Our Great Scottish road trip - itinerary
We had heard about Scotland being the northern hemisphere’s version of New Zealand, so we thought that after spending 6 months in the UK, it was time to visit it. Little did we know that we were about to set off on the road trip of our lifetime and unlock a love for Scotland that we didn’t know existed. The only hiccup in this plan was that we were starting from the New Forest, located at the bottom of England. But being Kiwis, we were not scared of the challenge, so we made some calls to family along the way, and before we knew it, we were setting off for 2 weeks of chasing snowy munros, frozen lochs, and the ghost of Jamie Fraser.
EDINBURGH
Like all good Scottish road trips, we started with 5 nights in Edinburgh full of incredible food, sightseeing, and catching up with old friends. We were lucky enough to stay with Toby’s cousins, so we had plenty of Edinburgh recommendations and truly made the most of our time here. Our weekend was jam-packed with visits to the Edinburgh Castle, Palace of Holyroodhouse, and the Edinburgh Dungeons. We also got the chance to catch up with old friends while watching the All Blacks play England. Our first taste of Edinburgh left us wanting more!
GLENCOE
We managed to time our trip to Glencoe so perfectly with a snowstorm a few days before we arrived, and then straight into bluebird days. The drive into Glencoe was one of the highlights of our trip; the pass through the mountains was spectacular as snow began falling around us. We couldn’t help but pull over to film some videos on our Sony Handycam and take some photos on our Fujifilm X100VI.
Kate’s reaction to driving through the road to Glencoe!
We booked a cute cabin in the woods through Airbnb and spent 2 days hiking the Three Sisters of Glencoe, exploring, and learning about Glencoe's history with a visit to the Glencoe Visitors Centre.
INVERNESS
The beauty of road tripping through Scotland is that the destinations aren’t always the highlight, but the places along the way. Driving from Glencoe to Inverness, we drove past Loch Ness, along gorgeous mountain roads, and stopped off at a tiny cafe for soup. By the time we arrived at Inverness, we felt like we had already experienced bucket-list Scottish attractions.
The main purpose of our visit to Inverness was to visit the Culloden Battlefield, as we are big fans of Outlander. During our 2 days, we visited the battlefield twice, went to the Clava Cairns, and touched every standing stone in hopes of traveling back in time. This was a bucket list experience for both of us, and we will always be so grateful for this opportunity!
CAIRNGORMS NATIONAL PARK
Again, the journey from Inverness through the Glenmore Forest Park was incredible. We were determined to find the reindeer that resided amongst the snow and trees. We also spent a few hours walking around some of the lochs within the park, which were magical.
Our final stop on our Great Scottish Road trip was to the Cairngorms National Park, the largest national park in the UK. We stayed at a wonderful guesthouse in Kirkmichael, which was full of history. Originally a tuberculosis house in the early 1900s, Cnock Sualtach had been transformed into a boutique bed-and-breakfast. We spent 2 days here visiting Glamis Castle, House of Dun, and buying cakes from the cutest cake stand 2 minutes down the road from our Airbnb. The main purpose of this stop on our road trip was to discover where Toby’s family clan, Clan Farquharson, has its roots. While we don’t have much information about the connection, it is a family name passed down to Toby through his middle name, Farquhar. This added to our time here as we talked about what life would have been like for clan members over the generations.
This road trip ignited a fire in our souls that we did not know existed. Something about Scotland called to us in a way we hadn’t felt since leaving New Zealand. Maybe it was because of the landscapes and kind people who reminded us of home, or maybe it was the perfect mixture of history and adventure. Whatever it was, it’s left us dreaming of a life where we can spend half of our year in Scotland and the other half in New Zealand for the rest of our lives.