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Scottish Isles & Glens
Superior &
First Class Hotels: 11 Day Coach
Tour
Tour
Highlights:
Edinburgh
Pub Dinner & Ghost Tour
Isles of Orkney & Skara Brae
Dunvegan Castle on Isle of Skye
Inverewe Gardens
Glenfiddich Whisky Distillery & Tasting
Fort George
Day
1: Glasgow
Arrival & City Tour
Arrive in Glasgow Airport where your CIE Tours
driver/guide or representative will greet you. Complimentary group
transfers depart Glasgow
Airport at 8:00
am, 10:00 am or 12:00 noon. Passengers arriving later will transfer to
the city-centre hotel at their own expense. At 3:00 pm take a coach
tour to see Glasgow’s
main attractions including red sandstone Victorian buildings,
delightful parks and the River Clyde. Visit Glasgow Cathedral,
dating from the 12th century. Chat with your driver/guide
and fellow travellers over a welcome drink before
dinner. (D)
Day
2: Loch Lomond & Glen Coe
Travel into the Highlands
as you drive alongside the lovely shores of Loch
Lomond. Continue across the bleak Rannoch Moor and through
the spectacular peaks of Glen Coe, made famous by the Campbells’ massacre of the Clan
Macdonald in 1692. Continue through Fort William
and shop at the Ben Nevis Highland Centre. Take the scenic Road
to the Isles passing Loch Shiel, the Glenfinnan
Monument and Glenfinnan
Viaduct to cross by ferry to the Isle of Skye.
Drive through part of the “Misty Isle” and cross the Skye Bridge to the mainland to your
charming family-owned hotel located near Kyle of Lochalsh. (B,D)
Day
3: Isle of Skye
Tour & Dunvegan Castle
Today discover the Isle
of Skye’s majestic Cuillin
Mountains and the
island’s many associations with Bonnie Prince Charlie. Visit Dunvegan Castle, stronghold of the
Chiefs of MacLeod for nearly 800 years making it the oldest
continuously inhabited castle in Scotland. The
Castle’s stately halls contain priceless family heirlooms. Take a
stroll through both formal and woodland gardens before driving through
more island scenery. Stop in Portree, the capital, where colourful
houses cluster around the large natural harbour. Return to your hotel
for some free time before dinner. After dinner a local musician will
play some Scottish music for your pleasure. (B,D)
Day
4: Inverewe
Gardens & Atlantic Coast
Close to your hotel stop
for photos at the romantic Eilean
Donan Castle
before enjoying more Highland scenery
as you drive past Loch Maree. Visit Inverewe Gardens, where in
1862 Osgood Mackenzie converted 50 acres of bleak headland into a haven
of trees and shrubs. The varied and exotic plantings thrive due to the
warming influence of the Gulf Stream.
Travel past more dramatic scenery as you drive by lochs and Gruinard Bay to Ullapool, an active
fishing and ferry port that was built in 1788 by the British Fisheries
Society. Drive through Ullapool and check in to your hotel. (B,D)
Day
5: Highland Scenery & 16th
Century Ardvreck Castle
Today explore one of Scotland’s most remote Highland areas, where the landscape varies from
huge tracts of bogland to rugged rocky mountains and coastline. Pass
Loch Broom and the romantic ruins of 16th century Ardvreck Castle. Stop in Durness, one of Scotland’s
most remote hamlets. Learn about the 18th and 19th
century Highland Clearances which left these areas devoid of people.
Stop in Bettyhill, a village built in 1814 to replace crofts destroyed
by the Clearances. Continue to your hotel in Thurso, located in the
centre of this picturesque town. (B,D)
Day
6: Isle of Orkney & Skara Brae
Take a ferry ride
to the port of Stromness where a local guide will escort
you around the main island
of Orkney. Visit Skara Brae,
a 5,000-year-old village, where you can see the layout of houses, some
with hearths and cupboards. View the Ring of Brodgar, a
circle of prehistoric standing stones and stop in Kirkwall
to see the 12th century St. Magnus Cathedral.
Drive across the Churchill Barriers, created during World War II to
prevent German submarines from sheltering in Scapa
Flow. See the Italian Chapel, a tiny church built from two Nissan
huts with elaborate trompe l’oeil paintings before driving to
Stromness for the return ferry ride. (B,D)
Day
7: John O’Groats & Dunrobin Castle
Drive along the coast of
the North Sea to John o’ Groats,
the most northerly village on the British mainland. Near Golspie visit Dunrobin Castle,
seat of the Earls and Dukes of Sutherland and the largest mansion in
northern Scotland
with 189 rooms. Walk through some of the impressive chambers of the
castle, which dates to 1275 but was remodelled in the mid-1800’s. Watch a demonstration of falconry
in the castle gardens to see trained birds of prey of many species.
Continue south to your hotel in Nairn, located on the Moray
Firth. (B,D)
Day
8: Battle of Culloden & Fort George
Drive along the shores of
Loch Ness to the substantial ruins of Urquhart Castle
for a photo stop and admire great views of this famous lake. Take a
look around the town of Inverness and at
the Culloden
Visitor Centre walk around the moor where the Battle of
Culloden took place in 1746, ending Bonnie Prince Charlie’s
political aspirations and the traditional Highland
way of life. Next visit the vast defences at Fort George, located
overlooking the North Sea. Planned in
1747 as a base for the English army, it has served as a barracks since
then. See reconstructed barrack rooms and the Seafield Collection - a
display of muskets and pikes. (B,D)
Day
9: Glenfiddich Distillery & Edinburgh Ghost Tour
Drive through the Spey Valley to visit Glenfiddich
Distillery. Take a tour to learn how whisky is distilled
and sample a “wee dram.” Continue past the majestic peaks
of the Grampian Mountains and stop in the town of Pitlochry
to take a look around before heading to your hotel in Edinburgh. In the evening walk across
the Grassmarket to the cosy Beehive Inn for an
informal pub dinner and then join a local guide for a fun walking tour
to discover the haunts of Edinburgh’s many colourful characters.
(B,D)
Day
10: Edinburgh
Castle & City
Tour
This morning discover Edinburgh on a
sightseeing tour with a local guide. Drive along Princes Street, the main shopping
thoroughfare. Compare the wide streets and elegant mansions of the
200-year-old Georgian “New Town” with the narrow lanes and
medieval townhouses along the Royal Mile, the oldest part of the city.
Finish your tour at the imposing Edinburgh Castle to see historic
buildings and enjoy a splendid view of Edinburgh. The afternoon and evening
are free for independent activities. On August 01, 08 and 15 departures
enjoy the Military
Tattoo at Edinburgh
Castle. (B)
Day
11: Depart Edinburgh
for Home
Your tour ends with a
group transfer to arrive at Edinburgh
Airport by 6:30
or 9:00 am. This will allow you plenty of time for check-in procedures
and duty-free shopping before boarding the aircraft for your return journey.
A transfer to Glasgow
Airport will be
provided on request at a cost of $100 per person. (B)
Tour runs 2 May – 17 October
Departure days Sunday
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Tour Dates
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Prices
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2 May > 16 May
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$2655
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30 May > 18
July
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$2815
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1 August > 15
August
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$3040
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29 August > 26
September
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$2815
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3 October > 17
October
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$2535
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All rates are in Australian dollars per person twin share basis
Single supplement $605
YOUR TOUR INCLUDES
• Group
transfers on arrival and departure
•
Sightseeing by luxury coach throughout
•
Services of a professional driver/guide
•
Superior & first class hotels with private bath/shower for 10
nights
• 10
Full Scottish breakfasts (B)
• 9
dinners (D) including:
- Pub dinner
at the Beehive Inn in Edinburgh
- 8 table
d’hôte dinners
•
Welcome get-together drink
• Ferry
to the Isle of Skye
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After-dinner musical entertainment in Balmacara Hotel
• Ferry
to Orkney and services of a local guide
•
Whisky tasting and tour at Glenfiddich Distillery
• Ghost
walking tour of Edinburgh
• Tour
of Edinburgh
with a local guide
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Reserved seats for Edinburgh Military Tattoo on August 01, 08 and 15 departures
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Visits and admissions to Glasgow Cathedral, Ben Nevis Highland Centre,
Dunvegan Castle, Inverewe Gardens, Skara Brae, Ring of Brodgar, St.
Magnus Cathedral, Italian Chapel, Dunrobin Castle, Culloden Battlefield
Visitor Centre, Fort George and Edinburgh Castle
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Deluxe flight bag, ticket wallet, luggage tags & strap
• All local taxes, hotel service charges & porterage
for one suitcase per person
YOUR HOTELS
Stay
at the following (or similar):
Menzies Hotel, Glasgow (1 night)
Balmacara Hotel, near Kyle of Lochalsh (2 nights)
Royal Hotel, Ullapool (1 night)
Pentland Hotel, Thurso (2 nights)
The Newton Hotel, Nairn (2 nights)
Apex International Hotel, Edinburgh (2 nights)
NOTE: Hotels in the north of Scotland are of the best the remote Highlands offer; however, they are not up to the
usual CIE Tours standard.
Call our office 1800 336676 for any further
assistance or advice or email info@accessukholidays.com
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