Where to stay for 2 nights in The Highlands

Hi, Lynn,

Yes, your question makes a lot of sense. Dyce (Aberdeen airport) is a little bit west of Aberdeen, but your three hour estimate is accurate. Does your flight leave at noon, or is noon the time that you have to be there for check-in?

You'll most likely be taking the A96 straight in. The airport is very close to where the A96 meets the A90 Aberdeen Bypass. The towns of Elgin, Keith, and Huntly are on your way. Elgin is about two hours, Keith about 1 1/2 hours, and Huntly about an hour from the airport. Elgin would provide you with the most things to do. If you stay in Elgin, you can visit Findhorn; the excellent beach at Lossiemouth; or the fishing towns along the Moray Firth coast. There's also Elgin Cathedral, which is definitely worth a visit. There are several excellent restaurants in the town, as well. Keith and Huntly, while charming towns, don't have a whole lot going for them.

Your other option would be to take the A939 south from Nairn, and spend your last couple of days in Ballater, along Royal Deeside. Then you can take the A93 toward Aberdeen, and hook up with the A90 bypass, which will take you north to the airport. There's a good bit to see in the Ballater area, and the drive down from Nairn, over the Lecht Road, is a good one. Give yourselves at least two hours from Ballater to Dyce.

Even if you decide to stay in Inverness, you shouldn't have problem getting to Dyce if you get an early start. Don't forget to leave enough time to turn in your car.

Hope that helps!

Mike (Auchterless)

Thanks Mike for your quick reply
I just looked and our flight to Belfast leaves at 12 so if we left at 7am will we have enough time to turn in car ect... if we stay in Inverness?
The only reason we picked Inverness was because we thought that was a good base to explore the Northern Highlands
Will I be missing to much of the East if we stick to this plan?

Hi again, Lynn,

It's about 110 miles from Inverness to Aberdeen, but that's city center to city center. Dyce is west of the city, so it's not quite as far. The A96 is dual carriageway most of the way, so you should be able to make good time. Many of the towns that the A96 used to go through, like Huntly and Inverurie, are now bypassed. I'd say that if you're clear of Inverness and on the A96 by no later than 7:15, you should have enough time to get to the airport and turn your car in. Aberdeen airport is not that large. It has only one terminal.

I hope that helps. Also, I hope that your scheduled flight is not on Flybmi!

Best wishes,

Mike (Auchterless)

p.s.: The Northern Highlands are considerably more spectacular than the more subdued area between Inverness and Aberdeen. The A96 passes through a great deal of farmland, with some noticeable hills (Bennachie, for instance) inland. The fishing towns and villages along the Moray coast, however, have a charm all their own.

Thank you so much as you have helped make up our minds to keep our same plans
We are flying with flybe, is that the same and should I be worried

Hi, Lynn,

No, you needn't be worried! Flybe is the Scottish airline. Flybmi was what was left of the former British Midlands (bmi) airline. They went in to administration (bankruptcy) last week, and have had to cancel all of their flights.

So no worries.

Slainte!

Mike (Auchterless)

Thanks, Whew lol