Compare West Highlands and the Isle of Skye (self-drive tour) by Audley Travel
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| Trip |
5 | Excellent
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| Duration | 10 days |
| Price From | $ 2,995 |
| Price Per Day | $ 300 |
| Highlights |
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| Trip Style | Self-guided tour |
| Lodging Level | Standard |
| Physical Level |
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| Travel Themes |
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| Countries Visited | |
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| Flights & Transport | Ground transport included |
| Activities |
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| Meals Included | N/A |
| Description |
Our Scottish travel guides reflect the recent findings of our specialists who travel regularly to Scotland to seek out new places to stay and visit as well as imaginative ways of discovering the well-known highlights. The guides give tips on everything from Edinburgh for first timers to the culture and history of Scotland, so that you can get the most out of your time there. Our Scotland specialists can guide you along the way using personal experience and in-depth knowledge on pursuits from touring the region's whisky distilleries or its medieval castles, to exploring the Isle of Skye or hiking through untouched valley |
Day 1: Loch Lomond
Make your own way to Loch Lomond. From here, you’ll take a privately guided kayaking tour out onto the loch, surrounded by the Trossachs mountain range, known as the gateway to the Highlands. Tonight, stay in a picturesque lochside village.
Accommodation While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 2: Glencoe
Leave Loch Lomond and drive further north to Glencoe, where you'll meet your private guide for the next three days. You’ll then head into the heart of Glencoe for a short but fairly steep hike to the Lost Valley, where the MacDonald clan used to hide their rustled cattle. A picnic lunch is included.
Accommodation options While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 3: Glencoe
Spend most of the day hiking. You’ll head up and over the highest pass of the West Highland Way. Weather allowing, you'll have fantastic views across the surrounding mountains, including toward Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the UK. A picnic lunch is included. On reaching a small village at the head of Loch Leven, you'll be collected and driven back toward your hotel. En route, stop at a climbers' inn to meet a local storyteller, who'll regale you with tales about Glencoe.
Accommodation options While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 4: Glencoe
Enjoy another day of hiking, deciding for yourself on the length and difficulty of your route, which will also depend on the weather. You could aim to hike one of Glencoe's summits to finish your three-day walking trip on a literal high. A picnic lunch is included.
Accommodation options While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 5: Glencoe
Make your way to Fort William today to board the Jacobite Steam Train, better known as the Hogwarts Express! You'll cross over the Glenfinnan Viaduct while taking in impressive views. The roundtrip journey will return you to Fort William and you will make your way back to your hotel in Glencoe.
Accommodation options While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 6: Isleornsay
Leave Glencoe and drive on the 'road to the Isles' out to Mallaig this morning, to board the ferry across to Skye. Once you've checked into your waterfront hotel, which has views across to the mountains, you have the rest of the day to begin exploring the island by yourself. Portree, the main town on Skye, isn't far away, or you could head into the Cuillin Hills for some hiking.
Accommodation While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 7: Isleornsay
Explore Skye’s northern peninsula, which has some of the island's most eye-catching rock formations and best views. Following the area’s extensive trails, you'll pass the distinctive rocky outcrops of Old Man of Storr and the Quiraing, which are popular filming locations, and see a waterfall cascading directly into the sea, as well as a beach where dinosaur footprints are visible at low tide. As you round the north of the peninsula, make your way to Dunvegan Castle. Here, you can take a short boat trip out to spot seals and take in views of the castle from the water, as invaders would once have done. Back on land, explore the castle and its gardens and meet the estate manager for a wee dram of whisky in the Great Hall.
Accommodation While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 8: Isleornsay
Meet your private guide this morning for a hike through Skye's spectacular landscapes. In the afternoon, meet the Eilean Donan's master distiller to learn about the art and process of gin distilling, before returning to label your own bottle.
Accommodation While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 9: Methven
Drive across the Skye Bridge this morning to the waterside village of Plockton. Here, you’ll meet your private kayaking guide and head out into the bay to explore the surrounding coves and beaches, with a backdrop of islands and mountains across the water. Later, drive through the central Highlands to Methven Castle, your home for the night. Dinner is included tonight.
Accommodation While the itinerary price reflects the suggested accommodation, this itinerary is 100% tailor-made, and a specialist can help you select the option best suited to your tastes and budget.
Day 10: Return home
Leave Methven and make your way home.
