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Contact us on 1-800-759-7715

Contact us on 1-800-759-7715

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To celebrate the launch of Specialist Journeys, enjoy 15% off our 2027 tours with code Curious15. From archaeology and ancient history to remarkable gardens, follow your curiosity somewhere extraordinary. Book by 20 October 2026.

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Scotland rewards the curious

Our Scotland tours go beyond the guidebook, following whatever it is that fascinates you most through a country of remarkable contrasts. On Lewis, the Standing Stones of Callanish were raised around 5,000 years ago, part of a ceremonial landscape archaeologists are still mapping. On Orkney, the Neolithic village of Skara Brae lay buried under sand until an 1850 storm stripped the dunes away, revealing stone furniture still standing in the rooms where it was used. And on the coast of Wester Ross, the North Atlantic Drift carries warm water far enough north that gardens grow tree ferns and Himalayan rhododendrons at a latitude which should be closer to tundra.

Each escorted Scotland tour is shaped around a shared interest, whether that’s islands, gardens, castles, archaeology or railways. You’ll travel with specialists who know their subject - and Scotland - inside out, revealing the stories, details and connections most visitors miss. You won’t simply see Scotland; you’ll understand what makes it remarkable.

Scotland’s landscapes hold more than grandeur: ancient lives preserved in stone, island traditions still flourishing and gardens that defy expectations.

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Up Helly Aa - Shetland's Festival of Fire

Up Helly Aa - Shetland's Festival of Fire

Each January, Shetland bursts into flame as Lerwick’s Up Helly Aa brings Viking-inspired tradition, music and spectacle to the winter darkness. Watch costumed squads process through the town carrying flaming torches before the dramatic burning of a replica Viking longship, a centuries-old tradition reimagined for the modern islands. Beyond the festival, discover another side of Shetland through its remarkable archaeology, rugged landscapes and distinctive island communities. At Jarlshof, uncover 3,000 years of settlement, while journeys through Yell and Unst reveal dramatic coastlines, ancient history and the remote character of the northern isles. Visit picturesque Scalloway and learn more about Shetland’s rich past before returning to Lerwick for the unforgettable atmosphere of Up Helly Aa. With the excitement of the fire festival balanced by quieter moments of discovery, this is a fascinating winter journey into one of Britain’s most distinctive island cultures.
4 days from $2,445 View Tour
Glasgow's Art Treasure Featuring the Burrell Collection

Glasgow's Art Treasure Featuring the Burrell Collection

There’s still time to discover in 2026. Selected departures are still available – simply call 1-800-759-7715 to find out more. Reopened in 2022 following an ambitious refurbishment, Glasgow’s Burrell Collection offers a world-class journey through art and history, with treasures spanning 5,000-year-old Chinese porcelain, French masterpieces by artists including Manet, Cézanne and Degas, and medieval artefacts such as stained glass, armour and tapestries. This break also reveals Glasgow’s wider artistic heritage, from the renowned collections of Kelvingrove Art Gallery and Museum and Scotland’s oldest public museum, the Hunterian, to the Gallery of Modern Art. Discover the architectural elegance of Holmwood House, one of Alexander ‘Greek’ Thomson’s finest creations, and conclude with a visit to House for an Art Lover, inspired by an original 1901 design by Charles Rennie Mackintosh.
4 days from $1,185 View Tour
A Grand Tour of the Outer Hebrides

A Grand Tour of the Outer Hebrides

The Outer Hebrides offer a remarkable sense of place, where ancient monuments, crofting traditions and extraordinary landscapes reveal how island communities have lived alongside the Atlantic for thousands of years. This grand tour takes us across a chain of islands, with local ferry crossings adding to the sense of discovery and bringing a constantly changing backdrop of mountains, moorland, beaches and sea. On Lewis, encounter the 5,000-year-old standing stones of Callanish, the traditional Black Houses at Gearrannan and St Columba’s Ui Church, an important medieval site. In Harris, experience a more mountainous landscape before continuing through the Uists and across to Eriskay, Vatersay and Barra. From prehistoric remains and Norse heritage to crofting traditions and island life, this is a journey through a distinctive corner of Scotland where history and landscape are inseparable.
5 days from $2,095 View Tour
An Archaeologist’s View of Orkney & Shetland

An Archaeologist’s View of Orkney & Shetland

The islands of Orkney and Shetland are rich with archaeological remains. People first settled here over 5,000 years ago, leaving behind traces of their lives that endure to this day. New archaeological sites are discovered annually. Some, like Skara Brae, were hidden beneath sand until uncovered by a winter storm thousands of years later. Skara Brae offers a captivating glimpse into Stone Age life, showcasing beds with small shelves and cubby holes, along with remnants of jewellery and medicine. These islands are a treasure trove for anyone fascinated by ancient settlements, buildings and the stories of their inhabitants. During our visit to Shetland, we explore the uninhabited island of Mousa, home to a 2,000-year-old fully intact broch, along with the prehistoric and Norse settlement of Jarlshof, St Ninian’s Isle with its 6th-century church plus the ruined castle of Scalloway. In Orkney, we visit the Italian Chapel, Maeshowe – the finest chambered tomb in Western Europe – and Skara Brae alongside Skaill House. On our journey to Aberdeen, we also pause for a photo opportunity at the striking ruins of Dunnottar Castle.
6 days from $2,095 View Tour
Scotland's Extreme North West

Scotland's Extreme North West

Scotland’s rugged north-west coast is at its most majestic in early spring and autumn, with Atlantic waves crashing dramatically against the shore. Based in Kinlochbervie, with panoramic views over lochs and hills, we explore coastal gems such as the white sands of Oldshoremore and Smoo Cave at Durness. Evenings are spent enjoying fine food, good company and a welcoming fireside dram in our highland hotel.
4 days from $1,045 View Tour

Scotland tours: your questions answered

Scotland rewards visiting in every season, and the right one depends on what you've come for. Spring brings quieter roads and returning wildlife, with golden eagles, puffins and orcas reappearing and primroses and bluebells along the verges. Summer is peak season, with longer days and a calendar of Highland Games and military tattoos. Autumn turns the woodlands to yellow, orange and red. Winter gives the islands steely seas and dramatic skies, the chance of the Northern Lights, and centuries-old celebrations from Hogmanay to Burns Night.

It varies by tour, and each itinerary carries an activity level of easy, moderate or active so you know what to expect before you book. Garden and castle tours involve steady walking on paths, gravel and uneven ground, often with slopes and steps. Archaeology and island tours can include longer walks over rougher, more exposed terrain.

Yes. Every tour is fully escorted from the point you join it by a Tour Manager who travels with the group throughout, looking after the practical side of the week and bringing their own specialism to the subject at hand, whether that's horticulture, archaeology, history or local knowledge. You're with the same person from start to finish rather than being handed to a different guide at each stop.

Many do. Depending on the tour that can mean the Outer Hebrides, Orkney, Shetland, Arran, Mull, or the crossing to Staffa and Iona. Most are reached by ferry as part of the journey, and some island tours travel by air instead, which shortens the journey north considerably. Island days depend on the weather by their nature, and itineraries are planned with that in mind. 

Often more so. Because each itinerary follows a single specialist interest rather than a general circuit, returning travellers tend to find a different Scotland the second time: the same country read through gardens, or archaeology, or its railways, in the company of someone who studies it.

Yes, and many guests do. Shared interest does most of the work, and conversation tends to start with what you've just seen rather than with small talk.

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