Orkney Islands, Loch Ness & Carbisdale Castle
Located off the far northern tip of mainland Scotland, where the Atlantic meets the North Sea, few people get the chance to make the journey to these remote and sparsely inhabited islands. With over 5,000 years of history there are Neolithic villages, tombs and stone circles and many reminders of its Viking past. A place unlike the rest of Scotland and proud of it!
> Spend the night in a haunted Highland castle*
> Explore 5,000 years of Orkneys past – from Neolithic remains to its Viking influences
> Skara Bare – where Orkneys earliest ancestor’s lived
> FREE entry to the Tomb of the Eagles where you can come face to face with our prehistoric ancestors
> Awesome ferry trips from the most northern point of Britain
> What's Included: An unforgettable adventure with like-minded travellers, transport, all ferries, FREE entry to the Tomb of the Eagles and a legendary HAGGiS tour guide!
> Live it up in the Capital of the Highlands with a night out in Inverness!
> Try great fish and chips in Kirkwall.
> Learn a ’peedie’ bit of Orcadian dialect. (‘Peedie’ means ‘wee’ which means ‘small’)
> Brave the Carbisdale Castle ghosts and take a visit to the local pub.
> Accommodation is guaranteed on all trips - we reserve the beds and you pay as you go. The price is between £15 and £20 per person per night in shared dorm accommodation. For more information and upgrade options click here.
* N.B. Another hostel may be substituted for Carbisdale Castle as an overnight stop
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Day 1: Edinburgh to Inverness
Heading north from Edinburgh, we head over the River Forth and into the Kingdom of Fife before passing through Perthshire - surrounded by mountains, forests and salmon packed rivers. First stop is at Dunkeld with its glorious cathedral. We then head over the lonesome Pass of Drumochter which links the southern and northern Highlands. Lunch is in the small village of Kingussie, made famous by the 'Monarch of the Glen' TV show. Then it's off through the Cairngorm National Park to lonely Culloden Battlefield, scene of the last major battle in Britain.
Day 2: Inverness to Orkney
We continue our journey north passing over the Moray Firth where we may even spot some common dolphins or minke whales. We then pass the Black Isle (home of the delicious Black Isle beers). It's then onto John O'Groats, Britain's most north easterly point before catching the ferry over the Pentland Firth to the Orkney Islands, home to more archaeological ruins in one area than anywhere else in Europe and our base for the next two nights!
Day 3: Orkney
Today we head off to explore Skara Brae, dating from the late Neolithic period and inhabited between 3,200BC and 2,200BC. This incredible stone village is made up of eight dwellings (some still containing original furniture) linked together by a series of low alleyways and is a marvel of ancient building techniques. There will also be time to visit the magnificent standing stones at the Ring of Brodgar before heading to the 5,000 years old Maeshowe - a Neolithic chambered cairn and passage grave.
Day 4: Orkney to Carbisdale Castle
First we visit the Italian chapel. This place of worship was built by 550 Italian POW's in the Second World War. We then bid Orkney farewell and make the ferry crossing back to the mainland and a journey south through Scotland’s rugged terrain. We travel through the sparsely populated wilderness of Sutherland and Caithness, via glens left deserted as a result of the Highland Clearances. Tonight you have a chance to spend the night in a haunted Highland castle where you can spend the evening exploring the corriders, forest and grounds that surround this legendary building.
Day 5: Carbisdale to Edinburgh
Winding our way down the west coast of Scotland, we’ll visit the monstrous Loch Ness and the mysterious and haunting Glencoe - areas that formed the backdrop to the movies "Braveheart" and "Rob Roy". We cross the wilds of Rannoch Moor (watch out for the stags) and south, past historic Stirling, arriving back in Edinburgh early evening.