In this guide
💡 The Short Version: A Loch Ness and Glencoe “day trip” is a 12 to 12½ hour coach day, mostly spent seated: the bus alone to Fort William takes 4 hours 24 minutes each way. GetYourGuide’s coach tours start at £42.75; Rabbie’s takes 16 people in a minibus for £69. Loch Ness is a stop at Fort Augustus, and the castle and the cruise are extras: Urquhart Castle £14 online and the 50-minute cruise £22. For Glenfinnan, the Harry Potter viaduct, take a different tour, because you cannot see both in a day. Skye needs three days. The bestselling Loch Ness, Glencoe & the Scottish Highlands Tourad is £57.80 (GetYourGuide).
The tours compared
Prices are GetYourGuide’s lowest “from” prices for one adult, except Rabbie’s, which is its own. Entrance fees and lunch are extra unless the listing says so.
| Tour | Operator | From | Length | What it covers |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Loch Ness, Glencoe & the Scottish Highlandsad | Timberbush Tours | £57.80 | 12½ hours | Callander, Glencoe, Fort William, Loch Ness, an optional cruise or castle |
| Loch Ness, Glencoe & Scottish Highlandsad | The Hairy Coo | £44.20 | 12½ hours | Pitlochry, Rannoch Moor, Glencoe, Fort Augustus |
| Loch Ness, Glencoe & The Highlandsad | Stewart.Tours | £45 | 12½ hours | Glencoe, Fort William, Fort Augustus, Pitlochry |
| Loch Ness, Glenoce & The Highlandsad | Gray Line Scotland | £42.75 | 12 hours | Callander, Rannoch Moor, Glencoe, Loch Ness, Pitlochry |
| Loch Ness, Glencoe & Scottish Highlandsad | Highland Explorer Tours | £57.80 | 12 hours | Trossachs, Glencoe, Fort Augustus, an optional cruise |
| Glenfinnan Viaduct, Glencoe & Highlandsad | Timberbush Tours | £57 | 12 hours | Glencoe, Fort William, the Glenfinnan Viaduct |
| Glenfinnan Viaduct, Glencoe & Highlandsad | The Hairy Coo | £55 | 12 hours | The viaduct, Loch Shiel, Glencoe |
| Glenfinnan Viaduct, Glencoe & Fort Williamad | Stewart.Tours | £45 | 12 hours | The viaduct and Glencoe |
| Loch Ness, Glencoe and the Highlands | Rabbie’s | £69 | About 12¼ hours | A 16-seat minibus; Fort Augustus |
The day in honest hours
| Operator | Leaves | Back | Meeting point |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rabbie’s | 7.45am | About 8.00pm | Gates J and K, Edinburgh Bus Station, St Andrew Square |
| Timberbush | 8am | 8.30pm | Castle Terrace, outside the NCP car park |
Citylink’s quickest bus from Edinburgh to Fort William is 4 hours 24 minutes and to Inverness 3 hours 50 minutes, so a tour’s day is mostly time seated. Citylink’s advance return to Fort William is £34 when bought two days ahead, but in its winter timetable the last bus leaves Edinburgh at 17:05 with a change at Tyndrum, so a day on your own needs a car.
Tours worth paying for
Timberbush Tours, Loch Ness and Glencoe
From £57.80 · 12½ hours · 20,853 reviews
Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe & the Scottish Highlands Tourad is Timberbush’s coach tour with a refreshment stop at Callander, a photo stop in Glencoe, lunch in the Fort William area and Loch Ness in the afternoon. The Urquhart Castle ticket and a 30-minute cruise are options you pick at booking. On Timberbush’s own site the tour stops at Urquhart Castle, then has an evening stop in Pitlochry, and “From £56” is the tour-only price. Timberbush says Historic Scotland Explorer Passes cannot be used for the attractions on the tour. Bring a cold packed lunch: no hot food is allowed on its buses.
The Hairy Coo, three versions
From £44.20 · 12½ hours · 12,396 reviews
From Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe & Scottish Highlands Tourad runs in three versions on separate coaches: the Boat Cruise, the Whisky Distillery (a stop at Deanston) and a Castle and Cruise combination. The cruise version is the only one that runs daily. The optional extras are not included: £22 for the cruise, £19.50 for the distillery tour and £32 for the cruise with Urquhart Castle. The tour meets at the Burns Monument on Regent Road, with check-in from 7.00am and the last departure at 7.45am. There is no toilet on board, and it is not suitable for under-7s.
Stewart.Tours, Loch Ness and Glencoe
From £45 · 12½ hours · 2,619 reviews
Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe & The Highlandsad passes Linlithgow Palace, the Kelpies and Stirling Castle, stops in Callander, Fort William, Fort Augustus and Pitlochry, and leaves from Charlotte Square. The Loch Ness cruise is optional at £22 for an adult. It is not suitable for under-5s.
Gray Line and Highland Explorer
From £42.75 and £57.80 · 12 hours
Gray Line Scotland’s tourad (2,157 reviews, £42.75) crosses Rannoch Moor and Glencoe and stops at Loch Ness and Pitlochry; it is not suitable for under-6s. Highland Explorer Toursad (3,236 reviews, £57.80) goes through the Trossachs and Rannoch Moor to Fort Augustus, with an optional cruise.
Rabbie’s, the small group
£69 per adult · about 12¼ hours · 16 seats · Fort Augustus
Rabbie’s Loch Ness, Glencoe and the Highlands day tour is a 16-seat minibus that collects at 7.45am, takes a break in a Highland town, stops for photos in Glencoe, lets you have lunch at Fort Augustus with an optional 50-minute cruise, and stops in Perthshire on the way back. Some tours run in reverse.
What you see, in order
The tours follow one road north and the same road back, and differ in where they pause.
Buachaille Etive Mòr, on the edge of Glencoe. Photo: Colin, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Callander or Balquhidder, the first refreshment stop, with a chance to meet Highland cows: the tours pass the Kelpies and Stirling Castle on the way.
- Rannoch Moor and Glencoe, a photo stop in a glen where the MacDonald clan was massacred in 1692. The National Trust for Scotland’s Glencoe visitor centre is free to enter and its car park is £4.00; hours change by season.
- Fort William, at the foot of Ben Nevis, for lunch.
- Loch Ness, reached at Fort Augustus on the south-west shore, or at Urquhart Castle on the western shore on Timberbush’s route. Both are on the Great Glen.
- Pitlochry or Perthshire, the last stop on the way back, then the Forth Bridges.
Urquhart Castle and the cruise
Castle £14 online, £16 in person · Daily Discovery cruise £22 · 50 minutes
Urquhart Castle is a Historic Scotland ruin on the loch, £14 online for an adult (£11 concession, £7 child aged 7 to 15). Tickets often sell out far in advance in summer, and once they sell out online none are sold at the castle, so a tour passenger needs a ticket booked before the day. It is open daily, 9.30am to 8.15pm from April to August, to 6pm in September, to 5pm in October and to 4.30pm from 1 November to 31 March; the last entry is an hour before closing, and it is closed on 25 and 26 December. Cruise Loch Ness at Fort Augustus runs the 50-minute Daily Discovery at £22 for an adult and £15 for a child, and speedboat tours at £32 and £20.
The ruins of Urquhart Castle above Loch Ness. Photo: Lewis Clarke, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 2.0.
Glenfinnan and the Jacobite
Glenfinnan Viaduct tours: £45 to £57 · 12 hours · no Loch Ness
The three Glenfinnan tours replace Loch Ness with the viaduct, Loch Shiel and the Glenfinnan Monument, which marks the start of the 1745 Jacobite rising. The viaduct is the route of the Hogwarts Express in the Harry Potter films, and the tours stop at a viewpoint and the visitor centre. The listings say you cannot board the train. West Coast Railways runs The Jacobite from Fort William to Mallaig and back, 84 miles, with an hour and a half at Mallaig. The 2026 morning service runs to 23 October and the afternoon service ended on 25 September, so after 23 October the tours see the viaduct without the train. For the film sites, see Harry Potter in Edinburgh.
The Jacobite steam train on the Glenfinnan Viaduct. Photo: Eric Kilby, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0.
The Isle of Skye
Skye is not a day trip. Citylink’s quickest bus from Glasgow to Skye is 6 hours 25 minutes, and from Inverness 3 hours 11 minutes, after 3 hours 50 minutes from Edinburgh to Inverness. The shortest tours from Edinburgh are three days: Rabbie’s is £225 per adult, Timberbush’s is from £220, and GetYourGuide’s 3-Day Isle of Skye and The Highlands Tourad is from £180 (3,033 reviews). The Skye guide on day trips from Edinburgh covers the options.
Which to book
- The cheapest coach day: Gray Line at £42.75, or The Hairy Coo at £44.20.
- The most reviewed: Timberbush’s, 20,853 reviews, £57.80.
- A small group and a guide: Rabbie’s, £69, 16 seats.
- Harry Potter’s viaduct: a Glenfinnan tour, from £45.
- Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle and the cruise: book the castle ticket and cruise before the day.
Day trips from Edinburgh compares every trip by train, bus or tour, and St Andrews and Stirling Castle are the easier days by train. Edinburgh Airport to the city and Edinburgh public transport cover the first and last day. Where to stay in Edinburgh compares the areas, with hotels near the Royal Mile for the centre.
Common questions
Is a Loch Ness day trip from Edinburgh worth it?
If you want the Highlands in a day and accept most of it on a coach. The tours run 12 to 12½ hours, and the bus alone from Edinburgh to Fort William takes 4 hours 24 minutes each way. They cover Glencoe, Fort William and Loch Ness at Fort Augustus, from £42.75 on GetYourGuide.
How long is the Loch Ness day trip from Edinburgh?
Rabbie's collects at 7.45am and returns at about 8.00pm, Timberbush runs 8am to 8.30pm and GetYourGuide's tours are 12 to 12½ hours. Most of that is on the road.
Does the tour price include Urquhart Castle and the Loch Ness cruise?
Usually not. The castle and the cruise are optional extras on most tours. Urquhart Castle is £14 online and £16 in person, and the 50-minute Daily Discovery cruise from Fort Augustus is £22 for an adult.
Can you see Loch Ness and Glenfinnan in one day?
No. The Loch Ness tours go to Fort Augustus and the Glenfinnan tours go to the viaduct near Fort William; each is a 12-hour day. Choose one.
Can I ride the Jacobite steam train from an Edinburgh day tour?
Not as a rule. The Jacobite runs from Fort William to Mallaig and back, 84 miles. Tours to the Glenfinnan Viaduct stop at the viaduct and some say that you cannot board the train. West Coast Railways sells the train separately, and its 2026 morning service ends on 23 October.
Can you visit the Isle of Skye as a day trip from Edinburgh?
Not sensibly. The quickest Citylink journey from Glasgow to Skye is 6 hours 25 minutes, and the shortest tours from Edinburgh are three days: Rabbie's is £225 and Timberbush's from £220.
