Are you planning a 1 day Highlands road trip from Edinburgh? Here’s our tried and tested travel guide on how to explore the Scottish Highlands in one day. From incredible viewpoints, scenic drives and beautiful wildlife, you’ll definitely want to spend longer on your Highlands itinerary from Edinburgh!
Luckily, it’s totally possible in one day, any time of year! Let’s explore 1 day in the beautiful Scottish Highlands!
The Scottish Highlands are an incredible mountainous region in northwest Scotland. It’s home to the famous Loch Ness (you may have heard stories about the Loch Ness monster) and the most impressive scenery. This 1 day Highlands itinerary from Edinburgh will take you from Edinburgh to Glencoe and a little further.
Whilst on a city trip to Edinburgh, we realised that it only takes 1-2 hours to reach the Highlands and couldn’t resist exploring a part of the region, even if it’s only a day! This is how we created this one day Highlands road trip from Edinburgh with all the best stops to make in winter or summer.
We visited in December when there’s the least amount of daylight in Scotland – which means this trip is totally possible any time of year!
If you’re travelling in summer, you’ll be able to make a few more stops and spend longer in each destination. You can also start this Scottish Highlands itinerary from Edinburgh or Glasgow.
Find out how to explore Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, Glencoe and more, all on a 1 day Highlands road trip itinerary.
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Quick Tips for a 1 day Scottish Highlands Itinerary
- Currency – British Pounds (compare to your own currency here)
- Transport – For this itinerary, a car is needed: Here’s a link for Rental Cars!
- Parking – Most car parks in the Highlands will charge a small fee!
- Cash – Card is mainly accepted everywhere but cash can be handy sometimes.
- Language: Mostly English, but sometimes Scots! (Loch means Lake in Scottish)
Accommodation in Scotland – Booking.com & Hostelworld are great websites to find hotels or hostels for your 1 day Highlands itinerary. Read further to find recommendations on where to stay.
Travel Insurance – SafetyWing is a flexible monthly-rolling travel insurance to help you stay covered during your trip to Scotland or anywhere in the world!
Best time to visit the Scottish Highlands
The best time to visit the Scottish Highlands is between May and September. However, it’s definitely possible to visit the Highlands all year round!
July and August are the peak times to travel to the Scottish Highlands as it’s British summertime! Accommodations and car rentals will cost more, but it is usually the best weather of the year.
We visited in mid-December when it was -5°C and saw the mountains with snowy tops! It was a beautiful day too!
How to rent a car in Edinburgh
There are a few ways to rent a car in Edinburgh for your Scottish Highlands trip! If you need to park your car overnight in Edinburgh, parking is free in the Old Town after 6 pm.
- Turo – This is a car hire and car sharing company, similar to how Airbnb works but with cars! We used Turo for our Highlands road trip and it cost around £60 to borrow someone’s car for the day. We also spent £50 worth of petrol.
- Discover Cars – One of the best comparison sites to find the perfect rental car for your 1 day Highlands road trip.
- Gogo Campers – A campervan rental company!
Also, check out our 3 Day Edinburgh Itinerary!
1 day Highlands Itinerary from Edinburgh Roadtrip
Finally onto the Highlands 1 day itinerary from Edinburgh! We’d like to mention that this itinerary can be done all year round. When we visited in December, we were working with daylight from 8 am-4 pm. This meant that each stop was pretty quick as we wanted to reach the end destination before sunset.
If you’re travelling in summer, you can simply stay longer in each destination, pull over at more stops on the day or do some hiking! We’ll put time stamps throughout this Highlands itinerary for a trip in winter and we recommend leaving at 7 am to complete the whole 1 day Highlands road trip itinerary.
Take a quick stop at the Kelpies
The first stop of the day is the Kelpies – 30-metre sculptures of metal horses. It may be still dark if you’re sticking to the winter itinerary, but worth a quick visit and they light up too!
If you leave Edinburgh after 7 am, you should probably skip this stop. It’s not actually part of the Highlands, but just on the way. It’s possible to see the Kelpies from the main road, so you won’t miss out if you don’t stop.
Time of arrival at the Kelpies: 8 am (spend 10 minutes here)
Pass by Stirling Castle
Stirling Castle is a lovely day trip from Edinburgh. It is definitely worth more time to visit, which is why we skipped it on this itinerary. If you look out the window, you’ll see the beautiful castle on the right of the main road!
If you do have time to visit on a summer trip: Here’s where to book tickets and find prices on their website.
Time of passing by Stirling Castle: 8:40 am
Optional stop: Balloch Castle and Viewpoint
We’re adding Balloch Castle to this itinerary for those travelling outside of winter. (sorry about that!) We promise this Scottish Highlands itinerary gets more interesting for those travelling in winter, these are just a few stops you can do on the way. There’s a Co-op supermarket in the area if needed.
With more daylight, this is a lovely stop on the way to the Highlands and it’s the beginning of the beautiful views of Loch Lomond! It’s a short paved walk through the trees to reach the castle and lake. Find out more information here!
Time of arrival passing by Balloch Castle: 9:30 am
Stretch your legs at Cameron house
Cameron House is only a short drive down the road but has more impressive views of Loch Lomond. We stopped here as you don’t have to walk to see the views from the car park!
There’s also a seaplane that you can take to explore the views even more, although we’re not sure if they’re only for hotel guests. Spend around 15 minutes here at Cameron House!
Loch Lomond is a freshwater loch in between the highlands and lowlands of Scotland. So you’re pretty much at the beginning of the Highlands where this itinerary really gets exciting!
Time of arrival at the Cameron House: 9:35 am (spend 15 minutes here)
Wander around Luss
The next stop is a small and cosy village named Luss. Luss is known for being one of the most beautiful villages in Scotland, and its backdrop is the impressive Ben Lomond!
It only takes 10 minutes to drive here, so you should aim to arrive at 10 am! We spent around 30 minutes here which is on the longer side if you’re in a rush, but the village and the views of the loch with the mountains were lovely!
There is a small parking fee here (from 50p) and a few cafes to grab a drink for the road.
Time of arrival at Luss: 10 am (spend 25 minutes here)
See the views at the Inveruglas Pyramid
Next up on this 1 day Highlands road trip is a visit to Inveruglas Pyramid! Carry on driving north up Loch Lomond and you’ll find signs and a car park to pull over.
The pyramid is a tall viewing platform that gives you even more incredible views of the lake. It’s only a short walk from the car park and it’ll be your last stop for viewing the lake on this itinerary. It’s a 15-minute drive from Luss along the scenic road.
There’s another small parking fee here (from 50p).
Time of arrival at Inveruglas Pyramind: 10:40 am (spend 10 minutes here)
A quick walk to the Falls of Falloch
If you’re after something a little different on the Scottish Highlands road trip from Edinburgh, then Falls of Falloch is it! It’s the easiest waterfall to visit on this route, as it’s near the road. It’s a 15-minute drive from the previous stop and there’s a free car park too!
The waterfall itself is pretty cool, although on the smaller side! It’s a short walk from the car park and won’t take too long to visit. When we visited, there were locals having a BBQ at -5°C which gave the falls a great atmosphere!
Time of arrival at Falls of Falloch: 11:05 am (spend 20 minutes here)
Appreciate the scenery (The most scenic part of the drive – A82)
As soon as you’ve reached Crianlarich, the views become even more incredible than they already were!
Throughout Tyndrum, to Glencoe, the drive is covered in mountains, windy roads and amazing views. There are plenty of roadside parking spots if you want to stop and appreciate the views of Scottish nature.
- Lochan na h-Achlaise view point
- Loch Ba Viewpoint
- Rannoch Moor Viewpoint
Time of starting the drive: around 11:40 am
Take in the views at Loch Tulla Viewpoint
Loch Tulla Viewpoint is also within the scenic drive we’ve mentioned above, but it deserved its own title on this Scottish Highlands itinerary. The views here blew us away! We couldn’t believe that this was the United Kingdom and felt so lucky to experience the snowy topped mountains too.
Here’s the location for Loch Tulla Viewpoint our favourite stop on this 1 day Highlands road trip from Edinburgh! Definitely pull over when you pass by!
Time of arrival at Loch Tulla Viewpoint: 12:40 (spend 20 minutes here)
Also, check out our trip to Wales where we hiked Snowdon and stayed in a bell tent!
Explore Glencoe
Glencoe is one of the most picturesque places in the Scottish Highlands! When trying to plan this itinerary, our original route was to do a 1 day Edinburgh to Glencoe road trip but then we added a sneaky spot to the end!
It has beautiful hikes, stunning waterfalls and incredible views. It’s an area that would be great to stay the night if we had more time in a different season. The scenery in Glencoe will make all of your Scottish Highlands dreams come true!
If you’re visiting in summer there are a lot of hikes to choose from – we recommend the Lost Valley hike as it’s less than 2 hours but it is pretty challenging. Here are a few stops or things to do whilst you’re in Glencoe.
- Glencoe Mountain Resort (a Scottish ski resort!
- James Bond Skyfall Road (off route!)
- Glencoe Viewpoint (location here!)
- The Meeting of Three Waters (location)
- The Three Sisters Peak
- Glencoe Visitor Centre – National Trust for Scotland
At the end of this scenic drive, you’ll reach Glencoe Village, spend 10 minutes here on a short walk before hitting the road again to the next destination.
Time of arrival at Glencoe Village: 2 pm (spend 20 minutes here)
Admire Ben Nevis
After leaving Glencoe, it’s a 30-minute drive to the area of Fort Wiliam where we found one of the best viewpoints to view Ben Nevis.
Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in Scotland and the United Kingdom (which is pretty impressive)! It’s one of the best hikes in the UK and will take up a whole day which is why we couldn’t climb it on this trip!
We don’t have time to get any closer on this Highlands road trip from Edinburgh so a viewpoint will do for now. With a bit of extra daylight in the summer, it’s totally possible to go for a short hike in the area.
As we were driving to our next destination we pulled into Corpach to try and find a view of Ben Nevis and it was perfect! Here’s the exact location, so you can see this Ben Nevis Viewpoint too!
Time of arrival to the Ben Nevis viewpoint: 3 pm (spend 15 minutes here)
Visit the Glenfinnan Viaduct (Harry Potter Bridge)
This is our extra stop on this Highlands winter itinerary and it was definitely worth it! If you’re a Harry Potter fan this has to be on your list! It’s a 20-minute drive from Corpach and it’ll be your last stop in the daylight.
Glenfinnan Viaduct is an iconic bridge that was featured in the Harry Potter films! Many Potter fans travel far to visit this bridge, which is why its nickname is the Harry Potter Bridge.
It takes around 15 minutes to walk from the car park to the viewpoints at Glenfinnan Viaduct. In the winter there may be a lot of ice (there was for us) so be very careful when walking around the area.
Note: Unfortunately the Jacobite steam train only runs from early April to late October, so we missed out in the winter. When it does run, it usually passes over the bridge at 10.45 am or 3.00 pm but double-check for an accurate timetable in 2024, when it’s released!
As the Glenfinnan Viaduct is owned by the Scottish National Trust, it’s free to enter, but you have to pay £3.50 for parking.
Time of arrival at Glenfinnan Viaduct: 3:30 pm (spend 40 minutes here)
We ran out of daylight at this point, but an additional stop is to visit the Glenfinnan Monument – National Trust for Scotland just across the road. The views looked incredible, especially at sunset!
Spend the evening at Fort William
It’s now the final part of this Scottish Highlands itinerary. After seeing a famous Harry Potter filming location, head back to Fort William and explore the high street. It’s probably going to be dark at this point if you’re travelling in the winter, but most shops will be open until 5 pm or later.
Browse in some shops and find some dinner before making the long drive back to Edinburgh. There are also a lot of supermarkets if you need more snacks!
Fort William is a lovely little town near the base of the highest peak of the UK – Ben Nevis! It is the perfect place to stay for hiking in the area and you’ll notice there’s lots of accommodation here. If you wanted to extend your 1 day Highlands Itinerary by another day this is the best place to stay.
Time of arrival at Fort William: 4:40 pm
If you’re a fan of Harry Potter, a trip to London is a must if you’re exploring the UK!
Driving back to Edinburgh from Fort William
The drive back to Edinburgh from Fort William takes around 3 hours and you can go a few different ways. Check Google Maps to find your preferred route. We chose to drive down the alternative side of Loch Lomond, but as it was dark we couldn’t see the lake.
The bonus of it being dark was that the night sky was lit up with stars! Thankfully it was a clear night and we spotted several shooting stars before reaching the Scottish capital again.
When we arrived back in Edinburgh we had to return our rental car by 10 pm to the owner of the vehicle. We picked up the car at 10 pm the previous day which worked out well as we could leave as early as we wanted.
1 day Highlands Itinerary from Edinburgh Roadtrip Conclusion
Overall we would recommend this route and this Highlands trip to anyone! The day is very long, but totally worth it if you only have time for a day trip to the Highlands from Edinburgh.
If you’re doing this trip in the winter (like we did), you’ll be battling with that sunlight along the way, which is why we added times to this travel guide. The scenery is absolutely stunning all year round and in December we experienced snow which made the trip even more magical.
An alternative plan if you don’t want to spend most of the day driving is to do an Edinburgh to Loch Lomond road trip turning around at Crianlarich and driving back to Edinburgh on the other side of Loch Lomond. However we have to admit, the scenery is incredible after Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park.
1 day Highlands Itinerary from Edinburgh Roadtrip Breakdown
This road trip takes you from Edinburgh to beautiful places such as Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park, Glencoe, Glenfinnan Viaduct and Fort William.
Other ways to get around Scotland
Train – Visit the highlands on The West Highland Line and book your tickets in advance on Trainline. There are also trains from Edinburgh Waverley Station to Inverness (near Loch Ness).
Flight – There are airports dotted around the Scottish Highlands such as Edinburgh, Glasgow, Inverness, Aberdeen and more! This may help you plan your trip if you want to visit a certain part of the Highlands and rent a car. Check prices on Skyscanner.
Car – Find your rental car here – Discover Cars or Turo.
Switch to sustainable travel products before visiting Edinburgh! Check out our
Eco Friendly Travel Product Guide!
How to get to Edinburgh
Flight – The best way to get to Edinburgh from outside of the UK is by flying! Check prices on Skyscanner. To get to Old Town from Edinburgh Airport is a 30-minute tram ride or you can pre-book a bus ride in advance here.
Train – One of the best ways to get to Edinburgh from within the UK is by train. You’ll arrive at the main station – Edinburgh Waverley in the heart of the city. Find your tickets here on Trainline and book in advance if you can!
Bus – Another way to get to Edinburgh from within the UK is by bus! You’ll arrive at Edinburgh Bus Station. A few companies you can use are Megabus, National Express and Flixbus. Book in advance for the best prices!
What to pack for a 1 day Highlands Road Trip
Whichever season you’re travelling in – be prepared for any weather! In the summer it can be windy, rainy and cold, and in the winter it can snow! Here’s a few clothing items you should pack:
- A Rain Jacket
- Hiking Boots
- A hat, scarf & gloves (in winter)
- Thermals (in winter)
Here are a few travel essentials to bring on your trip:
- Rain Mac in a Bag and a Backpack Cover are essential for any Scotland trip!
- Anker Power Bank – our favourite power bank!
- Stainless Steel Water Bottle – save plastic!
- Joby GorillaPod 3K Pro Kit – bring a lightweight tripod on your trip, to capture beautiful photos. We love our Joby GorillaPod and use it for our Sony A600. There’s also a Joby Phone Tripod.
- Mosquito Repellent – bring this, if you’re travelling to Scotland in the summer!
Where to stay in Scotland
This itinerary is based around starting your trip in Edinburgh and spending 1 day in the Scottish Highlands. We’ve included hotel and hostel recommendations in Edinburgh, Glencoe and Fort William, just in case you decide to spend the night on your road trip!
Where to stay in Edinburgh
If you’re on a short trip, we recommend staying near Old Town as it’s close to the train station and many things to do in Edinburgh! Here’s a few recommendations:
High Street Hostel $ – The best hostel in Edinburgh! – Find the link on Booking.com here!
Balmore Guest House $-$$ – A lovely guest house with private rooms and bathrooms – Find the link on Booking.com here!
Leonardo Royal Hotel Edinburgh $$ – A beautiful modern hotel – Find the link on Booking.com here!
Also read our Edinburgh 3 Day Itinerary to plan your tip!
Where to stay in Glencoe
Heart of Glencoe Holidays $ – Beautiful hostel with many facilities! – Find the link on Booking.com here!
The Isles of Glencoe Hotel $$ – A lovely double room! – Find the link on Booking.com here!
Where to stay in Fort William
Innisfree Guest House $$ – A cosy guesthouse with private rooms! – Find the link on Booking.com here!
The Hobbit House $$ – A unique 1-bed apartment! – Find the link on Booking.com here!
Other Day Trips from Edinburgh
- Edinburgh: Loch Ness, Glencoe & the Scottish Highlands Tour – Check for spaces online!
- Looking for a longer Scottish Highlands trip without renting a car? Here’s a 3-Day Isle of Skye and The Highlands Tour!
- Visit Glasglow, another beautiful city in Scotland. Take the train or bus and spend the day!
Planning a Highlands Road Trip Itinerary
Here are some helpful links to plan your 1 day Highlands road trip from Edinburgh!
- Check for any public holidays on your date of visit (Find out when the public holidays are)!
- Book your flights – check Skyscanner prices!
- Book your accommodation on Hostelworld here or on Booking.com here!
Don’t forget about Travel Insurance! – SafetyWing Nomad Insurance
SafetyWing is a totally flexible monthly-rolling travel insurance to help you stay safe on your trip anywhere in the world, including Edinburgh, Scotland. Find out more here!
Is a 1 day Highlands Road Trip from Edinburgh worth it?
Yes! If you’re in Edinburgh for a few days, a one-day road trip is all you need to get a taste of the Scottish Highlands! Of course, it’s better to have more time to explore this region, but hopefully, this guide inspired you that it’s also possible to see some amazing spots in one day!
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- 1 Day York Itinerary & 1 Day Cambridge Itinerary
- Day Trip to Bristol & Free things to do in Bristol
- Browse more Scottish posts!
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That’s the end of our The Best 1 day Highlands Road Trip from Edinburgh: 2024! Have a great trip exploring the Scottish Highlands and if you need any more help planning – send us a message on Instagram (@thesunrisedreamers) or leave a comment below!
