A few random thoughts:

• "We are intersted in seeing Inverness"

Why - not much to see in Inverness. Lots to see in the general area but except for a river through town the city itself is mainly just a commercial centre.

Though you could base there for a couple of days to see Culloden, Ft George, maybe the Black Isle/dolphins

• 8 days in Edinburgh is a bit much . . . unless you plan 4 day trips outside

• W/ two weeks and requiring public transport, I might consider 5 or 6 nights in Edinburgh w/ a couple of day trips (maybe one one to St Andrews and one into the Borders to give you a contrast to the other sorts of places/scenery you'll see), 3 nights in Inverness (that just gives you 2 full days), 4 nights on Skye (here you can hire a local driver rather than rely on slow buses), and your final night in Edinburgh or at EDI depending on you flight time.

• Another option instead of staying in Inverness, would be to take one of the excellent multi-day, small group tours from Rabbies or Timberbush.

rabbies.com
http://www.timberbush-tours.co.uk/

Why will you rely on public transport? Unless you are incapable of operating a motor vehicle, the easiest way to see Scotland is by your own car rental especially because public transportation won't take you to the castles and abbeys tucked away in the countryside.

Given the whisky and castle interest, you should consider staying in or near Dufftown at some point, considering that's the capital of Highland Scotch Whisky production. Castles are nearby in Aberdeenshire and some that are east of Inverness are not far away.

BigRuss is right - few castles, abbeys, or even distilleries are near train stations or convenient by bus.

I took it that you were definite about not having a car - which is one reason I suggested Rabbies and Timberbush. They will drive you right up to the castles and scenic bits. Much better than trying to explore rural parts by public transport.

But if there is any way you could rent a car for just a few days you could go wherever you like.

janisj & BigRuss, thank you so much for your help. We are reluctant to rent a car because we are from the US and we thought that driving on the opposite side of the road would be daunting.

I like the idea of rabbies and timberbush, I'll be checking both out. If we spend a 3 days in the Inverness area and then move on to Skye would you know how to go about hiring a driver? I am also very interested in your suggestion of Dufftown, is that on the way to Skye?

Thanks for sharing your knowledge - wish I had discovered this forum before I booked the full 8 (non-refundable) nights in Edinburgh .

<<<We are reluctant to rent a car because we are from the US and we thought that driving on the opposite side of the road would be daunting. >>>

as long as everyone else is driving on the same side of the road it is not daunting (honestly!)

<<We are reluctant to rent a car because we are from the US and we thought that driving on the opposite side of the road would be daunting. >>

For some reason the Brits and far too many of their daft commonwealth countries decided to drive on the wrong side of the road. Can't be helped at this point. But once you actually get in the car (rent an automatic, not a stick, and rent from a US-based agency OR Europcar, not a local agency because the US agency will be responsive if something fouls up and Europcar is the Euro-based equivalent of Hertz) and start driving, it's almost normal to drive on the wrong side. Of course, you may get your turn signal and windshield wiper controls mixed up a few times (I have no idea where that concept comes from . . . ).

Consider how much more convenient it is to drive during a trip to Scotland because the public transport is spotty and the tours are on a schedule that may not match with your own, get over your concerns about driving on the other side (driving on the left side of the road when the driver's side is on the right-hand side of the car actually feels natural), and gain freedom.

Scots are actually mildly considerate on narrow Scottish country roads and single-lane highways. On the "dual carriageways," they drive like bloody Europeans.

And save now because the petrol prices blow.

P.S.: You want weird, drive in the USVI where the driver is on the left AND they drive on the left.

BigRuss- thanks for the humor! We will take your advice, conquer our fears and drive for some of our vacation.

P.S. I have read about your petrol prices - ouch, but still cheaper than hiring a driver.

One of our favorite trips was to Scotland:

http://www.fodors.com/community/europe/scotland-trossachs-skye-and-loch-ness-an-indydad-trip-report.cfm

Good luck with the planning.

Not my petrol prices, I'm not in Scotland.

Great place to visit, couldn't deal with the winters' gloom and three hours of daylight in late December.

Great Pictures Indy_dad!

I've appreciated all of the help from everyone. Looks like I have some more research to do.

Too bad about the pre-booking, non-refundable. But there are worse place to be 'stuck' than Edinburgh

I'd suggest any 3 or 4 of the following day trips:

• St Andrews on your own. Take the train from Edinburgh to Leuchars and then a taxi or local bus to St Andrews. If you go on a Sunday there is no play on the Old Course and you can walk anywhere on the course. Plus the Castle, Cathedral, big beaches.

• a guided tour in to the Borders - any of the Border Abbeys, Stately homes/palaces, pretty scenery.

• Linlithgow. A short train ride from Edinburgh and a neat Palace ruins to explore

• A guided tour of The Trossachs/Loch Lomond.

After your 8 days you can take the train to Inverness and rent a car there. Spend 2 days exploring the area -and since you'd have a car you can stay anywhere and not have to be in the city. Culloden, Loch Ness, Ft George. I wouldn't go to Dufftown myself. The Glenfiddich distillery tour is great - but it is too far out of your way and there are other distilleries - including Talisker on Skye.

Then drive down Loch Ness and across to Skye. Spend 3 days on SKye. Then one long day (your only really long driving day - but by then you'll be old pros) 4.5 to 5 hours plus stops from Mallaig to EDI airport. So basically a full day. Turn in the car and spend that night at an airport hotel.

8 full nights in Edinburgh won't be so bad. I have gone for 7 nights 3 times so far and planning my 4th time this coming summer. There are lots of day trips you can do on your own or through Rabbies and Timberbush, as janisj suggested, if you don't want to rent a car or do it youself. I've used both companies with no issues or problems as I do not drive while in Scotland. I've also seen people link multiple tours on Rabbies so that could be an option too. You could also go to Stirling by train or tour.

Thanks janisj you are good planner!

Sassy27 thanks for the reassurance, I took janisj's advice and looked up rabbies and timberbush and we found at least 4 day excursions that we would like to go on so we're feeling very comfortable with our decision to stay in Edinburgh.

Since you mentioned that you don't drive while in Scotland I'm wondering where you have been and what your experiences in getting around were?

And Talisker is better than Glenfiddich . . .

Also, if you're going north of Inverness, Glenmorangie is on your way to Dunrobin Castle (which I shill for . . . they need to slip me a tip).

And Stirling Castle is an easy day trip from Edinburgh too.

My first trip, I did a day tour to Stirling, through a company I don't recall, which included a stop to Loch Lomond and Aberfoyle and drive through the Trossachs. Did a do it yourself bus ride to Selkirk as my family came from there and then a long weekend in Glasgow before flying home. We took the train to get to Glasgow. I did rent a car for a day to go to a town outside of Glasgow, another place my family came from, but had a bad experince and why I don't feel comfortable driving there.

The second trip, we did a do it yourself trip to Stirling by train. We also did the Timberbush tour of the Borders and Hadrian's wall which I see they do not offer the England part anymore. After our week's stay we picked up Rabbie's 3 day Isle of Skye tour which we found fantastic.

The third trip, we took Rabbie's Loch Ness day tour and later picked up their 5 day tour of Orkney and Scotland's Northern Coast. We came back for a few days to attend the military tattoo and festivals before leaving.

This next trip, we plan on taking Rabbie's 3 day tour to England's lake district and then move on to London for a few days. We may take a few day tours but haven't decided which ones yet as I am going with some people who have never been. St. Andrew's is on the list but we'll see.

We have used their public transportation a few times in Edinburgh and found it much better than what we have in my hometown. We have also done the hop on and off tours In Edinburgh and walk around a lot. We seem to keep finding things we haven't done before so gives us a reason to return.

Ah, I see I gave you wrong information. On my first trip the Stirling tour was Timberbush and the Borders tour on my second trip was through Heart of Scotland. Not sure how I mixed that up and would recommend any of these tour companies.