What You Will Do
This bus tour from Invergordon features highlights from Outlander, Culloden, Castles, Loch Ness & Nessie! It packs in a lot for one day's tour and is very affordable and good value for money. Entrance to castle is INCLUDED. Our website contains full details of all tours and booking.
Our tours are specially put together after taking feedback from YOU. We have surveyed your desires and requests and put them together in our tours. We provide a quality experience and a guide or driver guide on our minibuses or buses. Our guides will impart their knowledge of their local Highlands and answer any of your questions.
Please check the tour times on our website, as the times listed here are approximate. As a general rule tours leave 30 minutes to 1.5 hours after the arrival of the ship and return at least 1 hour before ship departure time.
This tour is usually in a bus unless it’s a small ship then it may be in an 8 seater minivan.
Cancellation Policy
For a full refund, cancel at least 24 hours before the scheduled departure time.
Itinerary
Meeting Point
If docking at Invergordon pier disembark cruise ship, walk 2-5 minutes to the meeting point at the west harbour exit gates. Cross the pedestrian crossing at the traffic lights - Invergordon IV180EH or look for our Thistle Guides wearing purple and a Thistle lanyard.
1
Culloden Battlefield
45 minutes
We will travel to the Culloden Battlefield, where the Jacobites lost many a soul in the 1946 uprising. This was the last battle to be fought on British soil. If time allows we will give guests a chance to walk on the battlefield. Depending on tour we may not stop but just drive by.
2
Culloden Viaduct
After a half hour visit at Clava Cairns, we will pop around the corner to see the famous Culloden or Nairn viaduct, designed by Murdoch Paterson and opened as a railway crossing in 1898. It is a spectacle to behold – there will be photo opportunities.
3
Cawdor Castle
1 hour 30 minutes
Cawdor Castle is a lived in castle which is written about in Shakespear's MacBeth, when he refers to the Thane of Cawdor and the prediction. It has spectacular gardens and guided audio tours in your own language.
4
Inverness
45 minutes
Drop off in the city for shopping or seeing the historical churches and streets. It can vary between 30-90 minutes for this stop.
5
Beauly Priory
We will leave the urquhart castle around 2-2.30pm to journey via a scenic route to Beauly to drive by the historic priory, now a ruin, built in 1230 by a little-known French order of monks. It is also the location where Claire of Outlander fame, is supposed to have met Mairi. It is the true site of the burial ground for the chiefs of Clan Fraser of which the fictional character from Outlander, Jamie Fraser is related.
If time allows we will stop.
6
Inverness Castle
Journeying onwards through the city of Inverness we will pass the historic town hall and the Inverness Castle. There will be photo opportunities for the castle and Inverness Cathedral. You’ll be able to visit the castle viewing gallery and the shops, cafes or historic bars.
Photos only until 2024 as castle is being renovated.
7
Loch Ness
10 minutes
Going over the River Ness onto Loch Ness, where you need to be ready to spot our legend, Nessie, the Loch Ness Monster. Enjoy the comfortable ride by Loch Ness, which takes just around 30 minutes , searching for a sighting of Nessie herself. The last famous recorded sighting of her was a few decades ago, but we live in hope she will be photographed again soon. The scenery is second to none, so have your cameras ready. In recent months there has been footage circulated online of video recordings of an animal similar to Nessie playing in Loch Ness. We will stop at the Loch Ness lay-by for photos but it isn’t possible to paddle in Loch Ness due to the steep hillside location. You’ll travel past Loch Ness for 30 minutes enjoying it and waiting for a glimpse of Nessie.
Drive by for 30 minutes. We will try to stop for photos
8
Robertson’s Farm Shop Beauly
20 minutes
Go see a local farm shop but most of all see the two Highland cows Jamie and Katie-Morag
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