Scotland in 3 days
Three days is short, but enough for a proper taste of the Highlands if you resist the urge to add Skye. This loop from Edinburgh spends two nights in the Highlands and keeps every day to a sensible length.
At a glance: Edinburgh → Fort William (1 night) → Inverness (1 night) → Edinburgh. About 9 hours of driving across three days. Add a day before or after for Edinburgh itself.
- Day 1: Edinburgh to Glencoe and Fort William. Leave Edinburgh by 9am. Stirling Castle (50 min drive, allow 2 hours). Continue through Callander and Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park, over Rannoch Moor to Glencoe (about 2 hours). Stop at the Glencoe Visitor Centre and the Three Sisters viewpoint, then on to Fort William (30 min) for the night.
Driving about 3 hr 30 min; day about 9 hours. - Day 2: Glenfinnan, the Great Glen and Loch Ness. Morning drive to Glenfinnan (30 min) for the monument and viaduct; in the Jacobite season, check when the train crosses. Back through Fort William and along the Great Glen past the Commando Memorial to Fort Augustus (1 hour) to watch boats in the canal locks. Along Loch Ness to Urquhart Castle (40 min; book timed tickets in summer), then into Inverness (30 min).
Driving about 3 hr 15 min; day about 8 to 9 hours. - Day 3: Culloden, the Cairngorms and Pitlochry. Culloden Battlefield first thing (15 min from Inverness, allow 1 hr 30 min). South on the A9 with a stop in Aviemore or at Loch an Eilein (40 min plus a short walk), then Pitlochry (1 hour) for lunch and the dam. Return to Edinburgh (1 hr 30 min).
Driving about 3 hr 45 min; day about 9 hours.
Variations
- From Glasgow: start the same way via Loch Lomond, and finish by driving Pitlochry to Glasgow (about 1 hr 45 min).
- Skip Stirling on day 1 for a longer stop in Glencoe, or a short walk to the Lost Valley if you are fit and the weather is good.
- Winter: daylight is under 7 hours in December. Start each day at first light and cut a stop; the order still works.
Why not Skye in three days?
Edinburgh to Portree is about 5 hours of driving each way. In three days that leaves almost no time on the island. If Skye is the priority, see the 5-day itinerary.