10 Scottish Highlands Photos Guaranteed To Inspire Your Travels

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Have you been to the Scottish Highlands yet?  If not, we need to fix that.  After you see these photos, you’ll be adding it to your bucket list, just you wait.  And these are all taken with a smart phone by the non-professional photographer likes of me and my husband.  Luckily, for photogenic sights like these, you don’t have to have one clue what you are doing.  If you are on the fence about taking that highlands tour, this just might sway your vote.

Now, group tours are not necessarily my favorite way to see a place.  I like to do things on my own and visit sites on my own time, and really don’t like being herded around on a schedule along with tons of other people.

That being said, this tour was the only way we could see the Highlands, as we didn’t rent a car for our trip. We booked with Rabbie’s out of Edinburgh, and did the Loch Ness, Glencoe, & the Highlands tour.  The company advertises their tours as being a minibus with only 16 people.  However, they don’t tell you that it’s just one bus in a fleet of about 6 that follow each other around all day.  It’s not the intimate experience you picture.  That being said, I’d still rather do a minibus tour than a larger bus tour.  At any rate, I think the below photos will speak for themselves on whether it was worth it.

Disclaimer: It was unusually sunny and dry the entire time we were in Scotland.  This is not a typical Scottish experience.  That could be good or bad depending on what you’re looking for.

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10 Stunning Scottish Highlands Photos

The absolutely gorgeous town of Callander

I never knew I needed to see Callander until we arrived in this quaint little town.  Although it is a bit of a tourist spot, I did not get an overly touristy vibe from this place.  Situated immediately south of the Highland Boundary Fault, it sits beneath those beautiful green crags in the distance giving it that dreamy look you see here.

Glencoe

Glencoe looks like something out of a painting, and it’s what you picture the Scottish Highlands should look like.  Lonely and vast.  Beautiful, yet scarred by dark events of its past.  I get chills thinking about it.

Fort William

Below is just one example of the types of scenery we passed on our Highlands tour.  I just wish we could of been out of the bus a bit more to truly feel the vibes of some of these places… Also, who else wants to live here and wake up to this view every morning?

The Three Sisters

The Three Sisters mountain range was named one of the best views in the UK in 2017.  I think you can see why…

Fort Augustus

With its sweeping views of Loch Ness, Fort Augustus is what made this trip for me.  Although a tourist destination, it’s so far north that it’s not a place most visitors to Great Britain can easily get to, and it wasn’t crowded at all.  Most people think of Nessie when they think of Loch Ness.  From now on, I’ll think of eating fish and chips next to the deepest dark blue water I’ve ever seen.

Scottish Highlands Mystery Location

So, to be honest, I have no clue where the heck in Scotland this is.  We stopped near here for a bathroom break on our way back towards Edinburgh, and my husband and I happened to wander down a path away from the restroom area.  We only saw a couple more people from our group who ventured this way, and I cannot understand why!  Look how beautiful this place was!  Where I come from, rest stops don’t exactly look quite this scenic.

Spean Bridge

Our last stop of the day was this scenic area near the Commando Memorial in Spean Bridge.   More mountains, more deep green forests, both still so beautiful.

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Woo!  That was one full day, that’s for sure.  So have I convinced you to start booking your trip here yet?  I’m already trying to figure out a way to get back here.  I don’t think I’d do a group tour the next time though.  The Scottish Highlands deserve several dedicated days of their own to really appreciate and discover their beauty, and it’s always better to explore at your own pace.

So what do you think?  Are you sold on visiting the Scottish Highlands?  Do you like doing group tours, or do you prefer to rent a car and see things on your own?  Share below!