Day Trips around the Scottish Highlands

We are situated close to the Moray Firth dolphins. You can take a boat trip from nearby on the Black Isle or Inverness. Or try your luck spotting them from North Kessock at the Dolphin and Seal Visitor Centre - an excellent vantage point which has binoculars and special underwater microphones. Ask us about other viewing locations while you're here.

Discover the numerous castles of the Highlands including Cawdor and Brodie, both a short drive from Roadside Croft. Also in the area Culloden Battlefield and Fort George are popular historic attractions.

Explore Loch Ness on a boat trip or drive around its shores visiting the pretty villages of Dores, Fort Augustus and Drumnadrochit which is home to the Nessie visitor centres. Nearby Urquhart Castle overlooking the loch is well worth a visit.

Another trip to the west can follow the Wester Ross Coastal Trail through Gairloch and Poolewe. Inverewe Gardens are a very popular day out for anyone visiting the area. The gardens are hugely impressive with many unusual plants, tearooms and many lovely walks around the gardens and grounds.

Just under an hour north of Roadside Croft sits Dunrobin Castle near Golspie. Ancestral home of the Duke of Sutherland, this fairytale castle overlooking the sea and contains a magnificent collection of furniture, silverware, and tapestries. The castle is surrounded by some outstandingly beautiful formal gardens. Also hidden in the gardens is a very unusual small museum. Dunrobin is a must-see for every visitor to the Highlands.

Travel further north up the A9 coast road into Caithness and you can visit the Castle of Mey, former home of the late Queen Mother. This well-known castle is now open to the public during the summer months.

A day trip to Isle of Skye is always a must if you have time. There are many things to see including Dunvegan Castle, Talisker Distillery and the unforgettable Cuillin mountains which dominate the Island. Before crossing the bridge to Skye, make a stop at picturesque Eilean Donan Castle.

For those who like travelling further afield, the small community of Durness in the North West corner of Scotland is the most northerly village in mainland Britain. Durness is the centre of the ancient lands of Clan MacKay. The spectacular mountain scenery is formed from some of the oldest rocks in the world, Lewisian Gneiss. The coastline is fringed with spectacular beaches of silver sand, soaring cliffs and deep caves.