As walking in the Highlands was the dream of my step mother, we organised a week of adventures in Northern Scotland during spring. We did a mix between treks and road trip, landing in Glasgow and reaching the Isle of Skye, passing by Glencoe Valley, Fort William, Inverness and the famous Loch Ness.
The Highlands
Hotels:
We spent a total of 1300€ for 5 people (around 160€ per night, 53€/person)
– 1 night at the airport: 200€
– 4 nights in an AirBnB: 601€
– 3 nights in Isle of Skye: 512€
As we didn’t book in advance (1 month before leaving…), we found very few hotel still available at an acceptable price so my first advise would be to anticipate and prefer to stay in various hotels on the road instead of gathering in one place.
Car:
We rented a car at the Budget agency: 700£ for 7 days total
Rent: 500£ with their option “automatic” (10£/day)
Gas: Around 200£
Day 1: Go North
We arrived on Friday evening and slept directly nearby the airport (Holiday Inn Express) to rent a car and take the direction of the Highlands until Loch Lohmond. We stoped a few times to enjoy the landscape and visit those places:
Falls of Falloch
Bridge of Orchy
Fort William
Where to eat in Fort William?
We tried those three pub/restaurants, all recommended (in this order):
– Ben Nevis Bar, historical, great local food and with a nice view
– Black Isle Bar, in a church with great pizzas
– The Grog & Gruel, traditional pub
Where to sleep nearby Fort William?
We found this great plan on AirBnB.com, called The Highland Adventure Lodge located in the Great Glen Water Park.
Price: 601€ for 4 nights (5 people)
Day 2: Glencoe Valley & The Two Lairigs trail
Earlier you can arrive there, better is: Parkings are rare (only 2 actually). We started from the one in the South and followed AllTrails (15km, 822D+, around 5h walk with a lunch break).
Day 3: Loch Ness, Inverness & Urquhart castle
Our first stop was Fort Augustus to see how the Caledonian Canal and the Lock Chambers worked, and enjoyed the beautiful view point on the Loch Ness.
We went to visit Inverness, its nice Victorian market and had a great lunch at Mustard Seed, a church converted to a classy restaurant!
We finished this busy day with the visit of Urquhart castle (you can also pay a visit to Invergarry Castle we missed that day).
Day 4: Train & Waterfalls
Here again, you will need to arrive early and park your car nearby the Glenfinnan monument to see passing the train of Harry Potter ! To get there you have a nice walk to do. I advise you to start from the Viaduc and finish with a nice coffee (or a delicious typical scottish breakfast) at Glenfinnan Station Dining Car.
We drove to Mallaig but appart from the ferry to go to the Isle of Skye, this cute city doesn’t deserve the trip (in my point of view). We went back to the feet of Ben Nevis, the Steall Falls (An Steall Bàn means “The White Spout” in Gaelic): really nice landscapes with one of the biggest waterfall of the region.
Glenfinnan Monument
Mallaig
Steall Falls
The Isle of Skye
Day 5: Road to the Isle of Skye
On the way to the Isle of Skye we visited the most famous (and most touristic) castle of Highlander!
To sleep on Isle of Skye: We stayed at Skye Yurts (512€ for 3 nights) but I believe the best location is definitely Portree.
Eilean Donan Castle
Old Man of Storr
We did the full loop to Needle Rock and the top of the Old Man of Storr. Some parts were quite difficult but if you stay on the main path you’ll find it easy (and a bit tiresome).
> Check the best walks video!
Day 6: Quiraing
Tips: Instead of starting from the main car park nearby the Quiraing walk, we found a very small place to Loch Langaig and a second walk that leads you to the top.
Nest point
Tips: Once again, the secret for being able to park your car is to arrive early. The sunset was really cloudy. Take some snack and enjoy (you can also walk to the lighthouse and get an other point of view).
Day 7: Fairy pool
Tips: Go there only if you have spare time! I would have enjoy a boat tour and get the chance to see dolfins or whales (check the best season to see them).
Best Treks
Best Moments
