Published on Oct, 2024
Just got back from Scotland, but wanted to make sure to write a review for this company and this tour. Having seen the big tour buses around taking loads of time to load and unload at each stop, we decided to splurge on a private tour for just me and my partner to maximize our time in the area. We were picked up at our hotel in a large Mercedes van by Ryan Forbes, the owner of the company. He’s amazing. He revealed the he was born and raised in Inverness, and knows the area extremely well. Based on the weather and our interests, he quickly put together a tour just for us. Ryan is extremely knowledgeable about the history of the area, and was able to easily answer any question I could think of. We saw all of the highlights of the big bus tours, plus were able to make side trips to see the outside of Culloden House (it’s currently a hotel), and a very cool waterfall that are not part of other tours. He even suggested a great lunch place in the charming village of Bealy which is a favorite with locals (and for good reason). He asked if we wanted to include some whisky tasting into our tour, but whisky isn’t our thing, so he just recalculated the tour on the fly and kept moving. There wasn’t a single moment of pausing or asking, “Hmmm, where should I take you next?” Ryan was especially keen to make sure we maximized and filled all of our allotted time and didn’t rush us back to our hotel early.
If you’re a big OUTLANDER fan, this is the tour to take if you’re coming to Inverness to see filming locations and get the history of the real Fraser family that the character Jamie Fraser is based on. Ryan even took us down a tiny road to the cemetery where the Fraser family mausoleum is. Not only that, but he got the big iron key that unlocks the door and took us inside the mausoleum and down into the burial chamber. You’re definitely not going to see that on a big bus tour.
If you’re traveling alone, or as part of a couple, or with small group up to six people, and have the means to do it, this private tour is absolutely the way to go. I’m going to make sure all of my travel agent friends know about Ryan and his company. This would be a great tour for families with kids because every stop is a quick in-and-out of the vehicle, as much time as you want at the site, then quickly on to the next one.
Apologies if the photos I’m attaching are out of chronological order, but all were taken by me on our tour.