Scottish Highlands in 7 Days: Ultimate Road Trip & Nature Guide

Fly into Inverness Airport (INV) or drive from Edinburgh (3 hours on the A9). Inverness is the capital of the Scottish Highlands — a city of 47,000 on the River Ness, with the Cairngorms to the south and the Moray Firth to the north. Start at Inverness Castle (free exterior) — a 19th-century red sandstone castle on a cliff above the river, with views of the city and the Beauly Firth. Then the Victorian Market (free) — a covered market built in 1870, with independent shops and the best coffee in Inverness at Coffee Affair on Academy Street.

Drive south along the A82 to Loch Ness (20 minutes). Loch Ness is 37km long, 230m deep — the largest body of fresh water in Britain by volume. The Loch Ness Centre in Drumnadrochit (£15) tells the full story of the Nessie legend. Urquhart Castle (£12) — a 13th-century castle on the shore of Loch Ness, blown up by its own garrison in 1692 to prevent it falling to the Jacobites. Return to Inverness via the Black Isle — a peninsula north of Inverness with the Chanonry Point dolphin watching spot (free, best at high tide).

Dinner at The Mustard Seed on Fraser Street — a restaurant in a converted church on the River Ness, with the best Scottish cuisine in Inverness. The Highland venison and the Shetland salmon are exceptional. Or Rocpool on Ness Walk — contemporary Scottish cuisine with a 200-bottle wine list.