A classic rail journey.

Advantages: A good variety of great scenery. An interesting journey for rail enthusiasts or scenery lovers.
Disadvantages: Not so good in poor weather. Not many round trips possible in 1 day.

...for mooring of yachts & other pleasure craft. Soon the train passes by a request stop at Duncraig, no more than a tiny platform serving a former school and more recently the private residence of an extended family who moved here from England and were the subject of a TV documentary. A couple of miles further on is Plockton - which also has a TV connection. It was the location of the TV series "Hamish Macbeth" which followed the fictional escapades of the local "bobby". The village is a very popular stop for tourists as it is very picturesque. From here to the terminus at Kyle of Lochalsh the line snakes round headlands and bays. As you near the end of the journey it gives a good view of the famous Skye Bridge which for a time was the most expensive bridge crossing in Europe at more than £5 for a car. More recently the toll was a abolished...

Mikter 17.01.2007 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of The Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh railway, Inverness

Arguably the most scenic railway line in the UK

Advantages: Impressive scenery
Disadvantages: Cold carriages, weather can be a factor in spoiling views, not many services

......

graeme10 10.01.2009 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of The Inverness to Kyle of Lochalsh railway, Inverness

The Road to the Isles

Advantages: Nothing compares
Disadvantages: Price of fuel and toll charges!

...You're in Inverness, right? The gateway to the Highlands. Inverness is also the gateway to the West. Take the Road to the Isles, if you want to see Scotland at its spectacular best. Take the A87 down Loch Ness side via Drumnadrochit to Invermoriston. Don't be tempted to stop at anything saying "Monster" or "Souvenir" unless you're into tat, but give Urquhart Castle a visit if you've time. Bear right at Invermoriston and follow the signs to Kyle of Lochalsh. You'll pass the Cluanie Dam on your left - it may not look much but it powers the biggest Hydro-Electric scheme in the country. And the dam itself is hollow, and it leaks - I know, I've been inside it and it's scary. Then the Five Sisters of Kintail - an impressive mountain range which you'll recognise by looking to your left. Believe me, you don't need a map reference...

Aspen 15.12.2000 (09.12.2000) · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of The West Coast (Scotland)

The Only Pub In Scotland Without Tennents Lager

Advantages: Nice food, close to Eilean Donan
Disadvantages: NO TENNeNTS LAGER

...On our recent trip to the Skye and Lochalsh area, my parents and I ate at the Dornie Hotel twice, the first time by choice and the second because the place we intended to go to was closed - the fact we went back indicates that it wasn't bad the first time. Dornie is a small village located on the shore of Loch Duich, in North West Scotland. The famous Eilean Donan Castle is located in Loch Duich, right beside Dornie, so I'd imagine it gets a lot of passing trade from this major attraction. Saying that, the village only has two pubs and a small shop... The Dornie Hotel is the slightly smarter looking of the two pubs, but don't let that statement fool you - it's still more or less just a village pub. The lounge bar is clean and well maintained, but not very fashionable and I suspect hasn't bee modernised since the 1980s. It is...

eilidhcatriona 14.10.2009 (15.10.2009) · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of Dornie Hotel, Dornie

THE MISTY ISLE (Eilean a'Cheo) ISLE OF SKYE

Advantages: Tranquility; breathtaking scenery; friendly islanders
Disadvantages: Wet and windy or Midgies - take your pick!

..."'The Misty Isle' as the Isle of Skye is affectionately known (the Gaelic name is Eilean a' Cheo - pronounced Ellen a Kee-ow) is the largest of the Inner Hebridean Islands. The island lies about a mile off the north-west of Scotland. Grab yourself a map, and if you live in the south of England, move your finger up the map following the coastline, up through the North of England, through the Scottish borders, up, up, up?. Wait! Stop! See, just to the left at the very edge of the coastline in the Highlands of Scotland you will see a tiny place called Kyle of Lochalsh. This is where, up until 1995, you would catch the ferry to the Isle of Skye. Then they built a bridge and tourism dropped dramatically because the tolls were very, very expensive at £5.70 each way. In 2005, the tolls were finally abolished and since then the island has...

Louizalass 17.01.2008 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Isle of Skye (Scotland)

The Beautiful Misty Island!

Advantages: Breathtaking Sceneryo of Mountains and Coastline
Disadvantages: The Midges

...wide at its narrowest point creating 350 miles of spectacular and stunning coastline. It is accessed via the Kyle of Lochalsh on the mainland which can be reached in many ways by road or rail. These days the island is connected by a road bridge from the Kyle of Lochalsh but when I was a child it could only be reached by a short ferry crossing from the Kyle of Lochalsh to Kylesku. Approaching Skye by road takes you through some of the most breathtaking scenery in the whole of the British Isles and I would definitely recommend the approach from Fort William or Inverness. The approach from Fort William will take you along the shores of Lochalsh and past the famous Eilean Donan Castle which no calendar depicting the beauty of Scotland would be complete without, if you take this route you will enter Lochalsh at Cluanie, and drive through...

micksheff 08.08.2005 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Isle of Skye (Scotland)

SEAPROBE ATLANTIS - AN UNUSUAL BOAT TRIP

Advantages: very educational
Disadvantages: wet

...SeaProbe Atlantis is a glass bottom boat based in Kyle of Lochalsh which is where the Sky Bridge joins the mainland. The boat has a unique viewing deck with windows to look at the seabed. We went on it while staying on Skye recently and really enjoyed the trip. BOAT TRIPS AND BOOKING +++++++++++++++++++++++ There are three main trips that the Seaprobe does: The 1 Hour Trip - this features a trip under the Skye bridge and around the harbour and you also sail around Seal Island to look for seals and otters. Cost: Adults £12.50 Children £ 6.25 Infant £3.00 The 1.25 Hour Trip - this features a visit to a World War 2 shipwreck, a working salmon farm, Seal island and underwater kelp forests. Cost Adults £14.50 Children £ 7.25 Infant £ 3.50 The 2 Hour Trip incorporates both of the above trips and is...

kismet 13.09.2006 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average helpful
Review of SeaProbe Atlantis

Scotland's Most Charming Castle!

Advantages: Beautiful Setting, Lots of History, Fully Restored
Disadvantages: Quite Remote, Admission Charges, Closed In Winter

...Anyone who has driven along the A87 in the Scottish Highlands towards the Kyle of Lochalsh and the Isle of Skye will have seen Eilean Donan Castle. Even if you have never been anywhere near this remote part of North West Scotland there is still a pretty good chance that you may have still seen this Castle, because Eilean Donan Castle is officially recognised as the most photographed Castle in Scotland. This Castle stands on the shores of Loch Duich, at a point close to where it meets two other Lochs, Loch Long and Loch Alsh. As well as earning the title of the most photographed Castle in Scotland, it is also often referred to as the most romantic Castle in Scotland too. The setting for this Castle is stunning to say the least, in fact it is almost dream like. Some of my earliest childhood memories involve Eilean Donan Castle...

micksheff 27.05.2007 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Eilean Donan Castle

Murder in the Highlands

Advantages: Amusing, highly entertaining
Disadvantages: Some will find it silly, not brilliantly written

...-back atmosphere of the book, providing an almost conversational tone. I can't imagine Beaton ever winning any literary prizes, but I think the entertainment value of the book more than makes up for it. What I love most of all about this book is the descriptions of the area in which it is set. I don't know exactly where Beaton meant it to be - Lochdubh is a fictional place - but it always reminds me of the West coast of Scotland where I spent many holidays as a child, and certainly in the TV series, it is set around the Kyle of Lochalsh. The remoteness of the area is well-described, but most of all, it is the beauty of the area that stands out - M C Beaton clearly has a great fondness for the area. Anyone who watched the TV series when it was on may be disappointed at the differences between the book and the series. Hamish himself is very...

sunmeilan 28.11.2008 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Death of a Gentle Lady (Hamish Macbeth Mystery) - M. C. Beaton

Bring back Hamish!

Advantages: Quietly funny, very entertaining
Disadvantages: Only six episodes

..., for me, is the gentle humour that is constantly bubbling under the surface - each time I watch it, I notice something else that makes me laugh, and this keeps the series fresh for me. The series is filmed around the Kyle of Lochalsh, and we are therefore treated to some spectacular landscapes. I have spent many a holiday around the area, and so it is a real pleasure to see such beautiful scenery. I can imagine that the series did the tourist industry in the area a lot of good. It does, however, seem to make out that the Scottish are a little inbred at times, and I do wonder if some could be offended by it - certainly a Scottish friend of mine refuses to watch the show for this reason. There are no special features along with the six episodes over two discs, which is a shame, but not that surprising. There is an option to add English...

sunmeilan 25.11.2008 · Read review
Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful
Review of Hamish Macbeth - Series 2 (DVD)