highlands

Northern Highlands

Beyond the familiar postcard Scotland lies something rarer—a vast, untamed land where single-track roads wind through empty glens and ancient mountains rise in impossible shapes from the moorland. The Northern Highlands offer landscapes so dramatic they feel almost prehistoric: the twisted peaks of Assynt, the lonely perfection of Sandwood Bay, and sea cliffs where thousands of seabirds wheel above the crashing Atlantic.

This is a place for those who seek something beyond the ordinary. Drive the legendary North Coast 500 past deserted beaches and ruined brochs. Stand at Cape Wrath or Dunnet Head and feel the raw power of Britain's northernmost edges. Watch salmon leap at the Falls of Shin, spot dolphins in the Moray Firth, or simply sit in silence as the northern light plays across a landscape virtually unchanged since the Ice Age.

The Northern Highlands reward the curious and the unhurried. Here you'll find warm welcomes in small villages, fresh seafood landed that morning, and dark skies blazing with stars. This isn't just a journey through Scotland. It's a journey to the edge of everything familiar, where the modern world falls away and something wilder takes its place.

Attractions

Assynt

A dramatic landscape of ancient mountains rising from a watery wilderness of lochs and moorland, featuring iconic peaks like Suilven, Stac Pollaidh, and Quinag.

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Black Isle

A fertile peninsula famous for dolphin watching at Chanonry Point, charming villages, and some of Scotland's most reliable bottlenose dolphin sightings.

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Castle of Mey

The beloved Scottish retreat of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, a charming 16th-century castle with beautiful walled gardens overlooking the Pentland Firth.

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Dornoch

A charming historic town with a magnificent cathedral, world-class golf links, beautiful beaches, and a fascinating past as a former royal burgh.

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Duncansby Stacks

Spectacular sea stacks rising dramatically from the waves near John o' Groats, a stunning reward for those who venture beyond the famous signpost.

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Dunnet Head

The true most northerly point of mainland Britain, a windswept headland with dramatic cliffs, a Victorian lighthouse, and views to Orkney.

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Dunrobin Castle

A fairytale French château on the Scottish coast, seat of the Earls and Dukes of Sutherland with spectacular gardens and daily falconry displays.

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Falls of Shin

A famous salmon leaping spot where Atlantic salmon battle upstream through cascading falls, one of Scotland's most accessible wildlife spectacles.

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Flow Country

A vast peatland wilderness of global ecological importance, one of the world's largest and most intact blanket bog systems and a UNESCO World Heritage candidate.

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Grey Cairns of Camster

Remarkably preserved Neolithic burial cairns dating back 5,000 years, among the finest examples of ancient chambered tombs in Britain.

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Handa Island

A nature reserve island hosting one of Europe's largest seabird colonies, with towering cliffs alive with thousands of puffins, guillemots, and razorbills.

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John o' Groats

Britain's iconic northeastern tip, where the mainland meets the wild Pentland Firth and journeys end (or begin).

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North Coast 500

Scotland's ultimate road trip, a 516-mile route around the spectacular northern Highlands passing ancient castles, pristine beaches, and dramatic mountain scenery.

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Sandwood Bay

One of Britain's most remote and beautiful beaches, a pristine stretch of pink-tinged sand framed by dramatic cliffs and a mysterious sea stack.

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Smoo Cave

A spectacular sea cave with a freshwater waterfall plunging into its depths, combining coastal and underground landscapes in dramatic fashion.

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Ready to Explore Northern Highlands?

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