Highlights

Itinerary

Day 1 – Glasgow Arrival

Upon arrival at the Glasgow Airport, transportation will be provided to your hotel.  Your tour departs at 2:30 PM from your Glasgow hotel. Enjoy a tour around the city famed for its Victorian and Art Nouveau architecture. A prosperous port city due to international trade and shipbuilding, today it is Scotland’s cultural hub. Enjoy a welcome drink with your group and dinner at your hotel. (D)

Day 2 – Isle of Bute/Mount Stuart House

Take a ferry to the Isle of Bute for stunning island scenery and a guided tour of the 19th-century Mount Stuart House. Spend some time in Rothesay, the main town on the island. Enjoy a free evening in Glasgow and dine independently. (B)

Day 3 – Loch Lomond/Eilean Donan Castle

Travel along the famous Loch Lomond, renowned for its unsurpassed beauty. Journey through Glencoe, often considered one of Scotland’s most beautiful regions. Travel through Fort William and visit romantic Eilean Donan Castle, spectacularly situated on an island at the meeting of three lochs. (B, D)

Day 4 – Isle of Skye/Dunvegan Castle/Portree

Explore the Isle of Skye and its associations with Bonnie Prince Charlie. Tour Dunvegan Castle, the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland and former stronghold of the Chiefs of MacLeod. Enjoy photo opportunities including stunning Kilt Rock. Stop in picturesque Portree with its brightly painted houses clustered around the bay. Enjoy free time before dinner at your hotel. (B, D)

Day 5 – Inverewe Gardens/Ullapool

Take in the Highland scenery as you head to Inverewe Gardens, where a haven of tropical trees and shrubs has been created. Continue to Ullapool, an active fishing and ferry port, and check in to your hotel near the harbor. (B, D)

Day 6 – Highland Scenery/Ferry to Orkney

Admire the rugged mountains, coastline, and vast areas of open land of the sparsely populated northernmost section of the Highlands. Learn about the Highland Clearances, a tragic period of history when many peasants were forced off the land and emigrated to the United States, Australia, and other countries. Take advantage of the many photo opportunities along the way. Continue to Gill’s Bay on the northern coast of Scotland and take a ferry to the Orkney Islands, where you will spend the next two nights. (B)

Day 7 – Orkney/Ring of Brodgar/Skara Brae/St Magnus Cathedral

Today is an Orcadian adventure, visiting the heart of Neolithic Orkney, a UNESCO World Heritage Site. Take a scenic drive around the north of the main island, past the Earl’s Palace at Birsay. Visit Skara Brae to see this amazing 5,000-year-old village. Take some free time for lunch in the port town of Stromness. Travel on to the Ring of Brodgar, a ceremonial stone circle. Return to Kirkwall for a visit to St Magnus Cathedral. Your evening is free to explore the town and dine as you wish. (B)

Day 8 – Italian Chapel/Dunrobin Castle/Inverness

Drive across the Churchill Barriers, causeways created during World War II to deter German submarines. Next explore the tiny Italian Chapel, a beautiful symbol of reconciliation built by Italian prisoners of war. Board a ferry back to the mainland and head to Dunrobin Castle, dating to 1275 and renovated in the mid-1800s. With 189 rooms, this grand castle resembles a French chateau and its gardens were inspired by those at the Palace of Versailles. Continue south to Inverness, the principal town in the Highlands. (B, D)

Day 9 – Urquhart Castle/Loch Ness Cruise/Culloden Battlefield

Keep your camera handy as you visit the picturesque ruins of Urquhart Castle and take a cruise on Loch Ness. Stop at the Culloden Battlefield Visitor Centre to learn about the conflict that led to the end of the clan system in Scotland. Walk around the moor and see monuments to the various regiments who lost men. Return to Inverness with time to relax, shop, or walk alongside the river. (B, D)

Day 10 – Whisky Tasting/Scottish Evening

Immerse yourself in farm life and watch as skilled dogs round up sheep. Spend some free time in the Victorian town of Pitlochry. Visit The Glenturret Distillery to see how whisky is produced and enjoy a tasting. Travel on to Edinburgh and check into your city center hotel. Enjoy a festive Scottish dinner with lively, traditional entertainment. July 29 – August 14 departures will enjoy an evening free to explore and dine independently. (B, D*)

Day 11 – Edinburgh

Discover Edinburgh’s highlights including the wide streets and elegant mansions of the 200-year-old Georgian “New Town” and the Royal Mile, the oldest part of the city. Tour the imposing Edinburgh Castle to see the Stone of Destiny and the Scottish Crown Jewels. Enjoy an evening free to explore independently. July 29 – August 14 departures attend the spectacular Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo on the Castle Esplanade. (B)

Day 12 – Depart for Home

After breakfast, transfers will be provided to the airport for your flight back to the US. (B)

Tour Map