Edinburgh, including VIP dinner and seating at
the Military Tattoo, Oban, The Isle of Mull and Iona,
Inverness and the Highland Games, Stirling Castle and
a luxury Scottish Castle Hotel
Tues, Aug 16 - Wed, Aug 24, 2022
14 days/13 nights
Please inquire about 2022 pricing
the Military Tattoo, Oban, The Isle of Mull and Iona,
Inverness and the Highland Games, Stirling Castle and
a luxury Scottish Castle Hotel
Tues, Aug 16 - Wed, Aug 24, 2022
14 days/13 nights
Please inquire about 2022 pricing
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Please join Tour Director Sandy Gregory for this wonderful adventure through Scotland, or contact us to help you create your own independent travel experience with our Concierge Travel Services.
Suggested time to travel: July - September |
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Pre-tour suggestion to Authentic Ireland
Authentic Scotland Tour: 3 nights Edinburgh 2 nights Oban 1 night Inverness 3 nights at our Castle Hotel in Perth |
DAY 1: TUES, AUG 16. ARRIVE EDINBURGH. YOUR ADVENTURE BEGINS! |
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Arrive Edinburgh Airport. Your greeter and private driver be waiting for you outside of baggage claim to take you to our hotel.
Welcome to Scotland. Edinburgh is the historical, cultural, and political capital of Scotland. We’ll have some time to freshen up before our late-afternoon orientation walk. We’ll take some time to explore and freshen up before we enjoy a Scotch-tasting and included dinner.
Included dinner tonight.
Overnight in Edinburgh, 3 nights with breakfast.
Welcome to Scotland. Edinburgh is the historical, cultural, and political capital of Scotland. We’ll have some time to freshen up before our late-afternoon orientation walk. We’ll take some time to explore and freshen up before we enjoy a Scotch-tasting and included dinner.
Included dinner tonight.
Overnight in Edinburgh, 3 nights with breakfast.
DAY 2: WED, AUG 17. A DAY IN EDINBURGH AND THE MILITARY TATOO |
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This morning our private tour begins with a driving tour of many of the important sights in Edinburgh including the Georgian architecture of the New Town, the Parliament building, The Palace of Holyroodhouse and Aurthur’s Seat. We’re then back to the Royal Mile to learn more about its history and finish at Edinburgh Castle where we’ll tour the towers, defenses, the crown jewels and the Stone of Scone before we experience the 1:00 cannon.
You have the afternoon to explore this rich city.
• Visit the Royal Yacht Britannia and learn about Queen Elizabeth’s life at sea. This awesome ship has served as home to The Queen of England and the rest of the Royal Family, as well as to a number of other famous people.
• Enjoy the Scottish National Museum.
• Shop the Royal Mile or cross Prince Street to the New Town boutiques.
• Catch a performance. Theater buffs come from all over the world come to Edinburgh in August to attend the city's famous Fringe Fest. Performances take place all over the city. Student theatre companies rub shoulders with TV celebrities. Shows play not only in established year-round venues but spontaneously pop up on the street.
• Join an Edinburgh Literary Tour. Sir Walter Scott, Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, JK Rowling - for those wishing to tread in the footsteps of these literary heroes, Edinburgh is home and the inspiration to many great writers and rightly proud of its accreditation as the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature.
We like to travel to Scotland in August so we have the opportunity to see The Military Tattoo, which is included in your tour price. The Edinburgh Tattoo is a spectacular like no other. A kaleidoscope of music, dance and entertainment. All set against the iconic backdrop of Edinburgh Castle. See your evening burst into life with a colourful blend of Scottish pipe and drum bands, highland dancers and performers from across the world. Bigger, better and more technically thrilling than ever before. A unique mix of military tradition and global cultures. This really is an experience for the senses.
Our evening will include:
You have the afternoon to explore this rich city.
• Visit the Royal Yacht Britannia and learn about Queen Elizabeth’s life at sea. This awesome ship has served as home to The Queen of England and the rest of the Royal Family, as well as to a number of other famous people.
• Enjoy the Scottish National Museum.
• Shop the Royal Mile or cross Prince Street to the New Town boutiques.
• Catch a performance. Theater buffs come from all over the world come to Edinburgh in August to attend the city's famous Fringe Fest. Performances take place all over the city. Student theatre companies rub shoulders with TV celebrities. Shows play not only in established year-round venues but spontaneously pop up on the street.
• Join an Edinburgh Literary Tour. Sir Walter Scott, Robert Louis Stevenson, Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, JK Rowling - for those wishing to tread in the footsteps of these literary heroes, Edinburgh is home and the inspiration to many great writers and rightly proud of its accreditation as the world’s first UNESCO City of Literature.
We like to travel to Scotland in August so we have the opportunity to see The Military Tattoo, which is included in your tour price. The Edinburgh Tattoo is a spectacular like no other. A kaleidoscope of music, dance and entertainment. All set against the iconic backdrop of Edinburgh Castle. See your evening burst into life with a colourful blend of Scottish pipe and drum bands, highland dancers and performers from across the world. Bigger, better and more technically thrilling than ever before. A unique mix of military tradition and global cultures. This really is an experience for the senses.
Our evening will include:
- A three-course “Taste of Scotland” menu
- A sampling of three specially selected Scotch whiskies, each chosen to complement your meal and introduced by a member of the Senior Tasting Team
- Wine
- A brief recital by members of the international Tattoo cast
- A private viewing of the World’s largest collection of Scotch whisky
- A prime location Premier Seat with padded seat/backrest in the outdoor arena with exceptional views of the performance
- An official Tattoo Show Program
ADD AN OPTIONAL ADDITIONAL DAY IN ST. ANDREWS
Golf enthusiasts might like to add a day in St. Andrews. St. Andrews is famous throughout the world as being the home of golf, but there is much more to explore in this beautiful area. We’ll leave our hotel and begin at the iconic Forth Rail Bridge, now a UNIESCO heritage site, then on to St. Andrews for a private tour.
• Book a round of golf.
• Take a guided tour of the old course. There is a wonderful golf museum and you can even hit a few balls on the driving range.
• Have lunch at the Jigger Inn, an adorable white house directly on the 17th hole of the Old Course that dates back to 1850 and provides cozy nooks and open fireplaces to enjoy.
• Take a walk along West Sands – a long beautiful beach directly next to the Old Course, and where the opening scene of Chariots of Fire was shot.
• Pop in to B. Janetta’s, an ice cream shop that has been in St. Andrews since 1908 to try Sticky Toffee or Brown Bread ice cream
• Meander around town and the University of St. Andrews campus. (where Kate Middleton met her Prince)
• Book a round of golf.
• Take a guided tour of the old course. There is a wonderful golf museum and you can even hit a few balls on the driving range.
• Have lunch at the Jigger Inn, an adorable white house directly on the 17th hole of the Old Course that dates back to 1850 and provides cozy nooks and open fireplaces to enjoy.
• Take a walk along West Sands – a long beautiful beach directly next to the Old Course, and where the opening scene of Chariots of Fire was shot.
• Pop in to B. Janetta’s, an ice cream shop that has been in St. Andrews since 1908 to try Sticky Toffee or Brown Bread ice cream
• Meander around town and the University of St. Andrews campus. (where Kate Middleton met her Prince)
DAY 3: THURS, AUG 18. OBAN |
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This morning we head west through the Trossachs National Park with a stop at Loch Lomond. We'll have a leisurely morning exploring the National Park.
We'll make a lunch and leisure stop in Inveraray. This charming county town, with its characteristic black and white terraces, sits on the western shore of Loch Fyne, Scotland’s largest sea loch. Rich in history, Inveraray was established in 1770 by the Duke of Argyll, the chief of Clan Campbell, who have ruled this area since the 13th Century. We'll visit his fairy-tale castle which is also the setting for the Christmas 2012 episode of Downton Abbey.
Our afternoon will end in Oban. With panoramic views of the mountains, the colorful, coastal Victorian town of Oban is the unofficial capital of the West Highlands and the “Gateway to the Isles.” It might even be better know as “The Seafood Capital of Scotland”, so tonight we'll enjoy an included scotch tasting and seafood feast.
Overnight in Oban, 2 nights with breakfast.
We'll make a lunch and leisure stop in Inveraray. This charming county town, with its characteristic black and white terraces, sits on the western shore of Loch Fyne, Scotland’s largest sea loch. Rich in history, Inveraray was established in 1770 by the Duke of Argyll, the chief of Clan Campbell, who have ruled this area since the 13th Century. We'll visit his fairy-tale castle which is also the setting for the Christmas 2012 episode of Downton Abbey.
Our afternoon will end in Oban. With panoramic views of the mountains, the colorful, coastal Victorian town of Oban is the unofficial capital of the West Highlands and the “Gateway to the Isles.” It might even be better know as “The Seafood Capital of Scotland”, so tonight we'll enjoy an included scotch tasting and seafood feast.
Overnight in Oban, 2 nights with breakfast.
DAY 4: FRI, AUG 19. DAY TRIP TO THE ISLE OF MULL AND ISLE OF IONA |
This morning we’re off for an island tour. The Isle of Mull is the fourth largest Scottish island with a 300 mile coastline. The island is home to over 250 different bird species, whales, porpoises and dolphins. A trip to the Isle of Mull isn’t complete without a visit to the Tobermory Distillery, one of the oldest distillers in the country, and a snort of their single malt Scotch. Saint Columba, exiled from his native Ireland, founded a monastery on the Isle of Iona with 12 companions in 563. Since then, has been a place of pilgrimage welcoming over 140,000 people each year.
The ferry returns in time for dinner in Oban, where you will have the rest of the day and evening at your leisure.
The ferry returns in time for dinner in Oban, where you will have the rest of the day and evening at your leisure.
DAY 5: SAT, AUG 20. TO THE HIGHLANDS |
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After breakfast, we board our motor coach bound for Inverness.
Enroute, we'll stop for lunch and some shopping at an authentic Scottish woolen mill. This is the best place to buy Scottish cashmere and over 150 different types of Scottish malts. You can also explore the origins of the Scottish Tartans and trace the history of your name and its associations. Their archive has over 50,000 names fully researched and authenticated by the Clan Chiefs of Scotland.
We're then on our way to Culloden Battlefield, the site of the battle of Culloden, where on a rainy day in 1746 Bonnie Prince Charlie marched his tired, rain-soaked Highlanders to Culloden Moor into hopeless battle with the English. In less than one hour, 1200 Highlanders were killed. This was the last battle fought on British soil and Charlie’s defeat led to the decline of the Highlands and the destruction of the clan system. Dramatic interactive exhibits and movies tell the story and the mass graves of the fallen clansmen are marked with small headstones. Its hard to imagine that the course of so much history could have been sparked in such a small, desolate space.
We'll end our day in Inverness, known as the “Capitol of the Highlands.” Straddling the river Ness, the town takes its name from the river and the Gaelic word “inver” meaning river mouth.
Included dinner in Inverness.
Overnight in Inverness, 1 night including breakfast
Enroute, we'll stop for lunch and some shopping at an authentic Scottish woolen mill. This is the best place to buy Scottish cashmere and over 150 different types of Scottish malts. You can also explore the origins of the Scottish Tartans and trace the history of your name and its associations. Their archive has over 50,000 names fully researched and authenticated by the Clan Chiefs of Scotland.
We're then on our way to Culloden Battlefield, the site of the battle of Culloden, where on a rainy day in 1746 Bonnie Prince Charlie marched his tired, rain-soaked Highlanders to Culloden Moor into hopeless battle with the English. In less than one hour, 1200 Highlanders were killed. This was the last battle fought on British soil and Charlie’s defeat led to the decline of the Highlands and the destruction of the clan system. Dramatic interactive exhibits and movies tell the story and the mass graves of the fallen clansmen are marked with small headstones. Its hard to imagine that the course of so much history could have been sparked in such a small, desolate space.
We'll end our day in Inverness, known as the “Capitol of the Highlands.” Straddling the river Ness, the town takes its name from the river and the Gaelic word “inver” meaning river mouth.
Included dinner in Inverness.
Overnight in Inverness, 1 night including breakfast
DAY 6, SUN, AUG 21: THE HIGHLAND GAMES IN CRIEFF |
The Highland Games, or Gatherings, have been a part of Scotland's culture for hundreds of years and are just as popular today as they've ever been. Every year from July through September, local athletes perform herculean tasks and heave all kinds of things, including trees and manure patties. The celebrations also include Highland dancing and music, food, craft stalls and games. We leave Inverness this morning and travel south to the town of Crieff to soak up the atmosphere and experience the excitement.
Most events are left to the locals, but if you are the participating type - and of Scottish heritage - consider donning your family tartan and running in the Tartan Dash Kilt Race. Test your strength by piling the largeardblair stones upon a barrel. And, of course, sample local culture with your taste buds and head over to the Taste of Tartan stands to see what the local businesses have to offer.
We'll finish our day at our castle hotel. Situated in the beautiful countryside, the property is set in 34 acres of secluded woodlands and garden grounds.
Included dinner.
Overnight 3 nights with breakfast.
Most events are left to the locals, but if you are the participating type - and of Scottish heritage - consider donning your family tartan and running in the Tartan Dash Kilt Race. Test your strength by piling the largeardblair stones upon a barrel. And, of course, sample local culture with your taste buds and head over to the Taste of Tartan stands to see what the local businesses have to offer.
We'll finish our day at our castle hotel. Situated in the beautiful countryside, the property is set in 34 acres of secluded woodlands and garden grounds.
Included dinner.
Overnight 3 nights with breakfast.
DAY 7: MON, AUG 22. |
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As the saying goes, "he who holds Stirling holds Scotland," and it was here in 1297 that William Wallace enjoyed a victory over the English, memorialized in everyone's Scottish favorite, Braveheart.
This morning we'll enjoy an included tour of Stirling Castle. Knights, nobles and foreign ambassadors once flocked to Stirling Castle to revel in its grandeur with its superb sculptures and beautiful gardens. It was a favored residence of the Stewart kings and queens who held grand celebrations from christenings to coronations. And it was the sight of famous battles such as Stirling Bridge and Bannockburn. You’ll walk the walk of Mary Queen of Scots, Robert the Bruce and William Wallace as costumed characters in the roles of bodyguards, court officials, maids of honor and servants will welcome us into 16th century life and make history come alive.
After, we'll make a short drive to the gorgeous Church of the Holy Rude. The interior is lovely, but the churchyard is the main attraction - large, expansive, and covering centuries of Stirling’s history.
Lunch will be on your own in the town of Stirling, with some time at your leisure.
This afternoon, we'll enjoy a private custom experience with a master falconer. We'll interact with a variety of species of large birds. Everyone will get a chance to handle the birds. You will be shocked and thrilled at the sheer size and majesty of these beautiful creatures.
Tonight enjoy dinner on your own at the castle restaurant. Relax at the castle tonight:
This morning we'll enjoy an included tour of Stirling Castle. Knights, nobles and foreign ambassadors once flocked to Stirling Castle to revel in its grandeur with its superb sculptures and beautiful gardens. It was a favored residence of the Stewart kings and queens who held grand celebrations from christenings to coronations. And it was the sight of famous battles such as Stirling Bridge and Bannockburn. You’ll walk the walk of Mary Queen of Scots, Robert the Bruce and William Wallace as costumed characters in the roles of bodyguards, court officials, maids of honor and servants will welcome us into 16th century life and make history come alive.
After, we'll make a short drive to the gorgeous Church of the Holy Rude. The interior is lovely, but the churchyard is the main attraction - large, expansive, and covering centuries of Stirling’s history.
Lunch will be on your own in the town of Stirling, with some time at your leisure.
This afternoon, we'll enjoy a private custom experience with a master falconer. We'll interact with a variety of species of large birds. Everyone will get a chance to handle the birds. You will be shocked and thrilled at the sheer size and majesty of these beautiful creatures.
Tonight enjoy dinner on your own at the castle restaurant. Relax at the castle tonight:
- Explore the myriad choices in the whisky room with over 60 single malts
- Enjoy a game of snooker or boardgames amidst the castle's cozy lounges with fireplaces
DAY 8: TUES, AUG 23. A DAY AT THE CASTLE |
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Enjoy a day at your leisure at the castle hotel. Think about:
• Fly fishing
• Tennis
• Archery
• Clay-pigeon shooting
• Outdoor garden games
• In-room spa treatments
• Hiking the property
Lunch is on your own at the castle today. You can make arrangements for a picnic lunch, dine at the restaurant or enjoy a full afternoon tea with your choice of tea leaves and accompanied by finger sandwiches, freshly made scones and selection of sweet delicacies.
Included Farewell Dinner at the castle.
• Fly fishing
• Tennis
• Archery
• Clay-pigeon shooting
• Outdoor garden games
• In-room spa treatments
• Hiking the property
Lunch is on your own at the castle today. You can make arrangements for a picnic lunch, dine at the restaurant or enjoy a full afternoon tea with your choice of tea leaves and accompanied by finger sandwiches, freshly made scones and selection of sweet delicacies.
Included Farewell Dinner at the castle.
DAY 10. WED, AUG 24. TRANSFERS TO THE EDINBURGH AIRPORT FOR FLIGHTS OUT OR CONTINUE ON TO |
Included transfers to the Edinburgh airport or on to the next part of your journey. Here are a few of our suggested itineraries:
AUTHENTIC IRELAND |
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Click here for our suggested Ireland itinerary.