Highlands, Castles and Whisky by Train
Visit spectacular Dunnottar Castle
Experience the best of Scotland by train, including two privately-guided day tours.
Begin your holiday with two days in historic Stirling, with its superb castle and Wallace Monument, before a relaxing train journey through classic Highland scenery to the Highland Capital of Inverness. From here, head east to the Granite City of Aberdeen. On the way you’ll experience breathtakingly scenic railways as well as two privately guided day tours, taking in some of Scotland’s finest castles and whisky distilleries.
Sustainable Travel
This holiday is part of our ever-growing collection of public transport based holidays, enabling you to reach destinations around Scotland without the need to drive. We feel strongly that true sustainability also means promoting and helping to maintain a way of life in areas where the economic benefit of tourism can make a genuine difference to the local community, which is why we have used locally-owned small accommodation and local guides on this holiday.
This week-long exploration of the East and Central Highlands takes you first to Stirling, then heads north to Inverness, from where you will experience some of the whisky distilleries of Speyside. Continue to the Granite City of Aberdeen and the wonderful Castle Trail. The trip can start and finish in Edinburgh or Glasgow as you prefer. We can also tailor-make it to include time in St Andrews on the way south.
£1530 per person for November 2024 to March 2025, £1810 per person for April to October.
The above pricing does not include stays over Christmas or New Year from 23 December to 8 January . If you are interested in taking a holiday across these dates, please get in touch for a bespoke quote.
All prices are based on two adults sharing a double or twin room for six nights on a bed & breakfast basis in our hand-picked selection of small guest houses and hotels. This holiday includes train travel throughout, a full day with a local guide in Speyside to visit two distilleries and a private tour of Aberdeenshire’s Castle Trail.
The price for a single traveller, based on sole occupancy of double rooms is £2785 from November 2024 to March 2025 and £3125 for May to September.
We would also be delighted to assist with hotel or guest house reservations in St Andrews, Edinburgh or Glasgow, for the beginning or end of the trip.
Before your departure, you will receive personalised holiday information including full directions, recommended routes, and suggestions on places to visit depending on your interests and our local knowledge to help you get the most from your holiday.
All itineraries and room types are presented subject to availability at specific hotels.
We work hard to make sure the unexpected doesn’t affect your trip. On rare occasions, changes or cancellations may occur, affecting accommodation, transport or excursions. We are committed to informing you of any such circumstances and will use our knowledge and resources to offer suitable alternatives wherever possible.
You are requesting availability for
This train touring itinerary can be arranged from January to December – though stays over the Christmas or New Year period from 23rd December to 8th January will require a bespoke quote.
Availability is individually checked for a hand-picked selection of smaller hotels, guest houses and other independent businesses, so please bear with us and we will respond in 1-2 working days.
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All our holiday prices include a service charge of £9 per person per night towards the costs we incur in researching, planning and designing your holiday.
We guarantee to refund this service charge if you believe that arranging your holiday through McKinlay Kidd has not met your expectations for value. All we ask is that you write to us within 7 days of your return and explain your reason for claiming the refund. This will ensure that we can improve the experience for all our future guests.