Edinburgh to Isle of Skye & Highlands: 3-Day Coach Tour

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1/10

Duration3d

GroupUp to 19

LanguagesEN

Mobile ticketAccepted

Three Days in the Highlands: From City Streets to Skye's Mountain Ridges

You travel by air-conditioned coach through the Scottish Highlands over three days, staying two nights on the Isle of Skye with accommodation included. The itinerary covers Ben Nevis, Glencoe, Loch Lomond, Eilean Donan Castle, and Skye's main attractions — the Old Man of Storr, Quiraing, and Kilt Rock — with a driver-guide providing live commentary. You arrive back in Edinburgh on day three without having arranged transport, bookings or timing yourself.

Step-by-step itinerary

Day 1 — Travel from Edinburgh to Portree

Depart Edinburgh and collect Glasgow passengers
Stop at Luss village by Loch Lomond
Travel north via Tyndrum and Rannoch Moor
Walk and admire Glencoe
Lunch break in Fort William area
Photo stop at Ben Nevis
Arrive and check into accommodation in Portree

Day 2 — Full day spent in Skye

Visit Kilt Rock waterfall
See The Old Man of Storr rock formation
Explore Trotternish Ridge at Quiraing
Visit Dunvegan area, home of clan Macleod
Visit another waterfall

Day 3 — Travel from Portree to Edinburgh

Visit Eilean Donan Castle
Lunch and views at Fort Augustus by Loch Ness
Photo stop at Ben Nevis
Return to Edinburgh

The Experience

You start in Edinburgh's city centre and end up walking past the Old Man of Storr on the Isle of Skye — that shift happens in 72 hours on a small group coach tour that moves through the Scottish Highlands without stopping you to arrange transport, book hotels or figure out which viewpoint matters. The coach leaves NCP Castle Terrace at a set time, picks up passengers from Glasgow on the way, and doesn't drop you back until you've seen Ben Nevis, Glencoe, Loch Lomond, Eilean Donan Castle and the most photographed rock formations on Skye. Two nights of accommodation are included — you choose between hostel, B&B or hotel when you book — so the only thing you pack is a bag that fits the luggage allowance.

Day one is the long drive north. The coach heads west through Luss on the banks of Loch Lomond, crosses the atmospheric Rannoch Moor, and stops at Glencoe, where the landscape opens into something that doesn't look like the rest of Britain — steep, bare, and the site of a 1692 massacre that still carries weight in the Highlands. You'll have time to walk around and take it in. There's a lunch break in the Fort William area (meal not included), then a photo stop at Ben Nevis, Britain's highest mountain, before the coach rolls into Portree on the Isle of Skye in the evening. The driver-guide provides live commentary throughout, so you're not just watching the landscape pass — you're learning why it looks the way it does.

Day two is the full day on Skye. The itinerary includes Kilt Rock with its waterfall, the Old Man of Storr (a standing rock formation on the Trotternish ridge that takes your breath when you first see it), and the Quiraing, another ridge walk with views that stretch across the island. If you're there in summer, there's a stop at Dunvegan Castle, home of Clan Macleod. You're not rushed through these spots — the tour is built around actually spending time at them, not just collecting photos. The driver-guide knows the island and can point out details you'd miss on your own.

The return journey on day three takes you south via Eilean Donan Castle, the fortress you've probably seen in films (it was in Highlander), then through Fort Augustus on Loch Ness for lunch and views of the loch before heading back to Edinburgh. The whole trip is in an air-conditioned coach, so you're not driving yourself or figuring out connections — you just show up 15 minutes early, get on, and the driver handles the route. If you're booking accommodation through the tour, it's arranged in Portree town centre; if you're booking your own, it needs to be within 2km of the town centre so the pickup and drop-off work. One medium-sized suitcase per person is the luggage limit, and if you need to store anything else, there are third-party facilities in Edinburgh.

What’s included

Your tour includes two nights accommodation (choice of hostel, B&B or hotel in Portree, or arrange your own within 2km of town centre), transport by air-conditioned coach throughout the three days, live commentary from a knowledgeable driver-guide, and entry to attractions.
Luggage is limited to one medium-sized suitcase per person.
Meals are not included; lunch breaks are stops where you purchase your own food.
The coach departs from NCP Castle Terrace in Edinburgh and returns there on day three.

Good to know

Easy physical levelPets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Timberbush Tours

Is this one for you?Book this if you want the main Highlands and Skye highlights in three days without arranging your own transport, accommodation or timing — the fixed itinerary and included coach mean you show up and go, and the small group size keeps the pace manageable without feeling rushed.