The BEST Scotland Itinerary: 10 Days

Looking to spend 10 days in Scotland? You’re in the right place! This is an easy-to-follow Scotland itinerary for 10 days.

It was very challenging to fit everything there is to see in Scotland into my 7 day Scotland itinerary, so I’m glad that you have more time than this to spend in Scotland.

Ten days gives you more time to enjoy the amazing places there are to see around this beautiful and unique country.

Don’t get me wrong – there’s so much to see in Scotland, that even 10 days will leave you wishing you had more time.

We planned a 2-week visit, and even that was barely enough. I spent a whole year researching this trip, and even towards the end found more and more little gems and things worth seeing.

I will show you in this itinerary how to get the most out of your 10 days and see all the best things.

Scotland Itinerary 10 Days: A Snapshot

There are many ways to do Scotland in 10 days, but this itinerary is the one that I created and used, and it’s a great way to explore Scotland in a good order.

Edinburgh (Days 1 and 2)

Day 1: Explore the stunning old city in Edinburgh, one of the most beautiful cities in Europe. Visit the Edinburgh Castle (buy tickets well in advance, as they do fill up especially for popular dates and time slots) and walk the famous Royal Mile which is within walking distance of the castle.

Hidden gem alert: Don’t miss the hidden gems in old town of Edinburgh. As you walk the Royal Mile, really take your time. See a few very cute and instagrammable sites – Dunbars Close Garden, Bakhouse Close (for Outlander fans), the green ivy heart inside Chessels Court. The Holyroad Palace has very unique architecture which is worth getting a few photos.

*I’ve limited the time in Edinburgh, since there are only 10 days and I think they’re best spend taking in the nature of the highlands and smaller villages. However, if you can spend an extra day or two in Edinburgh, you won’t regret it!*

Other things to do in Edinburgh (if you have more than a day)

• Do a Harry Potter walking tour, (usually 90 minutes long) which shows you parts of the city you may not have scene and explains their significance to the influence of the Harry Potter books
• Take a hike up Arthur’s Seat, which gives you an incredible view of the city. See a map of all the routes here (shortest one is 1 hour but more challenging, easier ones take longer because they’re less steep.)
• Holyrood House Palace is an incredible piece of architecture and was where the king once lives. Get tickets here.
• Dynamic Earth (with or without the planetarium option) is at the bottom of Arthur’s Seat and is pretty cool, especially if you’re in Edinburgh with kids!

Day 2: Check out of your Edinburgh accommodation and drive to Pitrochy. The entire driving time is about 90 mins (. but there are several stops to make along the way.

There are so many things to see between Edinburgh and Pitrochy. I wouldn’t advise stopping at all of them necessarily, but choose one or two that would stand out for you.

• Blackness Castle, a 1400s fortress which was used in Outlander as Fort William
• Midhope Castle (also for Outlander fans.) This is an outside visit only, as the castle is ruined. Tickets are needed in advance
• The Kelpies – two stunning metal horse heads, a playground on site, with a cafe and gift shop
• Stirling Castle. You can visit the inside and outside, it’s a highly worthwhile castle that we put at the top of our list after reading about it. It’s a real royal castle where kings and queens once lived; it’s where Mary Queen of Scotts was crowned Queen of Scotland as a baby less than a year old.
• Doune Castle (for Outlander and Game of Thrones fans) used as Winterfell, and as Castle Leoch. It’s in ruins, but you can still visit the outside of it. You need tickets

Pro Tip: If you’re planning on squeezing lots of castles into your 10 days in Scotland, then I’d consider getting the Explore Pass. You still need to reserve a spot at the castles, but it covers admission. It might be worth it if you’re planning to visit more than 2-3 castles on their list, which you can find here. (Btw, four of the castles on the list are options on this itinerary, so the pass might be worth it.)

Pitlochry (Days 2-4)

Pitlochry is a tourist town in the heart of the highlands. It’s very popular for visitors, and can be busy in the summer months.

Hidden gem alert: If you’re on a budget, you can save $100 per night by staying in the town of Blair Atholl, which is only a 10-minute drive from Pitrochy (which is what we decided to do.) If you want a really unique experience, there’s also an amazing castle hotel in the highlands, about x easy of Pitrochy.

Day 3: Explore downtown Pitlochry. Pitlochry has a lovely downtown centre. Take a walk along the main street and see many souvenir shops and restaurants.

Other things to do in and near Pitlochry:

• Check out a few lesser-known gems in Blair Atholl, 10 minutes away. If you’re a whiskey lover, check out Blair Atholl Distillery which makes their own blend called Bell’s Blend. There’s also the centuries-old Blair Watermill for tea and pastries (summer only)
• Visit the beautiful fairy-tale like Blair Castle, which is completely white (unlike other Scottish castles.) It’s near the town of Blair Atholl
• Take a short drive to marvel at Queen’s View, (just a stone’s throw from the Queen’s View visitor centre, which is a short drive from Pitrochy)

Feel like there’s not enough time in the Pitlochry area? If you’re flying out of Edinburgh, then we will be driving through here again if you follow this itinerary. Depending how flexible you are, you could also extend your time here by another night or two (may be worth it, depending how interested you area in the local attractions here.) We stay for 2 nights in Pitlochry, but wish we had more time.

Day 4: Check out of Pirtrochy and drive to Inverness (1 hour, and 40 min drive) but there may be a few places you want to stop along the way, as you’re driving through Cairgroom National Park.

Hidden gem alert: Stop at Cairgroom Herd along the way, where you can walk with wild reindeer -the only wild-roaming reindeer herd in the UK! This has to be booked in advance, as even for a hidden gem that not everyone knows about, it is getting quite popular. If not, at least explore the cute village of Glenmare nearby

Inverness (Days 4-6)

Inverness is a small city of only 50,000 people and is known as the capital of the Scottish Highlands. It’s one of the most beautiful coastal cities in the UK with important Scottish history

Day 5: Explore downtown Inverness. Check out the Leakey Bookstop, which is believed to be the cutest bookstore in the UK. If you’re interested in Scotland’s history, then head to Culloden Battlefield which is a 17-minute drive out of town.

Day 6: Check out of your accommodation in Inverness, and start driving south. If you’re interested, do a Loch Ness Boat cruise on your way out of town. The Loch Ness lake is located south of Inverness so it works well to do on the day you’re leaving the area.

Pro Tip: Loch Ness cruises are VERY popular, and need to be reserved in advance to get the ideal time that you want. We chose a 2-hour cruise with Jacobite Cruises that brought us to Urquhart Castle, which sits in ruins on the lake shore. It’s included with the cruise ticket, which might be a little annoying if you bought the Explore Pass but is still useful.

After the Loch Ness cruise, continue on to the Isle of Skye, which should take another 2 hours.

The main village on Isle of Skye is Portree, and you could stop there for lunch. (My favourite place is Cafe Arriba.) There are accommodations in Portree, but many other places to stay around the island which include:

• bed and breakfasts
• unique glamping experiences
• hotels

These types of accommodations are scattered all over the island, so it may be hard to narrow it down. We found a bed and breakfast on booking.com, called Achalochan House which we’d highly recommend if it’s available!

Isle of Skye (Days 6-8)

Isle of Skye is often called one of the most beautiful places in Scotland. It has the most dramatic scenery; a rugged landscape with mountains, lakes and and rocky ocenside cliffs

Day 7 & 8: There are so many things to do on Isle of Skye, so you’ll have to narrow it down.

• A hike at Fairy Glen, 30 min drive north of the main town, Portee. There are several hikes to choose from, some easy and some more challenging. The easiest one takes about an hour, and if you’re brave enough you can go to the top of the Fairy Tower. It costs £2 for 2 hours in their lot
• Staffin Dinosaur Museum, located near Fairy Glen Hike, and open between 8am and 4pm. Very small, and has fossils of dinosaurs that inhabited the area long before humans did. Website is under construction, so I’m not sure if it’s closing or not.
• Pony Experience with Isle of Skye Trekking & Therapy Experience. A bit pricey, but a special experience especially if you’re travelling with kids
• Fairy Pools hike – (40 mins south of Portee) the hike takes about an hour, and will bring you to some stunning waterfalls and landscapes. This is a popular one, so you may try to aim for early morning or later afternoon as the lot can fill up. See info on visiting here.

Depending on how strict you are with the 10 day itinerary, I’d probably recommend packing up and checking out of Isle of Skye accommodations on day 8 or 9 so that you can start making your way south. There are a few awesome things to see along the way between Skye and Glasgow/Edinburgh

Fort William (Days 9-10)

Day 9: Depending on your exact schedule, this may be busy day of driving. I recommend driving from Isle of Skye to the historic town of Fort William (2.5 hours of driving time, depending on where you are on Skye.)

I recommend choosing the slightly long route that takes you through Glenfinnan. This gives you incredible views of the Jacobite Rail Tracks which were used in the Harry Potter film! It’s also a good pit stop, as there’s a cafe, toilets on site, and scenic views.

From Glenfinnan, it’s only another 30-minute drive to get to Fort William.

Once you’re in Fort William, you could either simply pass through or you could stay here for the night as there are quite a few cool things to do here.

The most obvious thing to do in Fort William is the famous Jacobite Steam Train. This sells out months in advance and takes you through dramatic scenery. You can book either round trip or one way, but round trip likely makes more sense for this itinerary. There are first class and standard class tickets, but standard sell out much faster because they’re affordable lol.

Day 10: If you stayed over in Fort William, then you can continue on to Glasgow or Edinburgh (wherever you intend to fly out of – both are 2-3 hours from Fort William, with Glasgow being closer.)

The final leg of your trip: If you’re flying out of Glasgow, then I recommend a stop in a village called Luss at Loch Lomond from Fort William, which is less than 2 hours. If you fly out of Edinburgh, then you’ll be driving through the Pitlochry area again to get to the airport from Fort William, so you can stop at anything you missed that you didn’t see last time.

Scotland 10-Day Itinerary FAQ

Here are the most commonly asked questions about visiting Scotland in 10 days

Is 10 days too long in Scotland?

10 days is definitely not too long in Scotland; in my opinion, its just barely enough time to fit all the things you’ll want to do in. Ten days if you want to see most of the highlights is just enough time. You will feel slightly rushed trying to fit everything into Scotland in 10 days, but it’s definitely doable. If you’re travelling with kids, I would try to push for more time (even another day or two) so that it is less rushed.

How to do Scotland in 10 days?

There are many ways to do Scotland in only 10 days and there isn’t one ‘right way.’ But if it’s your first time visit, you should absolutely prioritize Edinburgh, the highlands, Isle of Skye, Fort William. If you’re a Harry Potter fan, you should make a stop at the Glenfinnan Visitor Centre to see the famous railway, and ride the Jacobite Train if budget and time allow.

How long is a good trip to Scotland?

A good first trip to Scotland is between 10-14 days. You need at least that to be able to see and experience all the highlights, as well as a few hidden gems. You can do Scotland in less time, but you may have to skip out on a few of the main things to do.

Final Thoughts on 10 Days in Scotland

I hope that this 10-day Scotland itinerary has simplified your trip planning and saved you lots of time. I spent almost a year researching our trip to Scotland, and every time I looked into things, I found more and more possibilities. Scotland is an incredible place and if you have even a day or two longer to spare, I would try to spend more time than just 10 days!