Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe and The Highlands
Description
Mythical beasts, tall tales and dramatic scenery: explore the beauty of Scotland in a day on this one day coach tour. Leaving from Edinburgh, we head northwest passing famous landmarks such as Linlithgow Palace: birthplace of Mary Queen of Scots, the mystical Kelpies, and the dramatically perched Stirling Castle. Continuing north we arrive in Glencoe for some photos of the dramatic ridges called the Three Sisters. We stop in the Fort William area for lunch before heading into the natural beauty of the Great Glen as we pass Britain’s highest mountain, Ben Nevis. Heading further into the highlands we arrive in the small picturesque village of Fort Augustus - you can choose to take part in an optional boat cruise here. The road home will be time to relax and take in the Highland scenery. Final refreshment stop is at the historic town of Pitlochry before continuing the journey home over the Firth of Forth alongside UNESCO Forth Rail Bridge enroute back into Edinburgh.
Tour Options
Itinerary
Our first stop for refreshments and a comfort break is Callander, where you will have a chance to grab a snack and stretch your legs. If you're lucky enough, you may have the chance to meet the Highland Cows (season dependant).
We make a brief stop in this scenic location to take in the views across Loch Tulla and Glen Orchy
The site of the 1692 massacre of the MacDonald Clan, Glencoe is one of Scotland’s most famous glens. Here you will hop off for a photo opportunity with the dramatic northern ridges known as the Three Sisters
Nearing the half way point on our tour we stop off in the Fort William area for lunch.
Another opportunity for photos as we stop on the outskirts of Spean Bridge at the Commando memorial. Unrivalled views down towards Fort William and the UK's highest mountain Ben Nevis. Depending on timings, this stop may be subject to change
A chance to grab some lunch and take part in an optional Loch Ness Boat cruise. For those not on the cruise, we have over an hour here which is plenty time to grab a coffee and have a wander around.
Stopping in the Victorian resort town of Pitlochry for a chance to stretch the legs and grab some light refreshments before the final leg of the journey home
Highlights
What's included
Traveller Ratings
Important Information
- Public transportation options are available nearby
- Suitable for all physical fitness levels
- Travel time is added to the total duration.
- If you suffer from travel sickness, we advise bringing medication or supplements.
Reviews(6,141)
Our guide, Scott, was phenomenal: informative, funny, and professional. We had ample free time and stops for photo ops and bathroom breaks. The explanations were interesting but not overloaded, and delivered with Scottish humor. Many of the bus seats had a USB port for phone charging, so bring a cable. The day went by quickly, despite the long travel times. Scott's playlist of songs, both Scottish and general, added to the enjoyment. Many locations relating to films such as Harry Potter, Outlander and Monty Python were pointed out. We opted in for the Loch Ness boat ride and am glad we did. I did another Highlands tour + twenty years ago, but this one was longer and more enjoyable - both the selection of stops and the guide. Highly recommended.
Very good tour! Scott is a great driver and tour guide! Highly recommended.
The overall experience was nice but the guide, Leon, truly made it awesome! Great recommendations and even better jokes. Will definitely repeat.
Our family traveled to Loch Ness, Glencoe, and the Highlands with Stewart Tours in August 2026, and it was a fantastic day trip! Ross our guide was funny and knowledgable, divvying out stories and history all throughout the trip. We also took the optional boat cruise on Loch Ness and enjoyed a beautiful day. Also, the rock+bagpipes music soundtrack for the day was excellent! 😉
It was a great tour! We got to see so much and our tour guide, Ross, was incredibly knowledgeable about everywhere we went to! Hes also very funny! Definitely Recommend!
We had such an amazing time on this tour! Ross was an incredible tour guide and so knowledgable about Scotland’s history. We loved hearing all the stories about Scottish historical figures. The stops were all wonderful and thoughtfully selected. We also loved that there was the opportunity to do the Loch Ness boat tour! Ross gave great recommendations for places to eat at each stop, and we had a good amount of time at each stop! Our favorite stop was at the Weeping Sisters waterfall—just beautiful!! Would recommend this tour to anyone going to Scotland, especially if you’re a first time visitor. Also LOVED that our guide played Scottish music throughout the trip! It really makes the tour even more magical!
This tour was perfect for someone with only a little bit of time to hit the highlands. The tour took us through all the highlights in a jam packed day that was well worth the money. Ross was an excellent guide who had plenty of excellent stories and explanations to help us understand the sights we were seeing. Well worth it if you want to see the highlands but don’t have much time.
What a fantastic tour with Ross. He’s a lovely guy, full of local knowledge and he made a long day incredibly enjoyable! I highly recommend this tour!
Very good👍😊. I liked it so much.
Ross was one of the best tour guides I’ve ever had in all my travels!! He was super knowledgeable and made the tour so much fun! We LOVED the scenery. After 4 countries on this trip we all voted this as the best experience!! Would absolutely book again!
