Scottish Castles Experience 2024/2025

• Wander through the beautiful gardens of Castle Fraser
• Relive the mysterious tales of Crathes Castle

Today is spent in the Royal Deeside area, famous for its many castles.

Your first visit is Castle Fraser, one of the grandest of the Scottish baronial tower houses. You can round the visit off with a walk through the beautiful 18^th-century walled garden. Later, you travel to Ballater for lunch, a charming village with close associations with the British royal family.

Crathes Castle provides the highlight for your afternoon. With its pinkish façade, turrets, and a colourful garden, it looks like a fairytale castle, but it’s also haunted by the Green Lady.

You’re free to explore the house and stunning gardens at your own pace. Wandering through the outstanding, world-renowned June Borders, beautiful vistas of the castle can be seen through the fusion of colourful flowers.

You return to Aberdeen for another overnight.(B)

• Admire the ancient tapestries at Fyvie Castle
• Learn about Britain’s last land-fought battle at Culloden

Your tour heads further north and starts the day with a visit to Fyvie Castle. Fyvie Castle dates back to the 13th century and has a fine collection of arms and armour as well as 17th-century tapestries.

You continue, travelling through beautiful scenery to Elgin, where you have lunch. If you are a history lover, make sure to marvel at the intricated carvings of a weathered Pictish stone, standing on the grounds of the ruined Elgin Cathedral.

In the afternoon, we continue to Culloden Battlefield, where the final Jacobite Rising came to a harrowing end, bringing on the persecution of the Highland way of life. Walk around this eerie, flat, and tragic landscape and pay tribute to those who lost their lives at the last battle fought on British soil.

After the visit, you continue to Nairn for your overnight stay. (B)

• Sample whisky at the heart of the Speyside Region
• Step into Scottish history at Blair Castle

You travel south through some of the most stunning scenery Scotland has to offer.

First, you can sample the rich and slightly fruity whisky at Cardhu, which is the first distillery pioneered by a woman, Helen Cumming.

You pass Kingussie, where you may have an opportunity for a quick photo stop at the Ruthven Barracks. From here, you continue south to Blair Castle. As you explore this historic site, learn about Mary Queen of Scots, discover a ballroom adorned with 175 antlers, roam the 9-acre Georgian garden, and have lunch.

Then, you continue your journey through the lush landscapes of Perthshire, home to some of the most remarkable woodlands, and have a break in one of the picturesque towns. 

You return over the Firth of Forth to Edinburgh in the evening. (B)

*Itinerary and distillery visits are subject to change.