A Scottish Journey

This morning we’ll wind northwards, passing through the quaint villages of East Neuk until we reach St Andrews – the city where young royalty meets golf heritage. 

There, we’ll have free time to explore. Seek the University of St Andrews, where a certain love story began. Polish off your golf facts with a venture around the British Golf Museum – home to a colourful history that spans centuries. Or travel back in time to when St Andrews housed the largest cathedral in all of Scotland, its ruins evoking a sense of age-old nostalgia. As we head northwards to our hotel in the Highlands, bask in the ever-changing scenery filled with rugged glens and dramatic hills. 

Wake up and breathe in your morning coffee – we have another day of embracing all Scotland has to offer! First: buckle up in the minicoach and watch a cacophony of green forest trees, imposing mountains and shimmering waters flit by from the comfort of your seat as we travel towards the Highlands’ capital: Inverness.  

Before we cross into city lines, let’s take a moment for the Highland Folk Museum. It’s Britain’s first open-air museum buzzing with direct insight into the past. For guests who have a passion for all things film and TV, this was a location used for Outlander!  

Onwards to Inverness. Settle in for dinner with your newfound travel companions as a local bagpiper welcomes you to this evening’s meal, playing traditional notes in a melody that will stir the soul.  

Wave a fond “mar sin leat” (farewell in Scottish Gaelic) to the spirited city of Inverness – our next stop is just a short drive away, and it’s laden with the ghosts of a bloody battle from 1796. Embrace the gooseflesh along your arms as you hear tales of the Jacobite Rising’s final, tragic end at Culloden Battlefield. From harrowing history to magical mythology – keep your eyes peeled for Scotland’s favourite monster in the calming waters of Loch Ness. Any slight ripple could be her shyly welcoming you to her home!    

Back onto the minicoach for our next stop: Plockton! Or, as it’s lovingly known as to the locals – “The Jewel of the Highlands”. Seek fresh, rose-coloured tulips growing in bunches. Cast your eyes over quaint homes that seem to have tumbled out of an old fairytale. Follow the mountain line under a cloud-filled (or clear blue!) sky.  

Our journey takes us to our home for the next two nights – the Isle of Skye – where we’ll stay at a family-owned hotel surrounded by fragrant gardens. But first, a group dinner with decadent food awaits our arrival!  

From one island to another, our adventure continues. Let’s dive into the origins of Scottish Gaelic a little, giving you some food for thought as we pass through lochs, glens and Munros (mountains to us!). Irish settlers, known as Scoti, brought the language with them during the fourth or fifth century. From then, the language travelled through the land like a rush of water until the 16th century when it began to decline due to the immergence of English. Some words are preserved and many pockets of the population hope to revive Gaelic culture today.  

After a lunch stop in Mallaig (try to find some shortcakes to fill that spot!), our Tour Leader will share more stories and historic anecdotes alongside folklore and fairytales about the enchanted setting we find ourselves in until we settle in our new home for the next two nights: Mull.

One final adventure for the road? Before we head back to the point where our tale began, we’ll briefly stop in Oban for some free time after we arrive at the mainland. The seafood capital of Scotland boasts a bustling port, crashing waves that rival the anger of the old gods, and all the colours of the rainbow dotted along the harbour.  

Our second-to-last stop takes us to Stirling where its magnificent hilltop castle will raise the hairs on the back of your necks as it presides over the city and all who wander there. Once we’re inside its gleaming walls adorned with immaculately painted crests, we’ll soak up sweeping views and wonder what whispers haunt the rooms. Our final journey aboard the minicoach is now upon us, so settle in, swap your favourite memories, and follow the back roads to Edinburgh with a heart full of Scottish stories.