We spent 8 days and nights in Scotland in the last week of May and absolutely loved it, just like we knew we would! Our time actually flew by and I wish we had more days there, particularly in Isle of Skye and the Glencoe region.
Below is a map of attractions on the route that we traveled as well as our itinerary and my suggestions.
Day 1: Edinburgh to Inverness
We flew into Edinburgh and drove a few hours north to Inverness.
Originally, we planned to spend the first 2 nights in Edinburgh, then pick up the rental car and do our highlands road trip. However, our connecting flight from Maine to NYC was cancelled two nights in a row due to weather, so we would spend time in Edinbugh at the end of the trip instead. (Maybe I should start getting trip insurance?!)
This meant picking up the rental car immediately after arriving in the morning with little to no sleep on the red-eye flight. Not recommended! I was so tired that halfway through the drive I found a rest stop and snoozed in the car for an hour.
We didn’t make any stops on the way to Inverness, but if we had more time, we would’ve taken the slightly longer route on the “snow roads” through Cairngorms National Park to enjoy the scenery.
We arrived in Inverness at around 4:00pm so that first day we really didn’t do much except walk around the city center and have dinner at Johnny Foxes by the bridge. The food here was excellent, and it was excellent everywhere we went on this trip! The Haggis Spring Rolls there were my first introduction to haggis. Don’t look up what it is, it will gross you out, but I think it’s delicious!
Being completely exhausted, we didn’t stay up very late to enjoy the night life in Inverness but it sounded like people were having a good time. There are plenty of pubs and shops downtown and it’s a nice little city.
Day 2: Inverness to Loch Ness to Skye
The next morning we visited the Culloden battlefield, a short drive from Inverness. The visitor center is really nice and well worth it. The rain was coming down hard so we didn’t explore the field as much as we otherwise would have.
After Culloden, it was time to drive to Isle of Skye for the next 3 nights. I made sure to take the route that went past Loch Ness and although its pretty, so is the rest of the country, so that touristy area can be skipped in my opinion.
Shortly before reaching Isle of Skye, the route takes you right past Eilean Donan Castle. We stopped here and toured the inside, but I think that the best part is the view of the bridge and the castle from the parking lot.
We had dinner at Red Skye Restaurant in Broadford, where we were lucky to snag a table right when they opened at 5:00pm. We had no idea but reservations (bookings) are critical everywhere in Scotland. That sucks, because it takes away the spontaneity, but every restaurant is short staffed so its necessary. Anyway the food was excellent here! After this we checked into our AirBnb near Portree.
Day 3: Trotternish Peninsula, Isle of Skye
After a proper Scottish breakfast, we headed off to explore the Trotternish Peninsula, the north/east peninsula on Isle of Skye that has some of the biggest attractions. First thing on our list was to hike the Old Man of Storr. The parking area was already almost full when we got there, as this is one of Isle of Skye’s biggest attractions. It’s not a long hike but its steep the whole way, with about 1,000 feet of elevation gain, and you really need to do the whole hike to get around to the other side of the rock formations for the classic view I have photographed here. When you reach the Old Man of Storr, you’ll see a tall hill beyond it with people on top. That’s where you go to get the best photographs. Luckily we were wearing rain pants and rain jackets, as it changed between rain and sunshine every 15 minutes or so. The trail is really muddy too because of all the rain and foot traffic, so waterproof shoes/boots are a must.
We spent 3 hours doing the hike, of which 2 hours was actual hiking and the rest of the time taking photos, and then returned to Portree for lunch. (Oops, should’ve packed a lunch!) Then we returned to the Trotternish Peninsula but from the opposite direction, going to the Uig Pottery store, then Rha Waterfalls, then Fairy Glen, all near Uig. Isle of Skye Brewing Company is here too but we didn’t stop.
If you’re a photographer or nature lover, Rha Waterfalls is absolutely worth a visit. It’s not marked on the road but I was able to find it because I had the location saved in Google Maps.
Next we visited The Fairy Glen, a very interesting place. There are these strange dome-shaped hills everywhere and of course the picturesque ferry ring. The ferry ring is located down the road from the parking area and across the road and requires climbing a steep hill to reach it.
Next, we took the one lane road that cuts across the peninsula to The Quiraing. It was getting late in the day and we had already done a lot of hiking, so regretfully we didn’t do any hking here, but I flew the drone and captured some great shots.
Day 4: Neist Point Lighthouse, Coral Sands Beach, Isle of Skye
The next morning we took the 1 hour drive across the island to Neist Point Lighthouse, at the most western point of the island. The weather was absolutely wild that morning. I think it was the strongest wind I’ve ever been in, with occasional down pours as well. I had to hold onto my tripod or else it would’ve went over the cliff. Nonetheless, the view is fantastic. There’s a path down to the lighthouse but considering the weather, we just photographed the lighthouse from the hill by the parking area.
After surviving what felt like hurricane winds at the lighthouse, we drove to Dunvegan Castle. We didn’t do the tour of the castle and the gardens but it looked lovely. Instead, we continued past Dunvegan to Coral Sands Beach. A short walk through a farming area takes you to this gorgeous beach where thankfully we had some sunshine to enjoy.
We drove back to Portree and had an early dinner at Antlers in the Portree Hotel (excellent, highly recommended!) and then set off for the famous Fairy Pools. Going at this hour was the way to do it, as the huge parking area was practically empty. For all its hype, I was underwhelmed by the ferry pools. The mountain views are great but I didn’t get the photos I was hoping for … Maybe I didn’t go far enough on the hike? Maybe the conditions weren’t right? I’m not sure, but I feel like there are better places to go on the island.
We also stopped for photos at the Sligachan Bridge on the way to the Fairy Pools, where it literally went from sunshine to pouring rain in the 5 minutes that we were there!
Day 5: Ferry from Isle of Skye to Mallaig, Glenfinnan & Glencoe
We spent our last morning on Isle of Skye photographing highland cows by the road and driving to Armadale to catch the ferry to Mallaig.
You need to book ferry tickets in advance; I bought them the day prior and most of the sailings were fully booked. In retrospect I would just drive across the bridge again which is a slightly longer drive but then you don’t need to worry about arriving at the ferry on time. We made an unplanned stop at The Prince’s Cairn halfway between Mallaig and Glenfinnan. This marks the spot where Prince Charles Edward Stuart left Scotland for France after the failed Jacobite rising of 1745.
Next stop was the Glenfinnan Viaduct. This train trestle is famous for being featured in Harry Potter. There’s a big parking lot nearby and a path that takes you underneath the bridge and up a hill where you get a great view. Only bummer for me was that no drones were allowed, so I couldn’t record a video like I hoped. When we were leaving we saw an elk across the street but it ran away before we had a chance to grab our cameras.
We ended the day at Loch Leven Hotel, our base for exploring the mountainous Glencoe region.
Day 6: Glencoe / Oban Road Trip
Our last full day in the highlands started off overcast and rainy and then gradually cleared up, like every other day. I don’t know if its always like this but the weather was always better in the afternoon and evening than it was in the morning.
The drive through Glencoe on the A82 was one of the most scenic drives we did in Scotland, with huge mountains all around you and waterfalls everywhere. There are several viewpoints to stop at, like the Three Sisters Viewpoint and The Meeting of Three Waters, pictured below.
The Glen Etive scenic road was a highlight of our day in Glencoe. I just wish there were more places to pull over and get out of the car.
After Glen Etive, we made a big loop turning onto A86 and stopping at the Kilchurn Castle ruins, viewed from across the water.
We then continued to Oban for dinner. We didn’t plan on going to Oban but we were so close so we decided to check it out. The city is bigger than I thought, with lots of shops and restaurants. Unfortunately, like everywhere else we went all of the restaurants required reservations, but we were able to get squeezed in at the bar at Waterfront Fishouse Restaurant.
Days 7 & 8 : Edinburgh
We spent the final 2 days in Edinburgh for a very different experience compared to the highlands. Edinburgh was awesome but it felt more like classic old city Europe after spending 6 days in the rural highlands. The weather was significantly better too, and it was the only 2 days of our trip without any rain.
We booked a tour of the Edinburgh Castle, which was unlike any castle we’ve visited. It’s massive, and has several sections to explore like a museum. The most interesting was the old prison.
We weren’t up for doing the hike on Arthur’s Seat and did Calton Hill instead, which is an easy walk from city center and an easy walk to the top for panoramic views of Edinburgh.
We visited the National Museum of Scotland, which is free, so you might as well check it out.
The rest of our time in Edinburgh was spent wandering around, eating and drinking. It’s a much more walkable city than I imagined. You’ll do a lot of walking, for sure, but you can get around easily on foot.
Our favorite area was the Grassmarket (a cobbled former livestock street with lots of vendors), Victoria Street and the Royal Mile eventhough it was absolutely mobbed with tourists.
We actually stayed at an airport hotel, which isn’t as practical as a hotel in the city center, but there weren’t many options booking at the last minute after our cancelled flights, and it was significantly cheaper. Fortunately the stop for the 100 bus was across the street from the hotel and that took us right into the city center.
Final Thoughts
If you love hiking, nature, photography and/or history, Scotland is a great country to visit!
If you prefer to visit cities, spend more time Edinburgh, Glasgow and Oban. If you prefer the outdoors, Scotland’s Highlands are beautiful!
Transportation
Renting a car is not necessary or advised in the cities because the bus, train or tram will take you everywhere. Google Maps or the Moveit app are helpful for figuring out routes and times.
You could visit the highlands without renting a car by going on a tour. Rabbie’s is a popular tour in the UK.
If renting a car, be advised that there are less cars with automatic transmission than manual, and they cost a lot more too. On top of that, there is a worldwide shortage of rental cars, so book early and shop around. We booked our rental car from Mcnicoll Vehicle Hire in Edinburgh and it was about half the price of the big companies.
Driving in the city is stressful but overall we enjoyed driving around the highlands. The roads are much narrower than in the US but we felt like they were slightly wider than what we experienced during our road trip in Southwest Ireland.
I highly recommend saving locations of places that you want to visit in Google Maps and downloading an offline map of Scotland so that you can always use that to navigate. A lot of cars have Android Auto or Apple CarPlay so you should be able to plug in your phone and see the route on your car’s screen.
We had cell phone service in most places but there were some dead zones in the more rural areas. We paid $10/day for the international travel pass from Verizon Wireless, which allows you to use your plan’s call/text/data allowances internationally.
Food
I highly suggest trying the local cuisine in Scotland. There’s a lot more than fish & chips in Scotland. We didn’t expect to have so many great meals on this trip. Haggis may not be everyone but we loved it and I think we had it every day! Try the full Scottish breakfast and also try the breakfast rolls. An egg sandwich with cheese, haggis and hashbrown on a soft roll was probably the best breakfast sandwich I’ve ever had.
What To Pack
Pack accordingly for the wild weather, particularly if you’ll be hiking in the highlands. The weather changes faster in Scotland than anywhere else I’ve been. We usually wore rain jackets just in case, which we would put in our backpacks if it got too warm, kept rain pants in our packpacks in case we got stuck in a downpour, and most importantly, waterproof shoes or boots! A lot of the hiking trails get muddy from the rain and foot traffic.
If you’ll be primarily visiting the cities, you don’t have to come as prepared because you could head indoors somewhere if there’s a passing shower.
I hope this helps you plan for an epic road trip in Scotland!
Thank you for the i formation, very helpful. We leave in August. Did you use a manual or automatic car? Is it easy to get to the airport on the bus? We want to drop off the rental car prior to our last 2 days in Edinburgh.
Hi Mary, we used an automatic car. I have no experience driving manual. Like elsewhere in Europe, automatic cars cost a lot more to rent unfortunately.