Everything you need to know for you upcoming adventure to…Scotland!

Well, for those of you who don’t know where Scotland is located, it is part of the United Kingdom in Europe. Basically it is famous for its Loch Ness Monster called Nessie, which is a thousand year old legend. But I’ll talk about that later on. However, the „Nessie land“ offers a lot more than just a monster living in a lake in the Highlands. For other people Scotland means Scotch whisky, which is certainly sure. They have wonderful whiskies.

To get to Scotland, we took the plane from Luxembourg with a stopover in London Heathrow with British Airways. It was my first flight with them and I really enjoyed it. Maybe you have direct flies from your starting country but at that time, we hadn’t.

Let’s talk firstly about how we spent our week in Scotland. As to our destinations, we chose Edinburgh (or like the local calls it: Edin-bra) because it is the capital city of Scotland and therefor really worth to discover.

Best time to go?

This really depends on you. If you love summer, you should go in summer, but if you prefer another season, it is up to you to chose. As it is in the United Kingdom, the chance of rain is really high, altough we didn’t had any rain during our whole stay, which was really awesome.

We visited Scotland in Mai, which is a really good time to visit. It was not too cold, neither too warm.

How to get there?

As I already mentionned, we went there by plane. As it is located on an island, there are only plane or boat as an option, so the first one is definetely faster and better for me. The airport of Edinburgh is reachable very easy from London, but I’m sure other airlines will fly directly to that airport and so there will be no problem to reach this destination.

Renting car?

Definitely yes! If there is a possibility to rent a car, I would always chose this way. I’m sure there are also some amazing public transports in Scotland but you are really more independent with a renting car. We rent our car with Europcar and we would chose this company again. Everything worked out very well and we got an Opel Astra.

I have to mention that we didn’t rent our car for the first two days that we spent in Edinburgh, because everything is accessible by foot. We only took the car to drive up to the Highlands.

Driving conditions?

Driving on the left side of the road. I mean for most people, this is not normal and so it wasn’t for me. I had to remind myself constantly that I had to drive on the left side of the road. The worst part was in the city itself, especially in the roundabouts.

I have to admit that it happened once to me that I start to drive on the right side but I quickly realised that something is strange. It can happen very easily to drive on the wrong side!

Besides this, it is really easy to drive in Scotland.

Currency & Costs?

For me, being from Luxembourg, prices are quite normal and I would say that it reflects the average price of the European Union.

Edinburgh – Aviemore – Culloden Battlefield – Drumnadrochit – Glenmore – Edinburgh

Edinburgh – 3 nights

Edinburgh is just the perfect starting point for your road trip through Scotland. Since at least the 15th century, it is the capital city of Scotland and therefore not to miss. Although it is the second largest city in Scotland, you cannot compare it to English cities. It reflects a lot of charm because of its structure and old buildings everywhere.

Read next: 9 top things to do in Edinburgh Scotland

Edinburgh Castle

The Castle of Edinburgh is an absolutely must do, whenever you’re in Edinburgh. Be also sure to arrive for 1 pm, because every day at 1 pm they will fire the One o’clock gun except for Sundays and public holidays. 

The castle itself is a well preserved Scottish fortune with a rich history. If you plan to visit the castle, be sure to give yourself a lot of time for exploring every little corner of the castle.

Arthur’s Seat

Arthur’s Seat is one of the extinct volcanos in Edinburgh. It is a perfect getaway of the city vibes and to discover a little bit the Scottish nature. There are a few trails that leads up to the summit. It is up to you to chose the best one for yourself. Some are steeper than others.

Read next: Arthur’s Seat – an extinct volcano in Edinburgh Scotland

The Whisky Experience

Whenever you’re in Scotland, be sure to try whisky. The Whisky Experience in Edinburgh is a perfect place to get a lot of information of whisky and of course to try some different ones. The whole experience is very interested and interactive.

Read next: Taste of Scotland – The Scotch Whisky Experience Edinburgh

Hotel

Premier Inn Royal Mile

During our stay in Edinburgh, we stayed at the Premier Inn Royal Mile Hotel. This hotel is located perfectly to discover the city because it is closely to the Royal Mile, the main street in Edinburgh. We had two bedrooms, one with a bath tube and one with a shower and both rooms were handicapped accessible. I really appreciated this because not every hotel is suitable for disabled people.

Driving time: Edinburgh to Culloden Battlefield: 3 hours 5 minutes

Culloden Battlefield

Basically, the Battle of Culloden was the final confrontation between the Jacobites rising of 1745 and also a part of a religious civil war in Britain. On the 16th April 1746, the Jacobite forces of Charles Edward Stuart were defeated by loyalist troops in the Highlands of Scotland.

Driving time: Culloden Battlefield to Drumnadrochit: 35 minutes

Drumnadrochit – 2 nights

Most people who come to Scotland, do it because of Loch Ness. It is basically famous for Loch Ness and whisky. So whenever you dream about visiting Loch Ness, you can stay in the charming village of Drumnadrochit. With around 1.000 inhabitants, it is not that big, but very popular by tourists. There are only 3 hotels, 2 inns and a hostel, so it is very quickly fully booked.

Loch Ness

Who hasn’t heard already of Loch Ness with its famous monster inside. There are  lot of myths and legends about Nessie, the Monster of Loch Ness. There are even some pictures, showing something like an animal inside the lake. Until now, all of the pictures were proven as being fakes and therefore scientists are clearly convinced that Nessie doesn’t exist. But still, some people believe in the saga of Nessie and I’m pretty sure that everybody, visiting Loch Ness, looks out for Nessie and perhaps hope in secret to discover something to show that it really lives there.

However, beside the Nessie saga, Loch Ness is a very beautiful place with one of the deepest lochs in Europe. It is perfect for some walks along the shore or just sitting on a bench and observing the water.

Read next: Loch Ness – a mysterious place in the Scottish Highlands

Urquart Castle

This is one of the most visited castles in Scotland. I can totally understand this because as soon as you enter the castle, it will let you speechless. You immediately start to imagine how the castle looked like at its best times. As the castle is very large, there are a lot of different places to discover.

When entering the castle, you can either turn right, left or walk straight forward. On the left you will walk up a little bit on the higher located part of the castle. From there you will have an amazing view over the other part of the castle and the Loch Ness. Everywhere in the castle are signs with the description of the part of the castle where you are standing. In the castle itself, you can also walk down to the water of Loch Ness.

Hotel & Restaurant

Loch Ness Inn

During my time in Drumndrochit, I stayed at the Loch Ness Inn. It is a small hotel built in 1838, which lies perfectly for exploring Loch Ness. It is only about 2,5 km by car from the Urquart Castle away.

As the hotel has its own restaurant, it is really practical if you don’t want to leave the hotel in the evening. The restaurant offers really good food and the stuff is also very kind. We got very useful tips regarding other beautiful places in Scotland, like Isle of Harris.

Fiddler’s

Fiddler’s is also a hotel with restaurant. It is mostly known for its great whisky selection. They have whisky from all over the world, which you can try with their amazing food. As it is located in the centre of Drumnadrochit, it is a perfect place to spend a nice lunch or dinner. 

Driving time from Drumnadrochit to Cairngorms National Park: 1 hour 8 minutes

Cairngorms National Park

Cairngorms National Park is located in the north east of Scotland, so in the heart of the Scottish Highlands. In the park are the Cairngorms range of mountains and the surrounding hills. In 2009, the Cairngorms National Park was voted as one of the top 20 places to visit in the world by National Geographic Traveller Magazine.

There are a lot of attractions in the largest national park in the United Kingdom. There are a lot of museums, distilleries and breweries but also a lot of castles and historic sites to visit. If you are driving through the National Park, be sure to put some time in your schedule for some adventures.

Cairngorm Reindeer Herd

Did you know that there are reindeers living in Scotland? It is the only free-ranging herd of reindeer in the Cairngorms National Park. They have a shop and a paddock, which are open daily and they also offer hill tours, where you can meet the reindeer in their natural habitat. During the Hill trip, you can feed the animals and pet them.

Read next: The Cairngorm Reindeer Herd in Scotland

Loch Morlich

Loch Morlich is a freshwater loch in the Cairngorms National Park. Near the loch is a sport centre where you can rent kayaks, go sailing and windsurfing. Along the shore are sandy beaches, where you can relax and go swimming into the loch.

Loch an Eilein

Loch an Eilein means Loch of the island. It is a very beautiful and charming place. What makes it so special, is an island in the middle of the loch with ruins of a small castle from the 15th century. The forest around the loch is very good for birdwatching, walking and mountain biking.

Driving time: Culloden to Edinburgh: 2 hours 30 minutes

Edinburgh – 1 night

We spent the last night, before heading to the airport, in an apartment in Edinburgh, which was very close to the ocean.

Scottish Road Trip Conclusion