Scottish Highlands Day Tour:

We couldn’t go to Scotland without a quick trip to the Highlands, but we didn’t have much time to spare. So, we decided on a Scottish Highlands Day Tour (8am – 8pm) with Highland Experience that went to Pitlochry, Loch Ness, Glen Coe, and Stirling. Don’t get me wrong, I really enjoyed the tour, and I’m really glad we did it, but there are some serious draw backs to the tour.  I will admit that we didn’t have time to research a tour and picked one on a whim, but I hear that most of the tours are the same.

1. The schedule is super tight for the Scottish Highlands Day Tour we chose, and you are on the bus for almost the entire 12 hours. There just isn’t time to wander around the “stops” such as Pitlochry. The “stops” are more like restroom breaks. To add to this, you just drive by a lot of the “points of interest” without the bus even stopping.
2. Since we were paying for a tour guide, I expected the stories and history to be told by said guide. Some of it was, but for the most part, it was just a pre recorded spiel. Hopefully your neighbors are quiet because otherwise you will miss half of it.
3. It rains. A lot. And when you are on a bus, that means you can barely see out the window. And you can forget about taking pictures.
4. It is really hard to find a full day tour that covers a lot of the Highlands without going to Loch Ness.

But aside from all the drawbacks, it was a very enjoyable day, and I have no regrets. And, I do highly suggest a Scottish Highlands Day Tour for anyone who is short on time like we were. We met up with our drive/guide and tour companions first thing in the morning and boarded the bus. Don’t be late! We were 10 minutes early and still got scolded by the driver. It is more like a shuttle bus than a full size bus, and the seats are pretty comfy. Our driver also let us bring food and drinks on board, so were able to enjoy breakfast and coffee at the start of our trip.

The first stop for us was Pitlochry, but we only had around 30 minutes there. Basically, it was enough time to stretch our legs and use the restroom. A few of the others on the bus grabbed a bite to eat since they didn’t get anything in Edinburgh.

After Pitlochry, we headed towards Loch Ness. On the way, we officially entered into the Highlands, and the bus driver was nice enough to pull off and let each of us get a picture with the welcome sign.

From here, the landscape gradually become more interesting and scenic. Eventually, we made it to Loch Ness. To my knowledge, we stopped at a different place on Loch Ness than a lot of the other tours. Our base was at a hotel across the street from the loch. Neither Nisheet nor I were really interested in taking a boat tour and trying to spot Nessie, so we opted not to pay the extra fee. Instead, we took a little hike up the side of the hill behind the hotel. The views were nice, and it felt great to walk around. Before long, it got super windy and clouds started rolling in, so we were forced back to the hotel. The weather really played up how spooky the loch can be with waves crashing on the shore and the water turning black. Back in the hotel, we wandered around the gift shop filled with touristy junk, and then bought some very expensive lunch at the cafe. We took our lunch across the street and ate it (in the wind) right next to the lake.

The tour boat finally came back, and we all took some motion-sickness pills and boarded the bus again. The next stop was a surprise to us, and probably the best part of the entire trip. We got to see (and pet) Hairy Coos!! They are such adorable cows with long sweeping hair covering there eyes.

The next stop was also unexpected (I’m not sure why the driver was keeping these stops a secret when he clearly had them planned the whole time?). We got to see the Hogwarts Express. It is an actual train. Who knew?!

After those very quick stops, we were on to one of the more famous areas of the Highlands. Glen Coe. It was what I had been looking forward to all day. And then it started to rain. Really hard. When I could get a glimpse past the streams of water running down the window, land was covered in low clouds. The driver would joke and say to look out the window at some gigantic mountain that we couldn’t even see behind the clouds. It was actually cool though and emphasized the mystery and wonder in all the Scottish tales we had been hearing.

We finally came to our designated pull off spot, and we were able to get off, admire the landscape, and snap a few pictures. Those 10 minutes were worth the entire day’s ride on a bus for me. I can’t wait to go back and truly explore the highlands. Hiking maybe?

We had one last pit-stop (where we got to try out some (Australian) rootbeer) and one last scenic stop at a beautiful yet eerie river.

After our adventures on the Scottish Highlands Day Tour, we made it back to Edinburgh in time for a late dinner. Since it was our last night in Scotland. We had one thing we had to do. Eat haggis!