Scotland for a month summer 2025
 

Planning a month in Scotland June 5-July 3 driving trip.
Glasgow 2 days Oban one day Mull 2 days Iona one day Glencoe 2 days Invergarry one day Skye 2 days Lewis and Harris 3 days Ullapool one day Durness 2 days Inverness 2 days Stirling/Perth 2 days Edinburgh 3 days Glasgow 2 days..
Any suggestions for car hire accomodation thinking 117 pounds/$200 canadian max per night b and bs per couple.
also would like to take the jacobite train from fort William to Mallaig but i see they are not taking bookings at this time.When would be a realistic time to book this steam train?
I kmow I am looking for a lot of information.Is my time frame realistic driving these distances and catching ferries?
I will appreciate any feedback.Thank you
Ron Anderson

OK -- that is really fast paced. When you say 'Mull 2 days' -- or 'Edinburgh 3 days' - do realize that to get 2 days in a place requires 3 nights, 3 days = 4 nights, etc. (Iona would be the exception since you would visit it from Mull and it is a 10 minute foot ferry)

So adding up your 'days' -- you are talking a 44 or 45 night trip -- not just under one month. 4 weeks sounds like a lot of time but it isn't really enough to cover as much territory as you've laid out.

A few other comments -- I personally would not split up the Glasgow days. If you are flying in/out of GLA I'd arrange my itinerary to do Glasgow at the beginning and then stay somewhere scenic within easy commute of GLA the final night before flying out -- like along Loch Lomond or nearby.

Two nights on Mull is woefully inadequate -- three nights is much better and would give you 1.5 days for the (very large/slow driving) island and about half a day to explore Iona.

If by 2 days on Skye you mean 2 nights -- that nets you ONE day for the very large and very slow driving island . . . which is almost 'why bother territory.

IMO/IME you need to cut quite a lot -- probably the outer Hebrides, and the very far north at the very least. On any of the islands and in the far north you would be lucky to average 30 MPH - and 25 MPH in some places.

So prioritize which regions are on your 'must list' and cut most of the rest. Back to the drawing board I'm afraid :(

In my opinion, somewhere between no and hell, no. You will be spending most of your time seeing the world through the car windows.

What do you plan to do when you get to these places? Just look around and say, "Huh," then move to the next one? Or some local walks or hikes, or a photo expedition?

I'd consult a source like Undiscovered Scotland and see which of your destinations might be sufficiently like some others that you could simplify the route and reduce the list. Otherwise I fear you'll be dizzy and unsatisfied by the end of this marathon.

I'm not a Scotland expert, but I think this is unrealistic. Too much time spent driving, waiting for ferries, riding ferries, and not enough time seeing each place. As near as I can tell, you're including the time to reach a place in the time you have to see/explore the place. (Which, for instance, means you don't really have two days on Skye.)

The first thing I suggest is that you plot out the itinerary day by day and include the travel time (and logistics) for each transfer. If you're using Google for drive times, consider them only suggestions. Each drive will take much longer, in some cases much. much longer.

Random thoughts: Two stays in Glasgow, and more time in Glasgow than Edinburgh?... It sounds like you are 4 people. I hope everyone knows how to pack light and SMALL. You'll need a car with a large boot/cargo area.... I don't think you want to drive into Edinburgh. Perhaps return the car on arrival, and then train to Glasgow.

Ha. The experts can type faster than me...

I admit I didn't read to the bottom of your full OP -- and went straight to working out the actual logistics of your plan.

Just saw the "also would like to take the jacobite train from fort William to Mallaig but i see they are not taking bookings at this time.When would be a realistic time to book this steam train?: . . . Unless you cut a full day from somewhere else you can flat out forget about the Jacobite! It eats up nearly a full day round trip and if you take the first train out of Ft William you will have to stay over night there.

You are really really underestimating how slow the travel is and how much there is to see on alll of these places. And it does seem here are more than two of you since you say 'per couple'. No -- just no. Two people need more time than someone traveling solo, and 4 people need yet more time. Different body clocks, different interests, some dashing though meals / some lingering over sticky toffee pudding and after meal drinks/ some scrambling up to the Glenfinnan Viaduct/some huffing and puffing up the hill.

We were all typing as fast as we could :)

Does show there are a lot of great minds on Fodors!

These allocations of days seem quite random…it would be better to indicate what you want to achieve - for example, 2 days in Glencoe.Not that y someone can’t make good use of that time but unless you plan on some decent hiking, once you come off Mull then it’s fairly easy to see Glencoe as you head further north.One night at most I’d suggest if you want to go up the chairlift, do a shortish walk, spend some time going down Glen Etive etc.
Otherwise, if you spent a part day around the glen you could make for Invergarry (the Glengarry Castle Hotel is a gem) as that is not a huge distance from Glencoe.That breaks up your journey to Skye comfortably.

Skye, like Mull , also needs more time.I’d take time from the generous allocation you've given my home city, Glasgow.Two full days will let you see its finest sights IMO, though it depends if you want to use the city as a base for, perhaps, a trip to Ayrshire for the wonderful Culzean Castle.

The Outer Hebrides and the Far North are outstanding for scenery and sights and are amongst my favourite areas of Scotland.Actually, the main roads are pretty good and particularly sweeping and fast north of Ullapool to beyond Scourie but as janisj has mentioned , the coastal sections are single track, extremely winding and need time.
We spend a lot of time on the beautiful Outer Hebrides, single track roads are pretty quiet and quite a pleasure to drive with big open vistas.The main road round South /West Harris is a dream.

I’d also tend to save time by cutting things short in Inverness, Stirling and Perth though again, it would be useful to hear more detail about your plans in and around these places and why they have that time allocated to them/what your interests are.I’m not saying that there isn’t enough to see/do there; as with most places in Scotland you could certainly build a very enjoyable and varied holiday around any of them.

Very quick since I'm dashing out for the afternoon . . . Yes the far NW and the Outer Hebrides are absolutely wonderful . . . but to fit them in you will have to significantly cut elsewhere. As far as the Perth/Inverness/Stirling jaunt. Lots of interest near Inverness but the city itself is -- well, a CITY and you'd do better staying somewhere like Nairn or Grantown-on-Spey or other places (IF you have the time to spend any there at all for Culloden, Cawdor Castle, Fort George, maybe the Black Isle, etc. Perth is semi-meh (nice town but not as scenic as some other areas -- Scone Palace is interesting though. And Stirling is mainly the castle so no need to stay over night there. Either visit on the drive through or as an easy day trip by train from Edinburgh.

Basically what some of us are saying is you are trying to fit a 6 or 8 week trip into 28 days.

Revising my trip
 

Thanks to one and all for your replies.some revision is in order
We are not planning to do any long hikes does that affect our time spent for example on Skye?Or any of the orther places visited.I realise we do not want to spend too much time in a car getting to places and finding we dont have enough time there.Any further comments useful.
Can we book accomodation 9 months ahead?
Thanks
Ron

Coach/train trips as possible alternative to driving trip
 

Hi guys
we are 2 seniors 70 plus planning a month in Scotland.I posted our provisional itinerary which i realise is unrealistic for only a month.
I wonder is there a coach/train company which would let us see Skye Mull and the north route 500 even under shorter time than onr month.I would also love to do the steam train from fort William to Mallaig but could do this separately.
I am not sure I want the stress of driving.I am English but have lived in Canada for the last 40 years.Thanks
Ron

I was working on the assumption no long hikes or major treks on foot were in the mix. (yes, I do know what 'assuming' can end up ;) )

No -- that doesn't affect any part of your overly ambitious itinerary. Lets just look at Skye for one example . . . No Hikes. Just car visits, getting out of the car at major beauty spots, visiting Talisker, visiting Dunvegan Castle and walking through the gardens, walking on one or two beaches. OK -- definitely low exertion - right? Say you stay in Portree . . . based in Portree driving up around the Trotternish Peninsula/a few of the main beauty spots, Dunvegan, Neist Point, Talisker, Glenbrittle -- this would include the 'busiest' parts of Skye but would take two FULL days (i.e. three nights) and you'd be in the car a MINIMUM of 6.5-7 hours over the two days. That's butts in seats time -- not including the hours of actual sightseeing, meals etc. And there may be parking issues at several of the main beauty spots.

Or the drive from Ullapool > Durness > Thurso > Dunbeath > Dunrobin > Inverness will involve about 8 hours car time without stops. Your plan has Ullapool > Durness on one day and Durness all the way to Inverness two days later. Just Durness to Inverness will take at least 6 hours if you go around and down the east coast.

There ain't no quick routes anywhere on the islands or rural parts of north/central Scotland.

Oh jeeze . . . I took so long writing the above, I didn't see your post #11.

YES -- absolutely!! Take a look at some of the tours offered by Rabbies. They do everything from one-day to 2+ week small group tours (never more than 16 passengers). They have tours starting from Edinburgh, Glasgow and (fewer) from Inverness or Aberdeen covering every corner of Scotland including the outer Hebrides and places like Northumberland/northern England. Very highly recommended You could combine 2 or 3 Rabbies tours with some independent touring in between.

https://www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-tours

Sensible not to drive the NC 500 yourself. It is overloaded now, lots of caravans, campervans, big RVs doing it as well as bikes, motorbikes and cars plus of course the locals just trying to get around. It can get very busy and some of the roads are just not up to it.
It was a good idea at the time no doubt but kind of ruined by its own success. We drove it a few years ago in our 6m campervan, in May, and it was busy, and frustrating as many of the campers/RV were rentals, being driven by people with no experience of such vehicles or narrow roads, who would just troll along, blocking the road regardless of the jam behind them, never pulling over into passing bays to let other pass, or even to let oncoming vehicles though.
Rabbies always gets a good write up on the forum, and I think you will both enjoy your tour more if one of you isn't having to concentrate on the road!

Scotland by train/road
 

Back again.wondering if we(2) should think about train travel for part of our itinerary e.g. glasgow to fort William -Malaig to get to Skye and the west highlands/north route.perhaps coupling with some of Rabbies coach tours.I think I have to reconsider driving myself.I have not driven on the left since I left England 40 years ago.Thanks for the hewlp.Really appreciate cyour replies

Ron

Taking the train from Glasgow to Ft William to Mallaig will just complicate things (a LOT) :(

Once you ride the ferry across from Mallaig to Armadale you will be in far SW Skye -- without a car and getting to other parts of the island means using the really inadequate (and slow) bus service.

I honestly wouldn't worry too much about doing some driving -- people who have never driven on the left manage just fine, and you have the advantage of having done so even being years ago.

Thanks Janis.My friends ancestors are Macdonalds and there is a museum in Armadale devoted to the clan so that is deifinitely a stop.To explore the rest of Skye by car seems the best option.We would like to restrict driving to a minimum if possible and train/Rabbies coach the trip to other regions on our itinerary.Am I being too paranoid about driving??

Is it possible to rent a car on Skye ? Armadale?

The Clan Donald Centre/museum is well worth a visit.

Armadale is a tiny place - no rental cars. A couple of Skye garages do rent out their cars. But realistically if you plan on driving at all (and you probably will want to drive in any rural areas you don't hit via Rabbies tours) -- you will need to rent from a city or major airport -- at EDI, or GLA or in Inverness or Aberdeen. Inverness is good for getting a car for Skye.

If you really don't want to drive to Skye -- Rabbies does offer a few tours that include the Isle.

You can certainly rent on Skye and they'll bring the car to Armadale.

I do think you're being a bit paranoid about driving but it's also difficult to say because visitors from abroad post different things about their experiences driving here.Some find it absolutely ok, others do remark on how much narrower our roads are and find that stressful.Really busy traffic is not the issue though there can be hold ups (relatively short usually) given inexperienced camper van drivers or people not using single track roads properly.

You really are best with a car on Skye though there are also local operators who run small scale day sightseeing trips throughout the island.That might be a good bet for you too.

There are many coach operators who will do tours of the areas you mention too.Rabbies, Timberbush, Explore Scotland etc tend to be smaller minibus tours.But there are much larger coach tours available also.

Just to add..my husband and I drive that NC 500 route fairly regularly - once per year (and in less than 10 days time , again) and have never found it to be particularly busy at all.Many of those roads are quite empty though certainly busier than they used to be but it's still all relative.

Yes -- the rental cars on Skye will deliver (there is no brick and mortar location at Armadale) - but IMO/IME it would be better to collect a car from an international/national chain in Inverness so you can explore en route to and from Skye. Places like Glenfinnan, Neptune's Staircase, Urquhart Castle, maybe Plockton, and/or Eilean Donan (just for the beautiful photo stop -- not really necessary to visit the castle itself). Just logistically it would make things easier.

If you were to rent a car locally on Skye you'd then have to return to to the next place on your itinerary by public transport -- whether that is Inverness, or the far NW, or Perthshire or Oban/Mull -- wherever.

Scotland summer 2025
 

Thank you one and all.Great feedback.
One last question I see many B and Bs have not posted availability for June/July yet.When is a realistic time to book and when is the latest to secure accomodation?I realize there may not be any easy answers to this and i may have to contact the b and bs directly by phone.Any suggestions/Thanks

Ron

Many B&B's don't allow on line booking until they know what their rates might be for next year. Especially for Skye you will want to book as soon as you can. If you find a property that appeals and the booking period isn't open, I'd phone them and ask (or e-mail - but I probably would phone) -- they can either take the booking or maybe let you know when you can

Skye travel
 

I can see we can take a bus from Armadale to Portrree.on Skye.Thinking we would leave the car at Mallaig for 2 nights and hop the ferry to Skye for 2 days overnighting in Mallaig..Explore the Macdonald museum in Armadale tale the bus to Portree and head back to mallaig.
Ideally i would like to visit the Talisker distillery.Can we get there from Portree without taking a car.
also will we see enough of Skye if we just go from Armadale to Portree??
bottom line is taking the car the only realistic option??
w

Skye
 

Thanks Janis you have been very helpful

RON

I'm sorry but that is a really (REALLY) bad (horrible :( ) idea.. You wouldn't be able to explore any of Skye -- You'd only see the Armadale > Broadford > Portree main road. IMO / IME you should either 1) drive a car and stay an absolute MINIMUM of two nights on Skye but three nights would be 100000% better because 2 nights only nets you one full day on the island - or 2) take one of Rabbies tours that includes staying on Skye


One of these would work:

https://www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-...nds-4-day-tour

https://www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-...ure-6-day-tour

https://www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-...kye-5-day-tour

https://www.rabbies.com/en/scotland-...ure-6-day-tour

Otherwise -- if not either self driving or taking a multi-day Rabbies tour . . . you should 100% drop Skye from your itinerary.

Oh heck yes - if you've driven the car all the way to Mallaig take it over on the ferry because getting around Skye without one is not easy.Not every ferry is met by the bus either.

You'll see some glorious scenery on route from Armadale to Portree but unless you then sign up to one of the organised day trips offered by several operators, you're missing out on a lot.Plus, not easy to get to Talisker without your own wheels - dead easy with the car, good road from Portree changing to short section of single track as you turn off to Carbost.The road from Armadale to Portree is pretty good too and fast (if you wish - you'll want to stop though to admire the scenery at various places.)

Not sure if you are a seafood fan but the Oyster Shed above the village (parking) is worth a call in - you can eat outside (under cover) or takeaway.

Scotland summer 2025
 

Thanks Janis I take your point.We will drive to Skye and stay 3 nights.
One thing to mention we are both seniors 70 plus so any hiking of any distance is out of the question.does this impact the length of our stay to see the island??
What itinerary would you suggest on our way to Skye from Glasgow?Would you suggest visiting Mull on our way?
Many thanks for your input.You provide the guidance that the guide books cannot always do

Ron

Scotland summer 2025
 

Thanks Scotlandmac that clarifies the driving issue.Incidentally what does it cost to take the ferry with a car and how far ahead do you have to book a reservation?Thanks

Scotland summer 2025
 

One further question are there organised day trips on Skye as an alternative to driving around the island?Where do they leave from?we need to visit Armadale and the Talisker distillery for sure.Thanks

Yes, there are a few organized day tours from Skye. (Just a few years ago this would have been unthinkable but the Island now gets sooooooo many visitors there is a market for tours)

Here are a couple of options to get you started (the 2nd one is more 'walking intensive so maybe not your cup of tea):

https://www.tourskye.com/tour/best-of-skye/

https://www.realscottishjourneys.com...real_skye.html

As for not hiking -- I've been to Skye several times -- some with quite a bit of walking/hiking and some where I never walked more than maybe a couple hundred yards. Hiking is not as all necessary. Luckily you are traveling before things get really busy so finding parking at most of the main beauty spots shouldn't be ipossible like later in the summer.

I don't know what the current car ferry rates are -- the CalMac website will have all the details. Yes -- your definitely will want to pre-book the ferry well ahead -- but not months ahead or anything like that. scotlandmac may have a better handle on how far ahead is recommended -- my last visit was a few years ago and I booked about a month out.

"Would you suggest visiting Mull on our way?"

Absolutely yes . . . IF you have sufficient time. Again you'd want a minimum of two nights on the island (the roads on Mull are even slower that on Skye so it takes time to get around)

Just a note about Skye...

Today's Scotsman newspaper (Edinburgh) carries an article about a major local tour operator on Skye refusing to take clients to the Fairy Pools, one of the principal tourist destinations on the island, because of massive congestion.

Gordon Pearson, who runs WOW Scotland, described the last few weeks driving a tour bus to the Fairy Pools in Glen Brittle, one of the island’s most sought after beauty spots, as “a horrific experience.”

Mr Pearson said he is concerned the lack of appropriate infrastructure to support the influx of visitors to the site is putting his customers at risk. He said some 400 vehicles can get stuck in a traffic jam on this road at one time with up to a four hour wait.Some 200,000 people a year visit the Fairy Pools, but the single track road into and out of Glen Brittle is poorly-maintained and is causing dozens of flat tyres each week, leaving the route blocked for hours on end by stranded cars.

Isle of Skye tour boss looks to cancel trips over 'horrific four hour wait' on road to Fairy Pools (scotsman.com)

File under "overtourism" evidence.

I didn't read the link so some of this info may be in that article, but just from other reports in the British press over the last couple of weeks . . . The Fairy Pools issue affects everyone -- crowds, parking, silly 'influencers' monopolizing the view points with selfie taking. The single track road out to Glen Brittle which used to have almost no traffic -- just those traveling to the Hostel or beach and a handful at the Fairy pools. Then travel to the Pools exploded and parking became non-existent. So a non-profit installed toilet facilities and a small parking area and now the local government is blaming the charity for the increase in visitors and wants them to pay for repairing the entire road.

Traveling on Skye is simply not the idyllic / enchanting experience it was just a few years ago.

It looks like the cure for overtourism is --- overtourism.

Book as soon as the window opens - CalMac now open specific clusters of months for on line bookings so keep a look out on their website which has quite a bit of information on this.Current prices here:

https://www.calmac.co.uk/article/781...aig---Armadale

That run, similar to Oban -Mull - gets booked up quite quickly.If you have to change the booking subsequently, there is no charge and its not expensive if you have to cancel completely for whatever reason; an admin charge is levied (as long as you cancel pre-sailing and don't simply not turn up.)

If you can't find a day trip operator who gives you enough time at the distillery, there are always taxis - about 9 or so operate from the main square in Portree.They are expensive!

Skye rewards whether you are a hiker or not, as janisj says. We used to take my very elderly (now 101yrs!) MIL out on wee jaunts in the car, letting her see Glen Brittle (she loved the beach walk there), the Trotternish coast driving loop (her favourite), the drive out to Neist Point. It was wonderful for us too, not matter how often we've seen these sights and even though my husband and I are hikers and love a good hill walk which Skye is world class for.The scenery is just so jaw droppingly beautiful, a real wow.And the play of light and colours on the landscape is stunning.

A lot of driving, and other places are available!
 

You are trying to pack a lot in! Distances between tourist destinations in Scotland are probably so much less than Canada, but bear in mind our roads are also much less suited to long distance travel. In the more remote areas you will find yourself on single track roads at some points, and they can be surprisingly busy, for example on the North Coast 500 route at most times of the year. There are places to view the Jacobite train rather than travelling on it if you just want to see the Harry Potter views, as it is expensive and time consuming. I would suggest having a look at Guides such as Scotland the Best, to find the more unusual places to visit. Although the Highlands and Glasgow and Edinburgh are the most popular tourist areas, I would suggest considering the Borders, East Lothian, and Galloway especially, for quieter roads, interesting history and beautiful scenery. Also hardly any midges. I may be a little biased....An option might be to base yourselves in Edinburgh for example and take a couple of small one day bus trips to the highlands to save yourself the driving. The guides on the minibuses are often so knowledgeable and can be a bit more flexible when there are only a few passengers. Edinburgh itself will be very busy with tourists whenever you come. End of May and early June are often the loveliest months in terms of weather and wildflowers etc, but it is very very variable and almost never hot! On a long car journey you might see incredible views, or you might see low cloud and mist blocking everything beyond twenty metres away! If that's the case, forward planning for interesting stops is key! I wonder if you could maybe go back to your plan and figure out what things particularly interest you most rather than trying to see everything! For example, are there family links to places; are you interested in history, castles and battle sites; scenery and spectacular beaches and mountains,; film locations; culture and art; walking or climbing; golf; etc etc. We have them all, but it would be a challenge to cover them all in a couple of weeks! Glasgow and Edinburgh each take more than a day of course, but I would not take a car into either city. Hop on hop off bus tours are excellent, and give the opportunity to see a number of tourist attractions, which can be widely spaced. The public transport is great too, and there are park and ride facilities on the edge of both. Parking charges and fines are horrendous in both cities. Neither city is huge, particularly Edinburgh, but it is hilly! Hope you have a wonderful trip. Scotland is beautiful. I may be a little biased......

Oops. When I wrote the above I had only seen your original post. Others have all made very good points in far more helpful detail than I could manage. Rabbies Tours are famously excellent, and exactly what I was meaning. I completely forgot Whisky as an interest. How could I? Skye is, as they all say, astonishing, as are all the islands.

Meant to add -

Re the route to choose when driving to Skye from Glasgow - if of interest, my own favourite route with links to three other options:

https://annestravelsandhikes.com/201...tes-to-skye-1/

This route is via the Skye Bridge which to me, gives the finest views overall but it does mean more road mileage than the Mallaig route which is my second favourite drive to the island.We are up on Skye most months and mostly take the bridge route from Glasgow but vary it too.
One issue to remember with the Mallaig ferry is to keep an eye on the weather in the lead up as if any ferry is going to go off, it's that one.The ferry also ties you into a specific timescale but it's a lovely sail and drive and well worth doing if it most appeals or works re your overall itinerary.

Re Mull - yes you can do that in which case you potentially could come off the island and head for Skye using the ferries from Tobermory or Fishnish to Ardnamurchan and drive to Mallaig.But there are significant stretches of extremely winding, if very quiet, single track road often with non existent or very short sightlines so not the easiest driving if you are nervous overall.Stunning scenery as with most of the west coast.
Or simply return to Oban from Mull and head north from there, longer drive, but 'easier' road.No single track.

I was going to add to my previous post that the Fairy Pools parking is so extensive now, that I've thought of it as a major improvement! I've used it several times this year but for other walks.I am taken aback however to read the Scotsman article.I think WOW are based in Inverness but yes, they will be taking groups daily to Skye though it's a long day trip from the city - almost 3 hours each way to Portree alone.
Perhaps we've been lucky but in all our trips down that road we've never had more than a minute or two's delay, usually because an inexperienced campervan driver is micro manoeuvring down the final bends to the car park and meets another van coming UP that bit of road.The police have bollarded off most of the road edging for quite a way to stop vehicles pulling onto the soft shoulder though the bollards don't go all the way back which is where isses will still arise.
Some drivers go far too fast on the single track, desperate to tick off another site and overshoot passing places when a car approaches from the other direction.Then they pull over , braking hard, onto the soft ground (the section before the bollards start) and so the problems begin.

Have to assume that the WOW operator is not dramatising for the sake of it though I can't believe they'll take the decision NOT to go to Skye or the Fairy Pools.If they're on a tight schedule for whizzing groups around the island then I can imagine even a small delay might be more frustrating for them than for visitors in general and set blood pressure rising.Heading up to Skye one January a couple of years back, we counted 9 such minibus tours all coming back from the island (never seen WOW so far, mostly Timberbush, Rabbies, Highland Explorer, Hairy Coo tours.)

The new parking hasn't increased visitor numbers.Rather, there are nowhere near the chaotic scenes I remember before the parking was developed.

Scotland summer 2025
 

Inverness to Edinburgh in 5-6 days drivingWhere to stop along the way for the night. Pitlochry/Perth??Thanks

Scotland summer 2025
 

Add Aviemore as potential stop on route Inverness to Edinburgh 5-6 day driving trip/