. He was contagious and wore no mask. I ended up coming down with the same symptoms soon after the tour, which close to ruined the last two days of my trip.
I don't know if it was a staffing issue as both tour busses seemed well full, but he should have felt able to stay home that day.
Tour itself is serviceable for those who do not want to rent a car or book overnight accommodations for a full day at Loch Ness.
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Posted On : 2024-05-15
