Cawdor Castle, Inverness, Culloden, Outlander and Loch Ness Tour
Invergordon, Scotland
- 6 to 8 hours (approx.)
- Mobile ticket
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Save hours researching and planning a Scottish Highlands itinerary, and go on an action-packed bus tour instead. Starting from Invergordon, travel with ease between dispersed sites including Cawdor Castle, Culloden, Loch Ness, Inverness, and Beauly Priory, made famous by the hit TV series "Outlander." Clava Cairns is excluded due to access restrictions. It’s the ideal tour for travelers with limited time who want to see multiple highlights in a day.
- Enjoy a tour designed for Invergordon cruise ship passengers
- Travel with ease between dispersed sites on a bus
- Check off many Scottish Highlands highlights in a day, including Culloden
- Try and spot the Loch Ness Monster by stopping off at Loch Ness
What's Included
- Entrance to Cawdor Castle is included
- Clava cairns is excluded due to bus and weak bridge
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting point
- 35 Shore Rd, Invergordon IV18 0EH, UK
In 2025 the cruise ships will dock at Quay West. Passengers disembark and get onto a shuttle bus which takes them to our meeting location on Shore Road. We are the first stop. All the independent tour guides wait there so look for our Thistle Guides.
End point
This activity ends back at the meeting point.Itinerary
1
Culloden Battlefield
45 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Culloden Viaduct (Pass By)
2
Cawdor Castle
1 hour 30 minutes • Admission Ticket Included
3
Inverness
45 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Beauly Priory (Pass By)
The Inverness Castle Experience (Pass By)
4
Loch Ness
10 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
5
Robertson's - The Larder & Highland Cows - Beauly
20 minutes • Admission Ticket Free
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Not wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Infant seats available
- Most travelers can participate
- Wheelchair travellers difficult
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 53 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Reviews
4.5
based on 380 reviews
Sort by: Most insightful
Good trip! Well organized, and the tour guide did her very best to keep us all on time, repeatedly reminding us that our cooperation defines the sucess of whether we will get to do an extra stop.
The tour guide, Mo, was very knowledgable about the local history and the local fawn (nature, plants, etc) and made her stories interesting. However, we should like to comment to please stay out of politics--there was an uncomfortable incident where she expressed her personal views of the USA president and it almost became an uncomfortable situation where we were trapped and had to listen.
Was an excellent trip except for the fact that the tour guide brought up politics repeatedly. Went as far to say I don’t like the orange man. Don’t care what side of the isle you’re on, I’m on vacation and a tour of Scotland, keep politics out of it. I want to know historical facts not your opinion.
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you for your feedback, and we’re pleased to hear that overall you found the trip excellent. We’re sorry that political commentary detracted from your enjoyment of the day. We completely understand that guests are on holiday to enjoy Scotland, its history, scenery and culture. We have taken your comments on board and will remind our guides that any discussion of current politics should remain neutral and only form part of the tour where it is relevant to the historical context. Thank you for bringing this to our attention.
Had a marvelous time. Mo was fantastic. She’s knowledgeable, humorous, great stories. She’s the kind of person that makes you wanna come back!
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you so much for your lovely review! We’re delighted you had such a marvellous day with Mo. Her knowledge, humour and stories certainly make a Highland tour memorable. We’ll make sure she sees your kind words and hope we can welcome you back to Scotland one day! 💜
Great Tour. Easy access from cruise ship. Our tour guide did a great job.
My personal favorite was the Cawdor Castle and gardens. I could have spent more time there.
Response from Host, Sep 2026
Thank you very much for your lovely review! We’re delighted you had a great tour and found joining us from your cruise ship easy and convenient. We’ll be sure to pass your kind comments on to your guide. We hope to welcome you back to the Highlands again! 💜
This was a great excursion. We got picked up from the port. Danny, our driver and tour guide was very knowledgeable and provided history of all the area we visited or passed by. He manages our time well. We didn't feel rushed. As a matter of fact because there were just 6 of us in the minivan (plenty of room) we even have extra time to walk around the beautiful city of Inverness to eat and shop.
We got to see the Highland cows at Robinson's farm, which was awesome!
Loch Ness was a sight to behold! The view was spectacular. The water is clear, however we didn't see " Nessie".
Next stopped was the historical Culloden battlefield, we walked around the field and even have time to have lunch afterwards.
Then off to Clava Cairns to see the ancient standing stone and burial cairns. Afterwards we went for a self guided tour of Cawdor Castle , we were provided with an audio device to listen to while walking inside the castle. The castle gardens are beautiful and well maintained.
We had an enjoyable drive through out the beautiful countryside . Thank you Danny. No boring moment. This was one of our best Scotland excursion. I highly recommend this tour.
And of course we got back to our ship with plenty of time to spare!
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you so much for this wonderful review! We’re delighted you had such an enjoyable day exploring the Highlands with Danny. It sounds like you managed to fit so much into your tour while still having plenty of time to enjoy each stop at a relaxed pace.
We’ll be sure to pass your lovely comments on to Danny — he’ll be especially pleased to hear that there was “no boring moment”! 😊
Thank you for choosing Thistle Excursions and for recommending us so highly. We hope your visit to Scotland has left you with some fantastic memories — even if Nessie did manage to hide from you! 💜🏴
Extensive tour! A long day. Small group. She added 3 extra stops! Highly recommended. Educational day
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you so much for your wonderful review! We’re delighted you had such a great day with Mo. She loves sharing her knowledge of the Highlands and, whenever time allows, adding a few extra stops along the way. We’ll be sure to pass your lovely comments on to her. Thank you for highly recommending us, and we hope you take home some fantastic memories of Scotland! 💜
Andrew was magnificent. Great presentation, lots of information, clearly passionate about Scotland
Bus was comfortable
Response from Host, Aug 2026
We think this is not our review as we do not have a guide called Andrew. You might been Simon?! Thank you.
New, clean comfortable bus driven excellently by our driver Jordan. Moe our tour guide provided historic-information at each of the sites we visited in Inverness and surrounding towns. Cawdor castle was a delight and comfortable trek. Many thanks to Moe to quick wit and vast information.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for your wonderful comments about Mo and Jordan. Mo has a remarkable amount of Highland history and local knowledge to share, and Jordan will be pleased to hear his driving was appreciated too. It sounds like Cawdor Castle was a particular highlight. Thank you for spending your day ashore with us!
Our guide was very knowledgeable in the history surrounding us. She was light hearted and personallble to all the guest on the bus. Hwf and the driver made the trip fun.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for your lovely review. We’re delighted you enjoyed your day exploring the Highlands. It’s wonderful to hear your guide’s knowledge, humour and friendly approach made the tour so enjoyable. We hope to welcome you back to Scotland again soon!
Niall MacLean was our tour guide today and we couldn't have had a better guide. Well versed in history and articulate! We had the best day!!
I recommend this tour for sure.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for your fantastic review! We’re thrilled Niall made your day so memorable. His passion for Scotland’s history and storytelling really shines through, and he’ll be delighted to hear your kind words. We hope to see you again on another Highland adventure!
Comprehensive and worthwhile tour. Enjoyed the knowledge shared by Mo, our guide. A bit of driving is involved to reach all the sites, but the destinations are worth it. Highly recommend.
Response from Host, Aug 2026
Thank you for your kind review. We’re so pleased you enjoyed the tour with Mo. While there is some travelling between the sights, we’re glad you found every stop worthwhile. We hope to welcome you back to the Highlands for another adventure in the future!
This excursion is brilliant value for money. You visit so many different sights. Culloden, Loch Ness, Inverness, Urquhart Castle etc. This female led organisation is simply THE BEST. We had Mo as our guide. Her general knowledge & interpersonal skills are superb. She drove us safely around all day rigged up like Madonna in a headset! I also interacted with Maxine and June who were both equally enthusiastic. Thistle Tours are a 10/10 organisation. Thank you ladies.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you so Much
This was a fantastic tour, our guide, Eleanor was truly amazing. We learned lots of history, it was super interesting and Eleanor was wonderful!
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you so Much
Simon was amazing, enjoyed the tour. The bus was clean and air conditioning was great. I would suggest it to everyone.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you for the 5 stars.
The Orkney islands are so beautiful! Rob, our tour guide was personable and highly knowledgeable of the area I would recommend this tour!
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you but I don’t think this is our tour. We don’t do Orkney.
Well organized, nicely narrated and covered a lot of ground. We enjoyed the informative tour and the included stops.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you 🙏 appreciated.
We recommend this excursion: it was interesting, plenty of time to explore on our own and looking at historical sites. The only stop, we thought was kind of shallow, was seeing the highland cows. We saw two cows…. And that was yet. It would be more impressive to stop by herding cows in the plains somewhere. Our tour guide Mowe was very knowledgeable.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you. A lot of people love the wee cows though.
Our tour guide Mo and driver Ewan were amazing. They gave us history, a safe ride and lots to see. This day was just the right amount of time at each stop! We were gone by 9:05 and back 15 min before sailing away! The bus times were perfectly planed. We did not feel rushed and yet we did it all!
Response from Host, Jul 2026
We actually had you back 1 hour before sailing but 15 minutes before the ship return time but Thank you for The lovely review.
Most of the time on this trip seemed to be spent driving from place to place. Due to sailing schedules, it felt rushed. Our guide was knowledgeable, and shared a lot of information, not all of which was needed.
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Unfortunately we cannot alter the geography of the Highlands nor the ship’s schedule. Sorry.
Comprehensive knowledge by guide added to the interesting places visited. Well organised for meeting etc
Response from Host, Jul 2026
Thank you Dave Very kind of you.
Our Guide was 87 years old. A wonderful day with him! Such a personality! We are german and he spoke such an understadalbe English. A wonderful Tour. Thank you!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you Seoris is a star.
The operators were fantastic. Our tour was delayed due to UK immigration. They were very flexible. Great communications. The tour leader Eleanor was fantastic, friendly, and knowledgeable of the area.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you so much Rick. You got to us in the end. Must’ve been your Scotland rugby shirt LOL.
George was aGreat tour guide; told you what to expect at the right time & on the bus so as not to waste time. He gave us an amazing tour of Culloden with just enough historical info.
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you so much.
This trip was fabulous. Our tour guide, Seòras (sp? -George) McGillivry, was spectacular. At Culloden, he shared that he is a 7th generation descendant of a clansman that perished during the battle. Very informative gentleman. Great overall trip. Love those Hairy Coos!!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
Thank you so much. We’re so lucky to have Seoris (George) as our guide.
George Macgillivray was our tour guide and there is nothing that he doesn’t know about Scotland! He is actually a descendant of the leader of Clan Macgillivray who lost his life on the Culloden Battlefield. He gave us a wealth of information about the Jacobites and the rebellion, as well as many interesting facts about the highlands. The drive through the highlands was incredibly beautiful! We also toured Cawdor Castle and had time to explore Inverness. We had a wonderful day overall!
Response from Host, Jun 2026
We’re so happy with our Seoris (George). Thank you. He is very special.
This was a great way to see the Scottish highlands and our guide, Mo was excellent. We enjoyed all the stops and Mo kept us entertained and well informed.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you so much.
The trip is well organized and pick up from the port is fast and easy. The guide is knowledgeable and maximized our time in port. I had pre/cruise concerns which were addressed immediately.
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you Susan. Great review.
Wonderful group of 5 in small van with a delightful and informative guide, June. Very enjoyable 7 hours Easy to find after leaving ship. Highly recommended!
Response from Host, May 2026
Thank you for the lovely review.
My husband and I took this tour with Mo as our guide. We had an incredible time! Mo was informative and friendly. She made us feel comfortable with asking any questions we had and because it was just us and her, she was eager to show us everything she possibly could. We loved Mo and all the sights we got to see! Take this tour!
Response from Host, Mar 2026
So pleased you had a wonderful time. You were the first guests of our 2026 season. Thank you again
Tour guide (Mo) was nice, but would say “over here there is xyz”, no idea if it was to right or left and often couldn’t see off bus. Loch Ness was very lame. The Robertson farm had 2 cows, no bathrooms, waste of time. Then the bus broke down. Would not recommend
Response from Host, Oct 2025
Usually there is only one side for you to look at. Not sure why you couldn’t see through a bus window? Loch Ness is a vast area of water. Not sure what you wanted. We can’t change an iconic landmark. Robertsons does have two highland cows - correct! We didn’t expect you to use it as a toilet stop. There were many other locations with toilets. Bus did not break down. It has a sensor gone on which put into limp mode for 5 minutes until it cleared. Can’t please everyone I guess. 99% of guests LOVE Mo!!
To top it all though THERE IS A TOILET ON THE BUS!!!
From $191.28
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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