The Best of the Scottish Highlands
I’d like to invite you to come with me to Scotland in 2025 to explore the Highlands. The trip will include the Isle of Skye, Loch Ness, Inverness, and Edinburgh, and we’ll conclude our tour with a stay in a castle.
As of the day I’m writing this, we have 7 people going, all prior tour-goers and friends. I’d like to keep it that way, so I’m only opening this to people I know. Read on and let me know if you are interested in joining us!
First, here are the basics of this trip:
• Dates: September 13 – 23, 2024
• Length: 11 days / 10 nights in Scotland
• Covered: All accommodations, transportation, admissions, and meals.
The Tour Itinerary
I think the best way to give you a glimpse of this trip is to walk you through the itinerary. Of course, there could ultimately be small modifications to this, but the final schedule should be very similar to this. Keep in mind this is just some highlights!
Day 1: Arrival in Edinburgh
First, you will arrive in Edinburgh and we’ll get you checked into your hotel. While we won’t plan too much today to allow you to acclimate from the flight, we’ll also be ready with plans if you want to hit the ground running and start exploring. In any case, we’ll have a get-together and dinner that evening at one of Edinburgh’s famous pubs.
Day 2: Tour of Edinburgh
Today we will do a proper tour of Edinburgh, starting on the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Castle. After lunch, we’ll visit other parts of Edinburgh as well. No visit to Edinburgh would be complete without visiting a few of the more famous pubs, which we have researched extensively, so we’ll do that in the evening.
Day 3: Glencoe: Enter the Highlands
We will head out to the Highlands today. We will stop by Stirling Castle to break up the drive and make our way to Glencoe. This is where we get mountains and dramatic scenery. We’ll stop in some scenic spots I have scoped out along the way. We will stay at the Clachaig Inn, which won’t be our fanciest accommodations, but is referred to as a “legend” by locals. There is a nice pub downstairs that will likely have music.
Day 4: Isle of Skye
We will make our way to Isle of Skye today. Along the way, we will stop at Eileen Donan castle, perhaps the most iconic castle in Scotland. We will check out some of the scenery of Skye, likely starting at Fairy Pools. We’ll stay at the Sligachen Inn, which is in an amazingly photogenic spot set in mountains, next to a river, with a stone bridge, so the photographers among us can wander around and take pictures whenever the mood strikes them (or the light is good).
Day 5: Isle of Skye Highlights
We stay on the Isle of Skye today and take in some of its amazing places. High on the list will be the Old Man of Storr and the Quiraing. We’ll spend the afternoon and evening in the quaint town of Portree before returning to Sligachen. A full day in this scenery is worth going for all by itself.
Day 6: Inverness
We will linger on Skye in the morning, then move on to Inverness in the afternoon. We’ll enjoy a special walking tour of Inverness followed by dinner. We are targeting Culloden House, an amazing country house on a 40-acre estate just outside of Inverness, as our place to stay and enjoy the evenings.
Day 7: Urquhart Castle and Loch Ness
Today is all about Loch Ness, the famous lake that essentially splits northern Scotland. We’ll tour Urquhart Castle, which overlooks the loch, then take a boat tour of the loch. You are guaranteed to see Nessie or your money back! Ok, not really, but it is a very scenic lake in its own right and you will love the boat tour. After that we’ll return to Inverness for another great evening at our country estate.
Day 8: Glenfinnan Viaduct and the Harry Potter Train
Today is a really amazing day where we head to the Glenfinnan Viaduct, home of a huge stone train viaduct that is crossed twice a day by a steam train (think “the Harry Potter train“). Even without the train, you’ll love hanging out there and enjoying the place, but we’ll set up in the exact right spots to catch the train as it crosses the viaduct. After that, we’ll head to Fort William for one of the most amazing hotel experiences of your life – Inverlochy Castle Hotel.
Day 9: Inverlochy Castle and Fort William
We continue the grand finale in the Highlands with a visit to Glen Etive Road, called the most scenic road in Scotland. This has been the setting for many movies. In fact, it is sometimes called Skyfall Road as it was the setting for a scene between James Bond and M in Skyfall. Between the mountains in the background, the river running through it, and the glens and trees you’ll have plenty of opportunities to photograph. I have four spots picked out to start with, and here and here and here are some photos from the area. After that we head back and enjoy our castle at Inverlochy with a special 5-course meal at Seasgair by Michal Roux Jr. in the hotel.
Day 10: Return to Edinburgh
Today we head back to Edinburgh. We have some scenic overlooks picked out for the drive back. In addition, we will stop at the House of Bruar, which is an amazing collection of shops where you can buy any souvenirs, Scottish clothing, whiskey, or anything else. We’ll have lunch here as well. Then we’ll get by back to Edinburgh, let you settle in and have a free afternoon before our Farewell Dinner that evening.
Day 11: Onward
Most will go home today. Some may travel on to other parts of Britain or Europe. We will be staying in Edinburgh through the weekend. We plan to offer an add-on of additional places in and near Edinburgh that we couldn’t get to on the tour, so stay tuned for that.
I hope you like the sounds of this. I personally cannot wait to go back.
Reviews
If you aren’t familiar with my tours, please check out the reviews and see what past tour attendees have to say. These are submitted via Facebook and then copied over to my website.
Cost of This Tour
Total cost is $6,795 per person. There is nothing budget about this tour. Your payment includes all accommodations in first-class hotels. Two of those nights will be at Inverlochy Castle Hotel, which I guarantee will rank as one of the nicest places you’ve ever stayed. The tour cost will also include all meals, which will be amazing. You’ll receive a full breakfast each morning, a light lunch, and then full dinners at Scottish restaurants. It also includes all admissions and we’ll take care of all transportation on the tour. In short, we’ll cover just about everything but your airfare, souvenirs, and bar tab.
Just the Facts
- What: Tour of Scottish Highlands, starting and ending in Edinburgh.
- Who: About 12 people plus guides (7 people are already in)
- Where: Scotland (staying in Glencoe, Isle of Skye, Inverness, Ft. William, and Edinburgh)
- Length: 11 days/10 nights
- When: September 13 – 23, 2025
- Cost: $6,795 per person
- Deposit: $750 per person
- Single Supplement: $1,495
- Included: All hotels, meals, admissions, and in-country transportation. Basically, everything except your airfare, souvenirs, and bar tab!
Payment Made Easy
One of the reasons we are setting this trip so far out in the future is so that you can spread out the payments so you never have to come up with a large chunk of money. Just pay your deposit of $750 per person and then make the payments on your schedule.
Photography on the Trip
I originally started doing these tours for photographers, with the goal of taking them to amazing places and showing them how to photograph them and create stunning images. However, we also catered to non-photographer spouses and, after a while, people with no interest in photography whatsoever started coming. Now, my tours tend to be about half photographers and half non-photographers. We are able to cater to both and create the trip of a lifetime for everybody.
Whether you are someone who just likes snapping photos with your iPhone or you are an advanced photographer looking for a great way to upgrade your portfolio with amazing shots taken in an exotic location, this tour is for you. Typically, the only difference is that the photographers get up early for sunrise shots while non-photographers are happy to sleep in and have breakfast. Everybody wins.
What Now?
Hopefully this all sounds good to you. I’m actually very excited to go back, and we already have a great group going. We’d love to add a few more though, and hope you’ll consider it.
If you have any questions or would just like to talk through things, let me know. You can text or call me at 817-879-5739. You can also send me an email at jim@jimhamelphotography.com.
The sign up forms are below. You can get a little more info about particulars by reading them. And, of course, if you are ready to sign up, just fill out the forms and send them to me with your deposit.
