Highlands Road Trip: Dunrobin

Visiting Glenmorangie Distillery, Dornoch, Dunrobin Castle, & Beauly, Scotland

It was early September when my husband and I embarked on our 10-day road trip from Edinburgh, Scotland up to the Highlands. So far, every place we had seen was amazing. We were nearly half-way through our trip when we made our farthest drive north along the NC500 tourist route up to Golspie. But, first, whisky;)

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An overview of our complete 10-Day Scottish Highlands Road Trip itinerary can be found here.

When you are in Scotland, you do as the Scottish do. That includes visiting at least one distillery amongst the various regions. The Glenmorangie Distillery in Tain fit our itinerary, but I was also super keen to taste test. The original plan was to do a tour towards the end of our day, but I waited too long to make our reservations. By the time I got around to it, the only opening was at 10am. So, that’s the way we started our day!

I was wide-eyed and in love with the location of Glenmorangie. It is right on Dornoch Firth. The views are *ah* stunning!

Above photos: Glenmorangie Distillery

The folks at Glenmorangie give a lovely tour of their distillery and explain the history of their business. Of course, the highlight of any whisky tour is tasting some of the rare productions. Several drams were provided as a part of the tour. There is also a bar and store where you can taste and purchase bottles to take home. Jason did not participate in the taste testing as he was driving. I lucked out and got his glass, which is why I was double-fisting it in the photo below.

Above photos: Glenmorangie Distillery

From Glenmorangie, we started driving north, crossing the Dornoch Firth Bridge. The roads start to feel a little different on the other side of the bridge, as if you’ve just taken a step away from civilization. Not really – but the population is lower, traffic goes down to one lane, and gas stations are far and few between.

Above photo: Dornoch Firth

We needed to stop somewhere on our way up to Golspie to eat lunch. Dornoch was en route and the perfect, charming Scottish village. We parked on High Street just opposite the Dornoch Cathedral. The cathedral was open to visitors, so we had a peek inside. It was definitely worth stopping to have look!

High Street, Dornoch

Above photos: Dornoch Cathedral

Above photo: Dornoch Castle Hotel on Castle Street

We spotted The Coach House Restaurant around the corner on Church Street and decided to give it a try. Like most of the other cafes where we lunched over the course of our trip, The Coach House served up comfort food in a cozy atmosphere. I was quite pleased to see fresh, steamed veggies on my plate, and later learned that the family that runs the restaurant are also local butchers and farmers.

Above photos: The Coach House Restaurant

After a quick stop at the Harry Gow Bakery to pickup a stash of shortbread cookies for the car, we were off again! Less than 20 minutes later, we arrived at Dunrobin Castle in Golspie.

Dunrobin Castle is a complete fairy tale setting. From the towering conical spires to the perfectly manicured gardens and sweeping views of the Moray Firth, this is a place that makes you dream.

Above photos: The Gate House & Driveway at Dunrobin Castle

Our entrance to the castle was part of our Historic Houses membership. The interiors are authentic and beautifully showcased as you walk from room-to-room. From the windows, you can look out to the gardens and sea.

Above photos: Dunrobin Castle and Gardens

The gardens were past their summertime peak, but still so lovely. The highlight of our visit was the falconry display though. If you are able, time your visit to take advantage of this opportunity to see these amazing birds of prey. It was such a treat!

Above photos: The Gardens & Falconry at Dunrobin Castle

We had one more stop before heading to our hotel – Beauly Priory. The church and grounds were once a Valliscaulian monastic community dating back to 1230. There are really interesting funerary monuments from the 1400s that will make you pause as you consider how long ago that was. Queen Mary of Scots visited the Priory in 1564, as well as many other notable figures throughout history. While the church is in ruins, the grounds are well-maintained and very accessible.

Above photos: Beauly Priory

Tired and hungry, we got back in our rental car and set our GPS to our country house hotel for the night. We loved staying at the historic hotels during our trip while learning more about the history of the region and the families that built these grand homes. The Historic UK website is a great resource for finding accommodations all over Scotland.

Above photos: Loch Ness Country House Hotel

Next up: Continue reading about our Highlands road trip as we visit the mysterious Loch Ness and head west to Eilean Donan Castle and the Isle of Skye.

To continue to Day 5: Loch Ness, Urquhart Castle, and Eilean Donan, click here.