Scottish Highlands

Welcome to the mystical Scottish Highlands, where rugged landscapes and natural beauty await at every turn. We spent six days exploring this incredible area and could have easily enjoyed another week. The scenery is amazing, the food is delicious, and you are bound to meet friendly people wherever you stop.

Our trip to Scotland started and ended in Edinburgh, so our itinerary formed a loop to get us back to the city for our flight home. You could easily bookend your trip with Glasgow instead, but we do recommend visiting Edinburgh (read more about what to do in Edinburgh here).

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Day 1: Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park

Assuming that you are also leaving from Edinburgh, start your journey with a visit to the historically rich Stirling Castle. While tours are offered at the castle, we chose to do a self-guided visit. There was more than enough information around the castle grounds to keep things interesting!

After the castle and some delicious lunch at Toast), head to Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, where you can hike the Conic Hill (3.3 miles round trip, 1,089 feet of elevation gain) for sweeping views. Prepare for wind at the summit! While in that area, take some time to see the ruins of Buchanan Castle, then start your drive north towards Glencoe. We recommend stopping at The Real Food Cafe for dinner on your way up. It was probably the best fish and chips we had on the trip.

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Day 2: Explore the Glencoe & Fort William Area

In Glencoe we stayed at an Airbnb just outside of town. The views were incredible. Overall the scenery in this part of the Highlands is breathtaking, so we recommend choosing accommodation that lets you enjoy it.

Our first stop this day was the Lost Valley hike (2.5 miles round trip, 836 feet of elevation gain), which took us on a journey through a hidden valley nestled in the mountains. The hike offered both stunning views and a unique sense of isolation. If you go earlier enough in the day, you may see a bunch of deer making their way through the valley.

After the hike, we took a leisurely drive along Glen Etive, where we were greeted by some of the most picturesque views in the Highlands. This scenic route is a must-visit for any nature lover and will look familiar to fans of the James Bond and Harry Potter franchises. For lunch afterwards, we stopped at Clachaig Inn, a cozy pub across from the former site of Hagrid’s hut. Although the burger was weirdly gamey, the ambiance made up for it.

In the afternoon, we embarked on the Steall Waterfall hike (3.5 miles roundtrip, 708 feet of elevation gain), which led us to a beautiful waterfall surrounded by towering mountains. The views were incredible. As evening approached, we headed to Fort William to catch a glimpse of the Jacobite train arriving at the station – an iconic Harry Potter experience. To end the day we got dinner and drinks at the Black Isle Brewery, a lively spot with good vibes (even though the pizza didn’t live up to our American expectations).

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Day 3: Harry Potter Sightseeing

This day of our trip was dedicated to exploring famous Harry Potter sites in the Highlands. Our first stop was the Glenfinnan Viaduct, where we waited with anticipation to witness the Hogwarts Express crossing the iconic bridge. We arrived early to do the short hike up the neighboring hill and secure a good photo spot, and our patience paid off as we watched the train billow steam while chugging across the viaduct.

Continuing our Harry Potter adventure, we visited Loch Shiel and its charming lighthouse, then moved on to Loch Eilt (known as Dumbledore’s resting place in the movies). Here you will need to park on the side of the road towards the end of the lake, then walk through a muddy area to catch a glimpse of the island featured in the Harry Potter films. It was a surreal moment to see the fictional location brought to life.

After finishing our time in the wizarding world, we made our way to the Isle of Skye – magical in its own right. On the way there, we stopped at the picturesque Eilean Donan Castle to get some photos.

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Days 4 & 5: Isle of Skye

The Isle of Skye welcomed us with its rugged beauty and captivating landscapes. We chose to stay in Portree, the largest town on the island. Here you will find many charming B&Bs and a great selection of dining options. The Scottish breakfast provided by our Airbnb was a perfect way to start each day.

There are so many things to do around the island that you’ll be hard pressed to prioritize. Here are the sites we chose to visit during our our two days in Skye:

• The Quiraing Circuit Hike (4.3 miles round trip, 1,318 feet of elevation gain): This hike has jaw-dropping views. We recommend starting early to avoid crowds, but always check the weather first. Getting a clear day with crowds is better than cloud cover alone. When the clouds are low, it is easy to get lost at the top of this hike. If you keep an eye on the cliff edge and be mindful of the steep descents, you should be fine.

• The Old Man of Storr Hike (3.4 miles round trip, 1,200 feet of elevation gain): This iconic hike was our nemesis. Even more so than Quiraing, checking the weather here is critical. If it is foggy, you will barely be able to see the Old Man or the surrounding scenery; we did the hike twice with no luck. One positive thing to note – there are well maintained restrooms by the paid parking, so you’ll have somewhere to change and dry off if you get caught in a downpour like we did.

• Fairy Pools Hike (2.3 miles round trip, 508 feet of elevation gain): This short but beautiful hike is incredibly scenic. There is no defined endpoint, but the views don’t change much after you walk a mile or so along the river. Note that it does get really crowded, so you may need to budget extra time to get a clear photo. Like the Old Man of Storr, though, this hike has paid parking with well-maintained restrooms.

• Neist Point Lighthouse: The views of this lighthouse along the Skye coast are incredible. While you don’t have to hike to the lighthouse to enjoy the scenery (1.7 miles round trip, 442 feet of elevation gain), we do recommend it. There are some smaller hills on the way to the lighthouse that provide the best views for photos. A word of caution: the road to the lighthouse is narrow and winding, but the experience is well worth it.

• Kilt Rock & Mealt Falls: You won’t need to spend much time here, but it is worth a quick stop before or after visiting the Old Man of Storr. Right off the parking lot, there are great views looking down at the waterfall and Skye coast.

• The Fairy Glen: If this stop is not convenient with your itinerary, you can feel okay skipping it. Don’t get us wrong – the “mystical” grass formations are interesting and fit with the magical vibe of the island. There just isn’t a ton to see here. We spent about 30 minutes walking around and getting different views of the scenery, but for us it was more of a pitstop on the way to other attractions.

• Skye Weavers: This shop was a pleasant surprise! Here we got to observe the tweed weaving process and find some unique souvenirs. The master weaver was really kind and took the time to answer all our questions.

• The Isle of Skye Brewing Company: This brewery is not a taproom – you can’t drink on site. Rather, you can pick up some local craft brews to enjoy later wherever you’re staying (or on top of a mountain). The beers here were great, so we were glad we stopped by to support the local business.

When you’re tired of exploring and ready for a meal, we highly recommend making a reservation if dining in Portree. Everything was way more crowded than we expected. Below are the restaurants we enjoyed on the island:

• Sea Breezes: This restaurant on the Portree harbor had really delicious seafood – maybe the best scallops we’ve ever had. The soup soup, monkfish scampi, and panko breaded brie were all delicious too. Highly recommend this restaurant and will absolutely dine there again when back in Skye.

• Dulse and Brose: This cottage-style pub is a solid option in Portree. The roasted cod was great, and we enjoyed the tempura veggies too. Our favorite part though was the homey pub atmosphere.

• The Galley Cafe & Takeaway: If you’re in the northern part of Skye and need a quick bite between sites, we highly recommend stopping here. They have a wide variety of delicious fried seafood that makes for a perfect bite while driving around the island.

After Skye we made our way to Pitlochry, which is about four hours by car. While we did this drive at the end of our second day in Skye, you could also leave the next morning if you need more time for your hikes.

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Day 6: Pitlochry & Aberfeldy

The Pitlochry town is very charming and surrounded by some beautiful scenery. The main attractions though are the scotch distilleries. Here we visited both Blair Athol and Dewar’s:

• Blair Athol Distillery: This old, small scotch distillery is just outside of town and an easy walk depending on where you are staying in Pitlochry. We highly recommend doing a tour here to learn about the historic grounds and enjoy a tasting (the whiskey is very good).The courtyard is great for photos too.

• Dewar’s Aberfeldy Distillery: The Dewar’s distillery is located in the town of Aberfeldy – about a 30 minute drive from Pitlochry. The trip is worth it though. This distillery is a much larger production than Blair Athol, and the tour lets you appreciate the scale. You also get to learn about the history of the Dewar’s brand. We didn’t like the scotch here as much, but it was interesting comparing the experience to Blair Athol.

On the way to Aberfeldy, we recommend stopping by the Iain Burnett Highland Chocolatier shop. We had no idea this shop was even there, but it was a very pleasant surprise. Apparently Iain Burnett is a big deal in the chocolate world. There are so many goodies there to choose from, including a rich drinking chocolate to enjoy on site.

Also just outside of Pitlochry is Queen’s View – a nice park with a view overlooking Loch Tummel. You don’t need to spend long here, but it is a great spot to visit at sunset (even in the typically rainy Scotland weather). When researching Pitlochry you may also see something about the Fish Ladder. While at the right time of year we’re sure this would be really cool, there was nothing to see in September. It was just an ordinary dam.

For a smaller town, though, Pitlochry has some really tasty spots to eat!

• The Bridge Restaurant: The steak pie and lamb shank here were both delicious. The haggis bon bons though… you can skip those. Call ahead to make a reservation and ensure you get a table at this busy spot.

• The Hairy Coo’s Piecebox: If you need a quick breakfast or snack, consider stopping by the Hairy Coo. They have really good pastries, hand pies, and desserts. We ended up getting an assortment of things to try and snack on throughout the day – everything was great.

After Pitlochry we made the 1.5 hour drive back to Edinburgh for some more city time and then our flight home.

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Other Tips & Tricks

• Getting Around: You absolutely need a car when visiting the Highlands. Public transit is non-existent, and everything is very spaced out – especially the hikes and national parks. While you’ll have to drive on the left side of the road, it really isn’t too difficult and will only take a couple right turns to get used to.

• When to Visit: We thought late September was a great time to visit the Highlands. The cool weather was perfect for hiking, and it wasn’t as crowded as peak summer. If you go much later than September, you’ll find that many places have closed for the season and that the sun sets unfortunately early.

• What to Wear: The weather in the Highlands is unpredictable. Pack plenty of layers, and prepare to get rained on. We brought a rain jacket and rain paints with us on all of our hikes, and we were glad we did.

• Currency Exchange: While it is helpful to have a bit of cash on hand, we were able to pay for just about everything with our credit cards. When exchanging cash, we recommend doing so in a larger town – so either Edinburgh / Glasgow before starting the road trip, or Portree once you make it there.

Happy traveling!

Kitrina & Jordan