West Highland Lochs and Castles Small Group Day Trip from Edinburgh

Edinburgh, United Kingdom

Lochs and castles what could be more Scottish? Take this small-group day trip from Edinburgh to the Scottish west coast and you'll discover the real Scotland! Highlights of your west coast adventure include Doune Castle, Loch Lomond and a photo stop at famous Stirling Castle.

With a maximum group size of 16 passengers, you are sure to have a memorable and personal experience on this special day trip to Scotland's west Highland lochs and castles. You'll travel in a comfortable air-conditioned minivan, reach out-of-the-way places and receive individual attention from your expert driver/guide.

Highlights include:

• Doune Castle
• Stop for refreshments in Callander or Kilmahog
• Scenic views of Loch Luibnaig, Loch Earn, Glen Ogle and Glen Dochart
• Lunch at the Glenorchy Lodge Hotel (not included), in the shadow of Ben Cruachan
• Scotland's longest loch, Loch Awe, and the spectacular ruins of Kilchurn Castle, a stronghold of the Clan Campbell
• Inveraray, an 18th-century whitewashed village on the shores of Loch Fyne
• Inveraray Castle, the neo-Gothic Scottish baronial home of the Duke of Argyll, chief of the Clan Campbell, with its 19th-century jail, museum ship and bell tower
• Loch Fyne, renowned for its fine seafood and views of oyster beds, salmon and trout farms
• Loch Long, with its history of Viking raiders
• Loch Lomond
• Luss, a conservation village with traditional estate workers cottages
• Photo stop at Stirling Castle

The Scottish Highlands and Islands are Europe's last great wilderness! This personalized tour is as close as you can get to touring in your own car, with the added benefit of gaining intimate knowledge of Scotland. Traveling in a small group means you can take lots of stops and reach "out of the way" places, giving you more time off the bus to discover the real Scotland.

Winner of the Inaugural Scottish Thistle Award for Sustainable Tourism, October 2007

USD $62.21

Traveler Reviews

Review by: ashley q	March 2012
Our trip was fun and enjoyable, was sad that Doune Castle was closed and the tour company was unaware, but our guides were entertaining and knowledgeable.

Review by: Leslie	March 2012
Our tour guide is awesome can't say the same thing about the tour._br/_ I understand that Lochs are rivers or lakes etc... but castles? No not castles more like CASTLE. We went into one castle and the rest are just a drive by view of the castles from the van. REALLY DISAPPOINTING!!! _br/_ Have I known that this was a tour to see only the rivers and grass and no castles my friends and I would run before you can say Hello. _br/_ That's just my opinion. _br/_ Oh here's another thing...for those of you who like outdoors I suggest you go to Yosemite National Park or Golden Gate Park, north of California or Stanley Park or Capilano Suspension Bridge Park in Vancouver,Canada._br/_ Anything is better than driving through the highland looking at a stream running through between 2 fields of grassland.

Review by: Ahsan N	March 2012
It was really interesting in the start...but boring in the end.....overall it was a nice experience......!

Review by: Kelsey H	March 2012
I had a great time! The tour guide was informative and friendly. And the places we went to were absolutely gorgeous. If you're trying to decide if you should go, DO IT. It's totally worth it. The best day of my trip!

Review by: Annie B	February 2012
Excellent! Our guide (Bob) had extensive knowledge of both the area and its history. A wonderful day out, and it felt very exclusive because there were only the 6 of us on board that particular day. I would highly recommend this day out to any visitor to Edinburgh who wants a broad overview of the Highlands in just one day.

Review by: hawaa a	January 2012
A lot to see, but weather wasn't very nice as to expect that time of the year. I will return to Scotland, especially to Edinburgh for sure and take some more trips.

Review by: Christine C	January 2012
The tour guide Alex was wonderful. He is extremely knowledgeable about the Scotland history. He gave us excellent history lessons on Scotland during the whole trip. He is great. But the places visited was ok. The castles were ruins and not pretty. The pretty castles were too far away. We could not get close to them, and had to take pictures from far away. The lochs were nice but not exceptional. Most of the time we sit in the tour bus and listened to Scotland's history.

Review by: Tykelad72	December 2011
This was my second daytrip and both have been top notch. The guide, Liam, was a very friendly and well informed guy. He entertained us all day with tales from Scottish history/culture without ever becoming boring and very obligingly provided several stops for photo opportunities. Even though our tour was in December with limited daylight, we got round pretty much everything and at no time did we feel rushed or pressured to get back on the bus to move on. I would heartily recommend to anyone who wants to sample a taste of the Highlands whilst based in Edinburgh. Can't wait to do another tour next year.

Review by: Caroline S	November 2011
I would highly recommend this tour. The tour guide was very personable and flexible. We were able to get off the bus multiple times. We were able to walk to and tour around the Kilchurn Castle even though it was technically closed for the seaon. Overall, this was a great tour!

Review by: Christopher D	November 2011
Excellent Trip.

Review by: Sacha L	November 2011
The tour was fantastic! The tour guide was charming and entertaining. I loved the music played on the bus and all the history. I will book more tours with this company and recommend them to all that will listen.

Review by: Tom	November 2011
This was a great tour. Our guide, Eric, was fun and jovial throughout the entire trip and full of interesting anecdotes and historical facts. Well worth the time and money.

Review by: Gábor Kálmán S	November 2011
Enjoyed a lot. Great Tour Guide! Over 5 stars.

Review by: Ashok M	November 2011
The tour plan is very good, but best when the weather is good. It rains a lot in the highlands, so try and plan your tour by keeping a watch on the weather. The sights of locs and castles are magnificient. _br/_ Thanks to our driver/guide Mac, who was knowledgebale, chirpy, and kept us interested by tales from Scottish history.

Review by: Carla W	November 2011
Great trip! Tour guides were excellent! A+

Review by: NADINE M	November 2011
Beautiful castle ruins even if the weather changed every minute

Review by: Tahlecia	October 2011
Absolutely brilliant tour, our guide was fantastic and the castles and lochs were so beautiful!

Review by: Lisa B	October 2011
We had a fabulous trip into the Highlands. Our driver/guide, Audrey, was fantastic! She knew so much about the history and told us quirky facts you don't get from your average guide.

Review by: Melissa S	October 2011
The Tour guide was excellent, and was up on Scotish history. I would recommend this tour of Scotland Castles, and Lochs.

Review by: Thomas D	September 2011
Really enjoyed the trip, the guide was very informative. We were really very lucky with the weather also.

Review by: december30	September 2011
Our guide was Peter, he was very friendly. The drive through the Scottish country side was nice even though it rained all day and the ruined castle was interesting to see. Overall though I'd give the tour a 7 out of 10 because the sights visited were nothing spectacular.

Review by: Jose David V	September 2011
Wonderful experience! Many great places visited and amazing scenery. However, the most impressive was without any doubt our tour guide who is a real storyteller. An unmissable chance to know the real Scotland!!

Review by: Zelda L	September 2011
A most enjoyable day, despite the rain. Our wonderful driver/guide Ewan, was a fountain of information and made the trip a very interesting and informative one. I enjoyed all the sites we went to and even ended up taking my sister and her husband back to some of the places I'd been to on the trip! I highly recommend this trip to anyone wanting to see the area. I will most definitely be using their services again.

Review by: Maria C	September 2011
Thanks to our guide Mike, who brought us through the living history of Scotland

Review by: Franklin W	August 2011
Richard was a great guide...awesome trip!

Review by: Helen L	August 2011
The best tour I did in Scotland. The guide (Barney) was so knowlegeable and made Scottish history come alive, I also loved his choice of music!. The itinerary is excellent, with the perfect mix of the most spectacular countryside, majestic castles and pretty towns. I cannot recommend this tour highly enough, I loved every minute and have wonderful memories of a beautiful part of Scotland.

Review by: Cami L	August 2011
You can't go wrong with the Highlands!!! We've done several trips (last year and this year) and it's all so beautiful and magical. The castles are amazing and the villages are perfect. I wish there were more options for next time!!!

Review by: odette l	August 2011
Interesting excursion. Why the meal is not reserved, because waste time. Regretted not visiting Enveraray castle and we did not even stop to Stirling. Why not go earlier and return 1 hour later?

Review by: Ting W	August 2011
surprised by the stunning beauties hidden on the west highland.

Review by: J F R	August 2011
Our experience was very good. The tour was nice and very interesting. Our driver and tourist guide, Emily, was perfect with a high knowledge of all the places we visited, but enjoyable, telling us a lot of interesting histories about the castles and lakes. A very pleasant tour and a very professional guide. We will recomend it.

Review by: Trish	July 2011
Wonderful experience. The driver, guide was really good. We had enough time at each location although I would have liked entry into Doune Castle. Next time I would do Stirling Castle.

Review by: Marc E	July 2011
Overall an excellent tour. Our driver was entertaining and knowledgeable. He was imaginative in finding interesting stops according to the weather on a day that saw periods of sunshine but also heavy rain. Group size (about 15) was perfect. Great value for the price.

Review by: Angel D	July 2011
The trip was very nice. Everything in time.

Review by: Susan P	July 2011
The scenery was beautiful but our tour guide, who was training a new guide, spent the entire day talking to her and not us. I've done Tours before and they were spectacular, but this just didn't happen to be one of those.

Review by: Richard T	July 2011
Our driver and tour guide Allister was fantastic!

Review by: C J Swanepoel S	July 2011
Great locations, great guide. Al was a treat to spend the day with - wonderful sense of humor. He gave us enough time to enjoy and take pictures.

Review by: jjb84	July 2011
This tour was absolutely brilliant, we never felt rushed at any of the stops, got to see some amazing places and the guide was wonderful, informative but really fun. I'd go again!

Review by: Abigail M	June 2011
Truly enjoyable and informative.

Review by: Heidi S	June 2011
This is a fantastic tour with delightful personal attention. Our guide was knowledgeable and fun and we loved the absolutely beautiful scenery!

Review by: Taryn M, United Kingdom	July 2010
Great day out, brilliant tour leader from Rabbies Trail Burners, gorgeous scenery ... made me fall in love with Scotland !! Highly recommend it , and such great value for money !!

Review by: Sisko K, Finland	July 2010
This was a great trip. We had an excellent guide and the places we visited were interesting. Had a wonderful day!

Review by: Robert F, Canada	July 2010
Very fine trip. Saw several castles. The tour guide was very informative. Pity it rained most of the day.

Review by: Charles L G, United States of America	July 2010
The tour was awesome and our guid, Roland was great!!! I would recommend this tour to everyone and be sure to ask for Roland.

Review by: Anne C, United States of America	June 2010
This was an easy and great way to see a bit more of Scotland outside of Edinburgh. It was all day and we were extremely lucky to have bright sunny weather...so the sightseeing was spectacular. We had the tour guide Shelby who was very informative, and had a great personality. There was a couple who arrived last and was unhappy that the seating in the large van didn't work out for them to sit together, our fault probably since we were a family of three. Shelby remained ever cheerful and patient with them while some other travelers volunteered to move. We'd go on another tour with Rabbies Trail Burners.

Review by: Alison C, United States of America	June 2010
Would most definitely recommend this tour as well as most definitely recommend Rabbies Trail Burners. Duncan, our tour guide was helpful and accommodating,

Review by: Anonymous, United States of America	May 2010
Great tour! Guide was very informative and brought old Scotland back to life.

Review by: Bjarni I, Iceland	May 2010
It was a wonderful day. Inverary is a place that we would like visit again. The minibus and the guide were perfect also.

Review by: Anonymous, United Kingdom	May 2010
This was an excellent, comfortable trip, very well timed with driving and freedom to get out and walk, or just take photos. The tour guide A li, was very helpful and courteous.

Review by: William H, United Kingdom	April 2010
A great day out, really enjoyed it. Would highly recommend the trip to anyone.

Review by: Stephanie M, United Kingdom	April 2010
Absolutely awesome! This company, and the guide that we had was amazing. It is highly personalized, the scenery spectacular, and the overall experience was highly educational. I can't wait to come back to Scotland, and book another trip!