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Car travel from Edinburgh to Loch Ness, and Portree to Edinburgh

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Hi folks, I wanted to see if anyone might be able to share any info regarding me and my wife's first trip to Scotland this April...

We'll first be staying 3 nights in Edinburgh (April 22-24). We'll then be renting a car at the Edinburgh Airport car rental first thing the morning of Sat. April 25, heading to Loch Ness that day for a one-night stay. I'm a first time U.S. driver in Scotland, so will definitely need some extra time and focus driving on the left side of the road for the first time.

My first question is we'll be driving from Edinburgh to the newly re-opened Boleskin House in Loch Ness and have to be there on Sat. April 25 at 3pm (last ticket time of the day). Do you think there will be enough time to also squeeze in a one-hour tour at Doune Castle at 9:30am that morning and still be able to make our 3pm arrival at Boleskine House in Loch Ness? (I realize there are more breathtaking castles in Scotland to visit, but we're big Monty Python fans and would really like to see this castle and listen along with Terry Jones' recorded audio tour :)

So assuming we could be on the road from Doune by 10:30 or 11:00am at the latest, do you think there's enough time to reach Boleskine House in Loch Ness by 3pm? Google maps says it's a hair over 3 hours, which would give us enough time to make it, but I've read that the drives in Scotland can be quite a bit longer in actuality from what Google maps states.

Second question... We'll be spending two days in the Isle of Skye (April 27 & 28), with our base in Portree. We'll then be driving from Portree to the Edinburgh Airport Car Rental the early morning of Wed. April 29th and I was wondering how accurate, time-wise, Google Maps stated 5-hour drive is. I'm assuming it will be more like 6+ hours but let me know what you think from your experience. (I was thinking about trying to squeeze in Doune Castle this day - instead of April 25, but with a long drive from Skye and then a train from Edinburgh to London, there just wouldn't be enough time for it that day).

Thanks in advance for any information! We're really excited to see and experience this spectacular country!

Posted by
1883 posts

Welcome to the forum. You've chosen a beautiful country to visit.

I don't think we can stress enough that driving in Scotland is not just a means to get from place to place. There is always something along the way to explore, take in a view, see a waterfall, a garden, a ruin, a neolithic site, maybe a lunch stop. And everything always seems to take longer than we expect.

If the rental car agent can process your pickup, you do not plan to stop for restroom or lunch breaks, you do not make any wrong turns, there are no road works or accidents or weather related issues holding up traffic, you might have time to visit Doune and be at Boleskine House by 3 pm. I would allow a minimum 4 hours for the drive from Doune to Boleskine.

I don't understand racing back from Skye to Edinburgh. Your missing Scotland! Are you leaving Edinburgh by train on the 25th?

Based on the 2 days mentioned here, I'm concerned about the rest of your itinerary. Best of luck!

Posted by
1586 posts

I would say you are cutting it extremely fine. You say you are not familiar with driving in Scotland and I think you are likely to find our roads a bit of a shock if you are coming from the USA. You will be driving on narrow roads with no shoulder and you are likely to want to take things slow. I think google maps is being wildly optimistic given that you will be on either the A9 or the A82 depending on which way you decide to head north, both of which are major routes with heavy traffic especially in the summer months. You will encounter lots of other tourists all heading north, and importantly also camper vans (RVs) driving slowly and making overtaking difficult.

I drive from Skye to Edinburgh pretty often and I always allow 7 hours. You never know what the traffic will be like and if there's a serious accident you will be stuck.

I know the distances look small compared to the sort of distances people cover in the States, but driving here is slow and in the summer, not for the faint hearted. It will take you much, much longer than you think.

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