Our top pick1,239 reviews
3 daysEdinburgh: 3-Day Isle of Skye, Highlands, and Loch Ness Tour
★ 4.8 · 1,239 reviews
- Three days, Overnight stays in Portree
- Glencoe valley on the route
- Bestseller
- Free cancellation
$304
Check availability→ Glencoe on the road to Skye
Glencoe tour: six Skye trips that go through the glen
A Glencoe tour on this site is never a day on its own. Glencoe is the glen on the road north, and six trips of three or four days go through it on the way to the Isle of Skye, starting in Edinburgh or Glasgow. They cost $238 to $1,045 per person. Below: what each one says about the glen, what else fills that day, and what the price covers.
Quick answer
The short answer. For Glencoe and Skye in one booking, take our top pick: three days from Edinburgh at $304 per person, through the Glencoe valley on the way north, two nights in Portree, and Glasgow passengers joining at 10:00. If you want the rooms in the price for certain, the three-day trip with accommodation is $598.
The Glencoe tour at a glance
- Trips through Glencoe
- Sixall of them three or four days
- Starting cities
- Edinburgh or Glasgownone of the six starts in Inverness
- Price range
- $238 to $1,045per person
- Our top pick
- $304three days from Edinburgh, 1,239 reviews at 4.8
- Time in the glen
- Not statedno listing gives minutes for Glencoe
- Accommodation
- Stated on one tripen-suite guesthouses and B&Bs
- Rooms not in the price
- One triptwo nights in Inverness at your own cost
- Lunch
- Not includedon any of the six
- Guide
- Live, in Englishon all six
- Cancellation
- Free cancellationthe deadline differs by trip
What you are booking
No day trip to the glen, but six ways through it
Why the glen comes as part of a longer trip, and how to read the listings.
There is no Glencoe day tour on this site. Every trip that goes through the glen lasts three or four days and ends on the Isle of Skye, so Glencoe is one part of the first day rather than the goal of the trip. The twelve-hour days from Inverness, from $91 per person, do not name Glencoe at all: they head west by Loch Ness instead.
That changes what a Glencoe tour means here. You do not choose the glen; you choose the trip around it. Two of the six say outright that Glencoe comes on the way north: our top pick, which promises to «pass through the haunting and dramatic Glencoe valley» before lunch in Fort William at the foot of Ben Nevis, and its Glasgow twin, which names Loch Lomond, Glencoe and Ben Nevis before the drive to Skye. The four-day trip names Glen Coe before its first night in Fort Augustus. The other three name Glencoe on the route without saying which day.
Trip by trip
What each Glencoe tour says about the glen
Six trips, in the words of their own listings. Prices are per person.
- Our top pick: three days from Edinburgh, $304
Through the Glencoe valley, lunch in Fort William, then two nights in Portree. The listed way home runs by Eilean Donan, Fort Augustus and Pitlochry, not back through the glen.
- Three days from Glasgow, $304
Loch Lomond, Glencoe and Ben Nevis, which the listing calls Britain’s tallest mountain, then Skye: Kilt Rock, the Old Man of Storr, Portree, Lealt Falls and the Quiraing.
- Three days from Edinburgh, rooms not included, $238
Skye, Loch Ness, Glenfinnan and Glencoe on a 36-seat midi-coach. The two nights in Inverness are yours to book and pay for, on top of the fare.
- Three days from Glasgow with room options, $529
Glen Coe, Loch Ness, Culloden and ancient standing stones, with stories of the clans. Solo travellers choose the single room option.
- Three days from Edinburgh with accommodation, $598
Glencoe on the route, then Kilt Rock, Neist Point and the Quiraing on Skye, with nights in small en-suite guesthouses and B&Bs. Limited to 16 participants.
- Four days from Edinburgh, $1,045
Loch Lomond and the Trossachs, Glen Coe, a night in Fort Augustus, two nights on Skye, and a one-way ride on the Jacobite steam train over the Glenfinnan Viaduct. Limited to 16 participants.
Along the way
A glen, a moor road and the ridges at the end
Three frames from the listing photos of each Glencoe tour on this page.
River and loch below the ridges
A shallow river with stones in it runs past birch trees into a still loch, with steep green slopes and dark crags rising on both sides.
A moor road toward the peaks
A two-lane road crosses frosted brown moorland toward a long row of rounded peaks, under heavy cloud with a pale gap low in the sky.
Green ridges at the far end
Dark cliffs, a lone rock pinnacle and folds of bright green grass, with a walker’s path cut along the slope below.
Every trip, current fare
A Scottish Highlands Glencoe tour, priced trip by trip
Six trips that go through Glencoe. Every price is per person, and lunch is not included on any of them.
| Trip | Price | Price is for | Length | What the price covers | Where it starts | Rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Edinburgh, three days, our top pick | $304 | per person | 3 days | Live guide in English; small group; two nights in Portree on the route. The listing does not say whether rooms are in the price | Castle Terrace, Edinburgh, 9:00; Glasgow passengers join at 10:00 | 4.8 · 1,239 |
| Glasgow, three days | $304 | per person | 3 days | Live guide in English; small group; nights in Portree, rooms not stated; a train ticket from Edinburgh back to Glasgow | Opposite Buchanan Bus Station, Glasgow, 10:00; ends at Edinburgh Waverley | 4.8 · 204 |
| Edinburgh, three days, no rooms | $238 | per person | 3 days | Live guide in English on a 36-seat midi-coach. Accommodation not included: two nights in Inverness at your own cost | Burns Monument, Regent Road, Edinburgh; check-in 8:15 | 4.8 · 3,027 |
| Glasgow, three days, room options | $529 | per person | 3 days | Live guide in English; a choice of single, double or twin room; the Urquhart Castle boat trip is optional | Central Glasgow | 4.4 · 223 |
| Edinburgh, three days, with accommodation | $598 | per person | 3 days | Accommodation included in en-suite guesthouses and B&Bs; live guide in English; limited to 16 | Edinburgh; the meeting point is on the booking page | 4.7 · 622 |
| Edinburgh, four days, steam train | $1,045 | per person | 4 days | Room options; a one-way Jacobite steam train ride; live guide in English; limited to 16 | A café on the Royal Mile, Edinburgh | 4.8 · 176 |
The price
What the gap between the fares pays for
Rooms, a train and a group size: the three things the fares differ on.
Read the table by what is in the price, not by the number alone. The lowest fare here, $238, leaves you to book two nights in Inverness yourself. Our top pick and its Glasgow twin cost $304 each and include two nights in Portree on the route, but their listings do not say whether the rooms are part of the fare, so check before you pay.
At $598, the trip with accommodation is the one where the listing says plainly that the rooms are included: small, locally owned guesthouses and B&Bs with en-suite rooms, usually on the outskirts of town. The Glasgow trip at $529 is booked by room type. As a Glencoe Scotland tour with a steam train on top, the four-day trip at $1,045 is booked by room type too and covers the Jacobite one way.
How long in the glen
Time in Glencoe, honestly
No listing gives a number of minutes for Glencoe. Here is what the listings and travellers do say.
- The listings
Our top pick says it passes through the Glencoe valley and, in its summary, that you spend time there. The others simply name the glen on the route.
- A traveller from Edinburgh
Norah from the United Kingdom, on our top pick: «The route there via Glencoe was spectacular, with a well chosen stop so that it was not over too quickly as I have found before.»
- A traveller who wanted more
Edidiong from the United Kingdom, on the same trip: «I only wish we had stayed longer at the absolutely stunning Glencoe, but we understandably had other places to see.»
- The pace overall
Tiziana from Italy, on the trip without rooms: «The tour is quite intensive, but the fast pace is necessary because there’s so much to see and do in just three days.»
Who it suits
Book a Glencoe tour, or pick another trip?
Three or four days suit some travellers better than others. Four honest tests.
- Book it if you want the glen and Skye in one go
Each of the six is a Glencoe Highlands tour with the Isle of Skye at the far end, so the glen, the island and the drive between come in one booking.
- Book the trip without rooms if you already have a bed in Inverness
At $238 it is the lowest fare of the six, and 3,027 reviewers rate it 4.8. Olivia from Australia: «This was such a great way to see the beauty of the Scottish Highlands as a solo traveller on a short itinerary!»
- Book the trip with accommodation if you want the rooms settled
It is the only one of the six whose listing says the rooms are included. It must be booked at least 14 days ahead. Kim from Australia: «Accomodation was comfortable and convenient.»
- Pick a day from Inverness if you only have one day
None of the six fits into a day. Twelve-hour Skye days start from $91 per person, without Glencoe.
Before you book
Five things to check before you pay
A few minutes on the listing makes a Glencoe tour easier on the day.
- Whether the rooms are in the price
Included on the trip with accommodation; not included on the trip without rooms; not stated on our top pick or its Glasgow twin.
- Your luggage
One medium-sized suitcase (63 to 67 cm) on our top pick and the Glasgow twin; 15 kg or 20 kg on the others.
- Money for lunch
Lunch is not included on any of the six.
- The minimum age
Each Glencoe tour sets its own: 3, 4, 5 or 7, depending on the trip.
- Cancellation
All six offer free cancellation, but the deadline differs from trip to trip. Read it on the booking page before you pay.
Our verdict
Our verdict on a Glencoe tour
Book our top pick if you want Glencoe on the way to Skye with the least planning. For $304 you go through the Glencoe valley, stop in Fort William and spend two nights in Portree, and 1,239 reviewers rate this Glencoe tour 4.8.
If you want the rooms in the price for certain, take the trip with accommodation at $598.
Book direct
Four trips that go through the glen
Our top pick first, then the trip from Glasgow, the one without rooms and the one with accommodation. All four are priced per person.
Bestseller204 reviews
3 daysFrom Glasgow: 3-Day Isle of Skye, Highlands & Loch Ness Tour
★ 4.8 · 204 reviews
- Three days, Ben Nevis, Glencoe, Loch Lomond
- Train ticket back to Glasgow
- Bestseller
- Free cancellation
$304
Check availability→ 
Bestseller3,027 reviews
3 daysFrom Edinburgh: 3-Day Isle of Skye and The Highlands Tour
★ 4.8 · 3,027 reviews
- Three days, Glenfinnan Viaduct and Glencoe
- Accommodation not included
- Bestseller
- Free cancellation
$238
Check availability→ 
Bestseller622 reviews
3 daysFrom Edinburgh: Isle of Skye 3-Day Tour with Accommodation
★ 4.7 · 622 reviews
- Three days, En-suite guesthouse and B&B rooms
- Small group
- Bestseller
- Free cancellation
$598
Check availability→ Common questions
Glencoe tour: questions, answered
Can you see Glencoe and Skye in one day?
Not on this site. Every Glencoe tour here lasts three or four days and starts in Edinburgh or Glasgow. The twelve-hour days to Skye run from Inverness, from $91 per person, and their listings do not name Glencoe.
Is accommodation included on the three-day trips?
On one: the trip with accommodation, at $598, in en-suite guesthouses and B&Bs. The trip at $238 does not include rooms: you book two nights in Inverness. Our top pick and its Glasgow twin stay two nights in Portree, but the listings do not say whether the rooms are in the price, so check the listing.
Should I start from Glasgow or Edinburgh?
Both work. The Glasgow trip at $304 leaves opposite Buchanan Bus Station at 10:00 and ends at Edinburgh Waverley, with a train ticket back to Glasgow. Our top pick starts in Edinburgh at 9:00 and takes Glasgow passengers at 10:00.
Is lunch included?
No. Lunch is not included on any of the six trips through Glencoe. Our top pick stops for lunch in Fort William on the way north, so bring money for food.
Can children join?
It depends on the trip. The minimum age is 3 on the Glasgow trip with room options and the four-day trip, 4 on our top pick and the Glasgow twin, 5 on the trip with accommodation and 7 on the trip without rooms.
Can I cancel?
Yes. All six offer free cancellation, but the deadline is different for each trip. Check it on the booking page before you pay.
Go deeper
More on trips to the Isle of Skye
From Edinburgh
From Edinburgh
Three- and four-day tours from the capital: route, nights and what the price covers.
From GlasgowFrom Glasgow
Two three-day tours from the west, compared.
A weekendA weekend
Two or three days out, with the nights arranged for you.
In one dayIn one day
What a twelve-hour day from Inverness covers on the island, and which day suits you.
Loch NessLoch Ness
The loch on the road west, and how long each tour stays.
