2-Week West Highlands & Isles Road Trip 🚗🏔️🏝️

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This is one of my favourite road trips in the UK. It takes you around the West Highlands in Scotland and the beautiful isles of Skye and Mull.

🚌 Don’t Want To Drive Or Plan The Trip Yourself?

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I highly recommend checking out the West Highlands, Iona, Mull & the Isle of Skye Rabbie’s tour

It hits all the highlights of this itinerary and is a local Scottish company I’ve used many times and their tours and guides are always exceptional.

Table of Contents

2-Week West Highlands & Isles Road Trip Itinerary Summary

📅 Day 1: Glencoe

📍 Lost Valley / Coire Gabhail Hike (moderate–hard, 4km, 2–3 hours)

📅 Day 2: Glencoe

📍 Devil’s Staircase Hike

📅 Day 3: Fort William Area

📍 Ben Nevis (if weather allows)

📍 Neptune’s Staircase

📍 Steall Waterfall

📍 Ben Nevis Distillery

📅 Day 4: Glenfinnan

📍 Glenfinnan Viaduct

🚂 Optional: Jacobite Train from Fort William to Mallaig and back

📅 Day 5: Isle of Skye

📍 Eilean Donan Castle

📍 Fairy Pools Hike

📍 Portree Harbour (dinner)

📅 Day 6: Isle of Skye

📍 Kilt Rock

📍 Old Man of Storr

📅 Day 7: Isle of Skye

📍 Quiraing

📍 The Fairy Glen

📅 Day 8: Isle of Skye

📍 Dunvegan Castle & Gardens

📍 Neist Point

📅 Day 9: Travel to Isle of Mull

⛴️ Ferry from Skye to Mallaig

🚗 Drive to Kilchoan

⛴️ Ferry to Mull

📍 Tobermory (town centre & lighthouse walk)

📅 Day 10: Isle of Mull (West Coast)

📍 Calgary Bay

📍 Scenic drive

📍 MacQuarie’s Mausoleum

📅 Day 11: Isle of Mull (South)

📍 Lochbuie Standing Stones

📍 Lochbuie

📍 Moy Castle

📅 Day 12: Iona & Staffa

📍 Fionnphort

⛴️ Boat trip to Fingal’s Cave, Staffa & Iona

📅 Day 13: Oban

📍 Explore Oban town

Total Distance: 🚗 Approx. 555 miles
Recommended Time: ⌛ 14 days with travel days

📸 Photos & Info are located further down. Keep scrolling to see all these places. ⬇️

This road trip is perfect for hiking enthusiasts, island explorers, and anyone wanting to discover the dramatic landscapes of the Scottish Highlands and islands. 🏞️🐑⛴️

Please note that this is a bit of an intense trip with a lot of hiking so if you’d prefer a more relaxed road trip, you should remove some elements.

Get the FREE 2-Week West Highlands & Isles Road Trip Map!

🚗 Need a car for this road trip?

If you don’t have your own car, I’d really recommend renting one — it gives you the flexibility to stop at each waterfall and explore at your own pace.

I usually use DiscoverCars to compare prices and find the best deals across different rental companies.

👉 It’s really easy to use:

Compare multiple providers in one place
Cheaper than booking direct
Free cancellation on most options
Their 3rd party insurance is a lot cheaper
They have a great customer service for claims (though I hope you won’t have to use it!

Check car rentals here

Additional Information & Highlights

📍 Glencoe

📍 Glencoe Lost Valley Hike

📍 Glencoe Devil’s Staircase Hike

📍 Fort William

📍 Ben Nevis

📍 Neptune’s Staircase

📍 Steall Falls

📍 Ben Nevis Distillery

📍 Glenfinnan Viaduct

📍 Address: Glenfinnan PH37 4LT

Featured in several Harry Potter movies with the Hogwarts Express.

💡 My Top Tip: Visit during April and October and time your visit so you can see the Jacobite train (which is the real life version of the Hogwarts Express) on the viaduct.

📍 Jacobite Steam Train

📍 Eilean Donan Castle 🏰

📍 Fairy Pools

📍 Portree

📍 Kilt Rock And Mealt Falls

📍 The Old Man of Storr

📍 The Quiraing

📍 The Fairy Glen

📍 Neist Point

📍 Dunvegan Castle & Gardens

Home of the chiefs of the clan MacLeod for over 800 years, Dunvegan Castle is the oldest continuously inhabited castle in Scotland.

🅿️ Free parking is available just across the road.

🎟️ Tickets can be booked on site or on the official website.

⌛ Opening dates: The castle is open from April to October

💡 My Top Tip: There is a lot of history with this castle and it’s a great place to learn about the clan and the history of the highlands. Don’t hesitate to ask the members of staff and volunteers some questions as they will tell you some fantastic stories.

❤️ I loved chatting with the staff and one of them mentioned some torture methods that were used and while I was pretty shocked by it, I thought it was very interesting to know especially since it’s not mentioned anywhere else. On a completely different note, I also love the rhododendron woodland trail. It felt very magical and looked like something out of Game of Thrones.

🐶 Dogs are allowed in the gardens but not in the castle.