Scotland and the Islands
 

HI,
I am planning another trip to Scotland this summer. We (my sister-in-law and I) will be spending a few days in Edinburgh after an overnight flight. Then we will pick up a car at EDI and take the ferry from Aberdeen to Lerwick, Shetland islands for 3 nights, then going to Orkney for 3 nights, travelling back to Ullapool for an overnight and then over to Lewis and Harris for 3 nights.. I want to break up the trip from Stornoway to Crieff somewhere around Inverness, but not in Inverness, staying just one night. That's my question of the day. We would prefer a smaller town or village with access to restaurants. After that we will be in Crieff for two nights before one of us is flying home to Canada. I will be ditching the car at GLA, but taking the train back to Ft. William where I hope to do the Great Glen Way Walk. If I survive, I will take the train from Inverness back to Glasgow and fly home. I will have more questions as I go along, but I am just working on the timing and general outline of the trip right now, so I can book flights and the car.
Thanks in advance!

summer; do you have fixed dates or even rough months yet?

check you deal with your car rental that you can take them on ferries (trust me, just check)

Your question, hard to spot it but I think it is where to stay "the trip from Stornoway to Crieff somewhere around Inverness, but not in Inverness, staying just one night"

Hi jane1144. Around Inverness could be most anywhere -- but I'd probably pick either somewhere on the Black Isle or Grantown-on-Spey/Boat of Garten.

But . . . re your transport . . . have you considered either flying to the islands or taking the ferries as foot passengers? Instead of trying to take a car from and back to the mainland, you could rent separate cars locally on Shetland and Orkney. Then you could either fly from Orkney to Inverness (or take the ferry + bus) and rent a car in Inverness for the rest of your itinerary.

Another beautiful place near Inverness is Nairn. It's a pretty seaside village with lots of restaurants. We stayed at the Sunny Brae B&B, which we loved, and we walked to all the restaurants. No more than a 5-10 minute walk.

I also would be doing the math on flying instead of all the ferries (especially given CalMac's recent troubled history of cancellations etc. on the west coast.) Not only are the ferries pricey, but with an itinerary as busy as yours, flying might be a significant time-saver too. Just a thought.

Anyway, re your question, I'd look at returning to the mainland via Tarbert and Uig on Skye rather than via Ullapool (which I assume is the current plan.) That way you could spend the night in some pretty village like Plockton, not far from the Kyle bridge, and be within half a day's drive of Crieff the next day.

Map - https://maps.app.goo.gl/TiWZKt1nymqLo6ee8

Thanks for the help
 

Thankyou to you all. Some really good ideas there. I will ponder carefully, Didn't know about the Calmac problems, I had considered coming down through Skye which might make more sense. we wanted a car for the trip up to Aberdeen, because we want to see some things on the way. I prefer renting through Auto Europe, rather than fighting with the franchisees directly when there are problems. I imagine that local rentals on the islands would not be as bad. We also want to drive a bit of the NC 500 on our way to Stornowway. i will check about the ferries, but I have never had an issue in the past, which may mean nothing!! Thanks for the Nairn tip!
I knew you all would chime in and I am grateful!
Jane

Oh, I do have fixed dates. Arriving GLA on Aug 29, train to Edinburgh. One of us is flying home on Sept 16 (GLA to YYZ). I am staying for another 8 days to do the Great Glen Walk.

JAne