We will pick you up from your accommodation in Inverness and take you to the famous Tomatin distillery where you will take part on their Legacy tour. Explore the distillery and learn how they produce their award winning whiskies. You will learn about the unique legacy of Tomatin which, having started in 1897, is the driving force for the company today. Finish the tour with three tasting drams of their unique whisky.
We will journey south through the Perthshire Highlands and come across the famous Blair Castle. The castle is the ancient seat of the Dukes and Earls of Atholl and home to Europe’s last remaining private army, the Atholl Highlanders.
We will take a tour of the castle and visit the 30 rooms on display that are full of Scottish cultural history, architectural design, period furnishings, family portraits, landscape paintings and a colourful military past. Highlights include the Victorian Ballroom which is decorated with 175 pairs of antlers, the Entrance Hall which features weapons used at the Battle of Culloden, the classic Georgian styling of the Picture Staircase and the grandeur of the Drawing Room and State Dining Room.
We will then have lunch at the Tullibardine Restaurant that provides a wide range of hot or cold meals and snacks for visitors touring the castle or gardens. From traditional Scottish dishes to homemade soup, sandwiches and a range of scrumptious cakes and tray bakes, all of the food is made on the premises by the castles expert team of chefs.
Soon we will discover the ever impressive Hermitage originally designed as a pleasure ground in the 18th century for the Dukes of Atholl. Walk through the towering Douglas firs to the folly of Ossian’s Hall, and gaze over the Black Linn Falls that crash down from the River Braan.
We will take the short drive to Dunkeld and wander among the ruins of Scotland’s most romantic cathedral. Due to Viking raids on the island sanctuary of Iona in 849 AD, St Columba’s relics were removed from the island and taking to Dunkeld for their own protection.
The Cathedral you see today shows both Gothic and Norman influence having being built in stages over a period of nearly 250 years between 1260 and 1501. The restored choir is the oldest part or the original church, having been completed in 1350. It contains some of the original red stone in its east gable.
There are also fine memorials in the choir to look at, including the effigy of Alexander Stewart, Earl of Buchan – notorious as ‘The Wolf of Badenoch’.
After our tour has come to an end, we will drive you back to your accommodation.
