Loch Ness and Urquhart Castle tour from Inverness

A thousand years of Highland drama sits in the ruins of Urquhart Castle above the loch.

A guided sightseeing tour from Inverness through the Scottish Highlands, stopping at Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition, Urquhart Castle, and Beauly Priory, with a local driver-guide leading the route through Highland villages and returning you to your starting point. The tour runs about five hours. Entry to Urquhart Castle is an optional add-on at checkout.

Step-by-step itinerary

Stops and time spent at each

1. Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition1h
2. Urquhart Castle1h 30m

Explore Loch Ness and Highland sites

• See final boat locks at Caledonian Canal
• Feed carrots to friendly Highland cows
• Visit Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition
• Take audio visual guided tour
• Explore Urquhart Castle ruins
• Climb Grant Tower at Urquhart Castle
• View Loch Ness from castle café
• Visit Beauly Priory historic site

The experience

The route starts at the Caledonian Canal locks where Loch Ness begins, a spot where you'll likely get to feed carrots to the highland cattle in the adjoining field. From there the tour moves to the Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition, a five-star visitor attraction where a 35-minute audio-visual presentation walks through four decades of research into the loch's unusual properties. The facts are presented theatrically, mixing real tools and archive footage, and Scottish Natural Heritage endorses it as "a portal to the unique natural phenomenon that is Loch Ness." The centre has a café and restaurant on site if you want to linger.

Urquhart Castle is the centerpiece: a thousand years of Highland history compressed into the ruins of what was once the greatest castle in the region. You can climb the Grant Tower that overlooks the loch, peer into a prison cell said to have held the legendary Gaelic bard Domhnall Donn, and walk through exhibits that include a full-sized working trebuchet siege engine and a short film. The castle witnessed St Columba working miracles in the 6th century, acts of defiance during the Wars of Independence, and struggles between the MacDonald Lords of the Isles and the Crown. A café on site offers a more comfortable vantage of the ruins against the backdrop of Loch Ness and the Great Glen hills.

The final stop is Beauly Priory, a Valliscaulian monastic community probably founded in 1230. The village itself got its name ("beau lieu," meaning beautiful place) either from French monks who settled nearby or, according to local legend, from Mary Queen of Scots, who supposedly looked out of her carriage window and declared it so. The tour loops back to your starting point, so you don't need onward transport arranged. A local driver-guide leads the route, and the group includes bottled water and WiFi on board.

What’s included

• Bottled water on board.
• WiFi on board.
• local driver-guide leading the route.
• return transport to your starting point.

Before you book

Days and timesMonday to Saturday

GroupUp to 8

Live guideEnglish

Meeting point and pickupNo hotel pickup: you go to the meeting point. Ends back at the starting point.

Cancellation and refundsFree cancellation up to 24 h before the start. After that, no refund.It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund.

Paid on site£ 16

Prices and times updated 5 days ago

Good to know

Low physical effortStroller-friendlyInfant seats availablePets welcomePublic transport nearby

Operated by Highland Premium Travel

Is this one for you?The tour departs from Inverness and loops back there, so if you're staying in the city or arriving without a car, you don't need to arrange onward transport or navigate between stops. The guide handles the route and timing across all four stops.

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Top questions

What happens if it rains?

It may be canceled due to bad weather. If that happens, you're offered another date or a refund. Free cancellation up to 24 h before the start.

What exactly is inside the Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition?

The Loch Ness Centre and Exhibition is a five-star visitor attraction with a 35-minute audio-visual presentation that uses real research tools and archive footage from four decades of study to explain the loch's unusual natural properties. It's endorsed by Scottish Natural Heritage and includes a café, restaurant and retail shop on site.

Can I climb around inside Urquhart Castle?

Yes. You can climb the Grant Tower overlooking the loch, explore a prison cell, walk through galleries of artefacts and historic replicas, and see a full-sized working trebuchet siege engine. A café at the castle offers a comfortable viewing spot of the ruins against Loch Ness and the Great Glen hills.

Does the tour include entry to Urquhart Castle?

Entry to Urquhart Castle is optional and added at checkout if you want it. The tour visits the site, but you choose whether to pay for admission to go inside.

What happens at the Caledonian Canal locks?

The Caledonian Canal locks mark where Loch Ness begins, and you'll have a chance to feed carrots to the friendly highland cattle in the adjoining field before the tour moves on to the Loch Ness Centre.

How long does the whole tour take?

The tour runs about five hours, including stops at the canal locks, the Loch Ness Centre, Urquhart Castle, and Beauly Priory, with the route looping back to your starting point.