2022 Tour code: HAS22
About the tour
From Inverness, the gateway to our Highland adventure, we discover the very best of northern Scotland. Soak up breathtaking scenery, step back in time at historic castles and battlefields, meet the local wildlife and enjoy wonderfully scenic journeys by both mainline and steam railways.
Highlights
What’s included
Itinerary
Our holiday begins in Inverness at the Palace Hotel & Spa, which overlooks the River Ness in the centre of the city. Perhaps familiarise yourself with the city on a riverside stroll or visit the Inverness Museum & Art Gallery before dinner. This delightful city, with a history dating back over 2,500 years, is considered the capital of the Highlands, and it is crowned by stunning Inverness Castle. Its most famous resident, King Mac Bethad Mac Findláich, may seem familiar as he was the inspiration for one of Shakespeare's most famous tragedies, MacBeth.
Additional information
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Reviews
4.4 / 5 · 102 reviews
Diane
Submitted 19/Oct
Beautiful Hotel, Very nice Tour Manager. The first day of the holiday was wonderful and left us very excited for the following two days, but the second day was slightly disappointing in that we had a Scotrail Deisel train rather than a "Great Steam Train Rail H=Journey of The Highlands" and were back at Inverness station by about 4:15pm. The third day was the drive to Aviemore by coach followed by a steam train ride on the Strathspey line. Scenery was nice but all in all quite disappointing, an extremely short train ride with a ten minute stop at Boat of Garten station, then another ten minute stop at the end of the line. We had been told this was the Glen Bogle Village, and most people seemed to think we would see the castle, but it was just a platform with a sign saying Glenbogle! That afternoon we were deposited back at the Hotel by 3:15pm, which was really the end of the Great Rail Journeys holiday as all that was left was to have dinner in the hotel and breamkfast the following morning and that was that. We were not expecting miracles, considering restrictions over the past year, but really this was only a three day holiday and NOT a five day one as advertised. We did still enjoy the trip as we were with friends, but it is doubtful that we would book another holiday with Great Rail Journeys. The Jacobite Express was really the only decent rail journey of the whole trip. Sorry.....
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R Birnie
Submitted 18/Oct
I have already completed the questionnaire and was very happy with all aspects of the holiday
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D McNulty
Submitted 18/Oct
Good quality Hotel and food, tour guide and trips very informative.
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Julie
Submitted 16/Oct
The holiday was quite enjoyable, apart from the fact that two of the excursions didn’t leave till quite late, which resulted in not enough time to get adequate refreshment breaks between coach dis-embankment , and embankment of the train. The Sunday excursion was the worst, with no time for lunch, and then arriving at Culloden battlefield visitor centre after the cafe had closed. It left a lot of people hungry and did-satisfied. The tour manager was great. And food at the hotel and hotel facilities very good also.
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D Brigges
Submitted 27/Sep
The hotel was excellent and well positioned and the train rides were delightful. I loved visiting the castle and the boat trip was fun. I do think the itinerary on the final day would have been better if the the visit to the battlefield had been in the morning and the train ride had been in the afternoon. All round very enjoyable holiday.
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Mr watkin
Submitted 25/Sep
Excellent few days. We thoroughly enjoyed the tour. We could have started third day a bit earlier and had more time at Culloden. Also if you are running two groups, it would be better to separate their itineraries?
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Europe by Rail 2022
The definitive guide to our 2022 summer rail holidays to a wide range of destinations in Europe.
Take in a stunning, Unspoilt region by Rail
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05/07/2021 · By Katie Shaw
Straddling the mighty River Ness and rubbing shoulders with world-famous Loch Ness, the vibrant Scottish city of Inverness has a whole lot to offer.
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05/07/2021 · By Sukie Chapman
The Palace Hotel in Inverness has long been a customer favourite here at Great Rail Journeys. And really, what’s not to like?
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08/01/2020 · By Rashmi Guha Ray
There’s something deeply romantic about train journeys. In a fast-paced world where the skies are dotted with aeroplanes and air traffic has become the norm, the nostalgic appeal of trains can hardly be denied.
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12/05/2017 · By Sukie Chapman
How many of us have wanted to walk straight into the pages of our favourite books? While it might not be possible quite yet to experience the lives of the fictional heroes and heroines we’ve walked side by side through life with for a little while, and sometimes who’d want to (think of just about any character from a Stephen King novel).
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