Scottish Highlands & Islands

14 days - Glasgow to Glasgow

Day 1 BOARD YOUR OVERNIGHT TRANSATLANTIC FLIGHT.

Day 2 ARRIVAL IN GLASGOW, SCOTLAND.

Check into your hotel. The rest of the day is free to relax in Scotland’s largest city. Before tonight’s welcome dinner join your tour director and traveling companions for a toast to happy touring with a congenial group. (D)

Day 3 GLASGOW / CARLISLE.

Start your grand tour of Scotland with interesting Lowland sights: Scottish poet Robert Burns’ birthplace and museum at Alloway; Gretna Green, where the blacksmith used to wed runaway couples. Step over the border for a guided visit to Carlisle Castle, which has guarded England’s frontier with Scotland since the 11th century. It is here that Mary, Queen of Scots was imprisoned in 1568. Overnight nearby. (FB,D)

Day 4 CARLISLE / EDINBURGH.

First follow a section of Hadrian’s Wall, the Roman coast-to-coast defense against marauding northern tribes. Vistas of wild Northumberland National Park on the way back over the Scottish border, then glimpses of the house of Mary, Queen of Scots, and Jedburgh and Melrose Abbey ruins. Finally a highlight visit to Sir Walter Scott’s Abbotsford House, where Dame Jean Maxwell-Scott often guides our tours herself. Overnight in Edinburgh, the “Prince of Cities.” A unique optional experience: board the splendid former Royal Yacht Britannia for a tour of the royal apartments before continuing on for dinner. (FB)

Day 5 EDINBURGH.

Morning sightseeing with a local expert starts with an orientation drive along Princes Street and the Royal Mile, and tales of some truly intriguing characters: the Bodysnatchers, Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, and Greyfriars Bobby. History comes alive as you tour mighty Edinburgh Castle and the Queen’s Holyrood Palace. The afternoon is at leisure. Tonight don’t miss our optional Scottish evening with Highland dancers, bagpipers, and the Ceremony of the Haggis. (FB)

Day 6 EDINBURGH / ABERDEEN.

Over the elegant Forth Road Bridge and through Fife to St. Andrews, whose Royal and Ancient Golf Club, founded in 1754, has given us the rules of golfing. Cross the Firth of Tay to Dundee and visit Glamis Castle, the childhood home of the late Queen Mother and birthplace of the late Princess Margaret. A pleasant drive this afternoon brings you to Aberdeen for an orientation drive in this east coast fishing port whose prosperity has soared with the development of the North Sea oil and gas fields. Take your tour director’s recommendation for tonight’s optional pub outing to a fishing village. (FB,D)

Day 7 ABERDEEN / INVERNESS.

Trace the salmon-rich River Dee on the way to Ballater, where the royal coats of arms denote those shops supplying the royal household, then visit Balmoral Castle, the Queen’s summer holiday estate. (After July 31, when the Royal Family is in residence, visit Crathie Church instead.) Drive through heather-clad moors to the lovely Spey Valley for a guided visit to a whisky distillery, where you learn about the ancient art of converting barley, water and yeast into a heart-warming liquor. Overnight in Inverness, the Highland capital. Why not consider an optional visit to the Loch Ness Experience and an evening cruise? (FB,D)

Day 8 INVERNESS / WICK.

At Culloden Visitor Centre, hear about the story of the crushing Hanoverian victory over Bonnie Prince Charlie’s Scottish clans. Continue an unforgettable journey through spectacular scenery to the remote northernmost part of Scotland. Follow the coast road to majestic Dunrobin Castle, originally built in 1275 and for centuries the seat of the Dukes and Earls of Sutherland. Visit the formal gardens overlooking the North Sea and tour the castle’s opulent interior. Also enjoy a fascinating falconry display. On arrival at the tiny port of Wick there’s still time to call at the renowned Caithness Glass Factory. Before dinner you may want to join your tour director for an optional excursion to a nearby village with a chance to meet the locals in a pub. (FB,D)

Day 9 ORKNEY ISLANDS EXCURSION.

Day 10 WICK / ISLE OF SKYE.

A day to sit back and enjoy the breathtakingly wild and unspoiled scenery, some of the finest in Britain. The region is remote and the roads are single track and somewhat uneven. The northern coast is lined with miles of yellow sandy beaches. Heading inland, the hills and mountains take on a purple hue as the summer progresses, mists create an eerie atmosphere, and the glens and lochs form a picture-book landscape. This is Scotland at its best! Early evening arrival on the Inner Hebridean Isle of Skye. (FB,D)

Day 11 ISLE OF SKYE.

A full day on Skye to absorb the breathtaking scenery of this spectacular and history-steeped isle. Explore Portree, the tiny island capital, then visit remote Dunvegan Castle, seat of the chiefs of Clan MacLeod since 1200, and learn of connections with Bonnie Prince Charlie and Flora MacDonald. Take in the views of the Cuillin Hills on the way back to Broadford. (FB,D)

Day 12 ISLE OF SKYE / ISLE OF MULL.

Call into the Clan Donald Centre for a visit to its Museum of the Isles and its insight into 13 centuries of Clan history before boarding your ferry at Armadale to sail across the Sound of Sleat. Rejoin the mainland at Mallaig and follow the “Road to the Isles,” pausing at Glenfinnan, the scene of the raising of Bonnie Prince Charlie’s standard in 1745, then follow the shores of Loch Linnhe. The final leg of the day’s journey includes the ferry from Lochaline to Fishnish on the Isle of Mull, where the next two nights are spent. (FB,D)

Day 13 IONA EXCURSION.

A leisurely day to relax and enjoy the best of the Scottish western isles. Drive across Mull for a visit to the beautiful and fascinating Isle of Iona. This is the burial place of many Scottish kings and chiefs, including Macbeth. And it is here that in 563 A.D. St. Columba established one of the earliest Christian monasteries in the British Isles. Time to visit the cathedral and explore the religious settlement before returning to the hotel early afternoon. Later, enjoy the drive up to Tobermory for a visit to the quaint island capital. To complete your Mull experience, take the optional visit to Torosay Castle, where the Laird conducts you through his ancient home and hosts a glass of local whisky. (FB,D)

Day 14 ISLE OF MULL / GLASGOW.

The final island ferry crossing brings you this morning to Oban. Then over the Pass of Brander, and from Inveraray follow the road known as “Rest and be thankful” to the "Bonnie Banks" of Loch Lomond, the most famous loch of all. Back in Glasgow this afternoon your orientation city tour takes in the fine 12th-century cathedral, imposing university buildings, and elegant Georgian squares built by the wealthy tobacco barons. Time for last-minute shopping, then look forward to a farewell dinner with the companions of a great tour. (FB,D)

Day 15 YOUR HOMEBOUND FLIGHT ARRIVES THE SAME DAY. (FB)
 

Hotels:

GLASGOW - Novotel (F)

CARLISLE - Crown (F) at Wetheral

EDINBURGH - Menzies Belford (SF)

ABERDEEN - Thistle (F) at Altens

INVERNESS - Thistle (F)

WICK - Norseman (F)

ISLE OF SKYE - Dunollie (F) at Broadford

ISLE OF MULL - Isle of Mull Hotel (F) at Craignure

GLASGOW - Moat House (SF) or Thistle (SF)

Tour Includes:

• Services of a professional tour director
• Twin-bedded rooms with private bath or shower in hotels listed or equivalent; hotel taxes, service charges, and tips for baggage handling
• Welcome drink; 13 full Scottish breakfasts (FB); 11 three-course dinners w/ choice of menus & coffee (D)
• Private deluxe motorcoach with air-conditioning, extra leg room, and emergency washroom. The local coach on the Orkney Islands is somewhat less luxurious
• Special features: Robert Burns’ birthplace, Edinburgh Castle and Holyrood Palace, Culloden Visitor Centre, Dunrobin Castle and falconry display, Caithness glass factory, Duvegan Castle, Museum of the Isles, the center of Celtic Christianity, Tobermory on the Isle of Mull

Tour GJ – Departures & Prices Per Person

Single room supplement: $449
Triple room reduction per person: $40