We plan to rent a car in Edinburgh, head to Stirling Castle and on up to Glencoe to spend the nigh. The next day head to Fort Williams and spend the night the next day to Inverness and over night there. After that head back to Edinburgh. So three days heading north and the fourth heading back to Edinburgh. Is this to much for 4 days?
Posted by
Tunbridge Wells
6113 posts
Glencoe and Fort William are only 25 minutes apart, so you could avoid all single night stays by doubling up here. With such a short trip, I would be tempted to cut out Inverness and focus on the western part of the country, as I prefer this scenery.
Posted by
3122 posts
I think your plan makes sense for 4 days. Driving from Fort William, you'll probably enjoy a stop at Urquhart Castle and the Loch Ness Centre & Exhibition -- two very different experiences, only a couple of miles from one another, both very interesting.
Instead of Inverness, you may want to stay your 3rd night in Nairn, which is more scenic and quite near Culloden Battlefield, Clava Cairns, and Cawdor Castle. In Nairn I can recommend Tali Ayer B&B, but there are many other B&Bs also in Nairn.
Posted by
New York City, NY, USA
5678 posts
I am going to vote for spending the night in Inverness if you are interested in listening to some traditional music. Go to the Hootenanny to have some tradition pub food for dinner and catch some traditional music.
PAm
Posted by
Glasgow, Scotland
1640 posts
I'd agree with do not have separate stays for Fort William and Glencoe. They are close enough to be the same stay.
Inverness has the advantage as it is the main town and capital of Highland, so accomodation should be easier there.
The other thing to consider is if you want to get across to one of the islands, Mull for example. But the time scale you give is generally ok for what you want.
Posted by
OP
Las Vegas, Nevada, USA
66 posts
GREAT ADVISE, THANKS! One thing to add is our plan is we are going to try and take the Jacobite railway trip while staying in Glencoe or Fort Williams. Only problem we have to get stand by tickets as our week is fairly full. Any advise on getting standby tickets?
Posted by
Glasgow, Scotland
1640 posts
As I understand it you have to book specific dates for the train, the best thing is to check the website of the operator.
Just to correct, it is Fort William, after William of Orange and the Duke of Cumberland. Mainly after the Duke of Cumberland, Butcher Cumberland as he is still known in places, along with Fort Augustus and Fort George also named after members of the Royal Family of the time to pacify the tribal lands in the north.
The Gaelic name for Fort William is 'An Gearasden', literally 'The Garrison'.
Posted by
Pantego, NC, USA
1014 posts
We liked Johnny Foxes pub better than Hootnanny. Johnny Foxes had decent food and wonderful entertainment. We went 3 different nights, and they had 3 different types of music. Sit by the fireplace to be out of the way and close enough to hear the music. Buy a couple of pints early. The bar gets busy in the late evening.