Edinburgh, Loch Ness, The Highlands from London - 3 Day Rail Tour
Overview
Available languages
3 days
Mobile ticket
Discover one of the most memorable and unique cities in all of Europe, Edinburgh. Explore the city, where a sense of history is around every corner, before heading off to experience the wild, untamed beauty of the Scottish Highlands - home of dramatic scenery and the Loch Ness Monster!
• Round-trip train tickets to Edinburgh with reserved seats
• Stay two nights in a centrally located 3-star hotel, bed and breakfast
• Hop-on Hop-off City Sightseeing Tour of Edinburgh
• Entry ticket to Edinburgh Castle
• City map and information booklet
• Day Tour to Loch Ness & the Highlands
Additional Info
Public transportation options are available nearby
Travelers should have at least a moderate level of physical fitness
Outbound Day 1: Train departs London Kings Cross: 07:00 / train arrives in Edinburgh: 11:20 (11:28 on Saturdays)
Return Day 3: Train departs Edinburgh: 17:30 / train arrives at London Kings Cross: 22:09
Your electronic tickets and vouchers will be sent to you one week prior to your scheduled departure date via email (or if booked within one week then within 24 hours of booking). We would recommend getting to the station 30 minutes before your scheduled train departure time
Overnight accommodation: Prices stated are per person based on two people sharing a twin/double room (Single travellers pay single occupancy rate)
This Tour is unescorted on Days 1 and 3. The excursion to Loch Ness on Day 2 is fully guided and operated by Highland Explorer Tours, whose terms and conditions apply
Child age: 5-11 yrs inclusive. This Tour is not suitable for children under 5 years old
We will make every effort to fulfil any requests you have for seating on the train, however this cannot be guaranteed
Please do not wait to meet our staff at the train station as we do not conduct in-person departures.
What To Expect
London to Edinburgh by train, then visit Edinburgh Castle & hop on hop off bus
Accommodations
Overnight in Edinburgh - 3 star hotel
Edinburgh Castle
Edinburgh Castle is a historic fortress which dominates the skyline of Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland, from its position on the Castle Rock. Archaeologists have established human occupation of the rock since at least the Iron Age, although the nature of the early settlement is unclear.
Palace of Holyroodhouse
The Palace of Holyroodhouse, commonly referred to as Holyrood Palace, is the official residence of the British monarch in Scotland, Queen Elizabeth II.
Princes Street
Princes Street is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland, and the main shopping street in the capital. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1 mile from Lothian Road in the west, to Leith Street in the east
Edinburgh Waverley Station
Waverley Bridge is a road bridge in Edinburgh linking Market Street in the Old Town with Princes Street in the New Town. The bridge forms part of the roof of Edinburgh Waverley station and marks the eastern boundary of Princes Street Gardens. The current bridge was built between 1894 and 1896 by Blyth and Westland.
John Knox House Museum
John Knox House, popularly known as "John Knox's House", is a historic house in Edinburgh, Scotland, reputed to have been owned and lived in by Protestant reformer John Knox during the 16th century.
Arthur's Seat
Arthur's Seat is an extinct volcano which is the main peak of the group of hills in Edinburgh, Scotland, which form most of Holyrood Park, described by Robert Louis Stevenson as "a hill for magnitude, a mountain in virtue of its bold design".
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets forming the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.
The Museum of Edinburgh
The Museum of Edinburgh is housed in Huntly House, one of the iconic and historic buildings on the Royal Mile, in the Canongate area, toward the Palace of Holyroodhouse and the Scottish Parliament. It is well served by regular and city sightseeing buses.
St. John's Scottish Episcopal Church
The Church of St John the Evangelist is a Scottish Episcopal church in the centre of Edinburgh, Scotland. It is sited at the west end of Princes Street at its junction with Lothian Road, and is protected as a category A listed building.
Loch Ness, Glen Coe & the Highlands Tour
Accommodations
Overnight in Edinburgh - 3 star hotel
Food and Drinks
BREAKFAST
Breakfast
Loch Ness Region
Loch Ness is a large, deep, freshwater loch in the Scottish Highlands extending for approximately 37 kilometres southwest of Inverness. Its surface is 16 metres above sea level. Loch Ness is best known for alleged sightings of the cryptozoological Loch Ness Monster, also known affectionately as "Nessie".
Cairngorm Mountain Resort
The Cairngorms are a mountain range in the eastern Highlands of Scotland closely associated with the mountain of the Cairn Gorm. The Cairngorms became part of Scotland's second national park on 1 September 2003
Inverness
Inverness is a city on Scotland’s northeast coast, where the River Ness meets the Moray Firth. It's the largest city and the cultural capital of the Scottish Highlands. Its Old Town features 19th-century Inverness Cathedral, the mostly 18th-century Old High Church and an indoor Victorian Market selling food, clothing and crafts. The contemporary Inverness Museum and Art Gallery traces local and Highland history.
Ben Nevis
Ben Nevis is the highest mountain in the British Isles. Standing at 1,345 metres above sea level, it is at the western end of the Grampian Mountains in the Lochaber area of the Scottish Highlands, close to the town of Fort William.
Glencoe National Nature Reserve
Glencoe is a village in western Scotland. It lies in steep-sided Glencoe valley, in the Scottish Highlands. The area is known for waterfalls and trails that climb peaks such as Buachaille Etive Mor and Bidean nam Bian. In the village, Glencoe Folk Museum occupies 18th-century thatched cottages, with displays on local heritage and the Glencoe massacre of 1692. Wildlife in the area includes red deer and golden eagles.
Edinburgh (full day free in Edinburgh) then train back to London
Food and Drinks
BREAKFAST
Breakfast
Princes Street
Princes Street is one of the major thoroughfares in central Edinburgh, Scotland, and the main shopping street in the capital. It is the southernmost street of Edinburgh's New Town, stretching around 1 mile from Lothian Road in the west, to Leith Street in the east
Royal Mile
The Royal Mile is a succession of streets forming the main thoroughfare of the Old Town of the city of Edinburgh in Scotland.
Options
Summer - Standard Adult only
Standard class
Summer -Standard Adult & Child
Standard class
Summer - First C- Adult Only
First Class
Tattoo Standard - Adult Only
Standard class
Summer- First C Adult & Child
First Class
Tattoo - Adult & child
First Class
Winter - Standard Adult only
Standard class
Winter - First C. Adult Only
First Class
Winter - Standard with a Child
Standard class
Tattoo - First C. Adult Only
First Class
Tattoo standard-Adult & child
Standard class
Winter - First C Adult & Child
First Class
What‘s Included
Hop-on hop-off Sightseeing tour
Two nights' accommodation in a centrally located 3-star hotel, including breakfast
Entry to Edinburgh Castle (on day 1)
Round-trip train tickets to Edinburgh with reserved seats
Guide except Day 2
Hotel pickup and drop off
Cancellation Policy
All sales are final. No refund is available for cancellations.
Reviews
40 reviews
Total reviews and rating from Viator & Tripadvisor
Buitifull
sanjoym814,May 25, 2024
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00It is really good experience to tour at London Socially the lady guide are really explaining everything Just awesome Also thank to pilot very safe and comfortable journey We are travelling more then 150 km We no have feel Or tried Ultimately it’s awesome Evan & Evan’s tour
NIGHTMARE TRAIN JOURNEY USING LONDON NORTH EASTER RAILWAY AND CROSSCOUNTRY TRAIN
MARYL723,Nov 3, 2023
- Review from Tripadvisor
1.00My daughter was left stranded in Newcastle last nigh when London North eastern railway train connecting to Edinburgh was cancelled . This company did not make any arrangements to get her home. It was late cold and raining. Don't think this is the right company to use if you are depending on them to look after you safely
Statesman Pulman 'luxury' train journey without heating for 6 hours each way in November.
jjsculley,Dec 17, 2022
- Review from Tripadvisor
2.00One of the engines was broken and was left behind at Preston. There was no heating and the blanket offered never came. The staff were encouragingly 'positive' and pleasant but unable to fix it. A very long cold expensive day trip (and xmas market mentioned in the brochure had not started). I recommended the Statesman Pulman Edinburgh day trip to friends (having been on a Pulman train day trip with a different company which was an amazing memorable thoroughly enjoyable experience). One friend booked his family on the Edinburgh trip the week following my trip. The meal booked was not available because there was a gas leak in the kitchen. He was refunded the cost of the meal. I didn't even get an acknowledgement of my emailed complaint. There was no feedback request either, which now I wonder may be intentional. Are there many journeys which have problems?
A lovely time was had …
Leon S,Nov 22, 2022
- Review from Viator
4.00Lovely time … tours were well done and the City is a delight. No issues with your tickets and a smooth process. Guide to Loch Ness (Owen) was a winner!
Lochness tour
Harry B,May 1, 2022
- Review from Viator
3.00We opted for the first class train ride from London to Edinburgh. The Twain trip was enjoyable and the breakfast we pretty good. No complaints there. The Lochness Tour is great. Colum was a great driver/tour guide. We missed the Edinburgh Castle tour the first day because we missed the time slot. The tour folks said the bus from the Lochness Tour would drop us off where they picked us up. WRONG!!! The walk back to our hotel was probably twice as far as it was supposed to be. The bus did not have wifi or restroom facilities. The Ibis that we stayed at was probably the worst ibis we have ever stayed at. No room service, but that okay because the room didn’t even have a phone!! You would probably be better off booking all these things yourself. I would use the tour company for the Lochness Tour.
Much more to it than we expected!
6556,Sep 19, 2019
- Review from Viator
5.00Hotel was very close to railway station & bus stops for hop on hop off. Wish we had had more time. Weather was beautiful.
Do it yourself!!
Carolyn G,Jul 18, 2018
- Review from Viator
3.00This is a self-guided tour, meaning that you are on your own for 2 of the 3 days in Edinburgh. So you could organize it yourself: book a Loch Ness tour out of Edinburgh Take the hop-on/off bus tour all the way around the circuit to get oriented. Fabulous guide to Loch Ness. Awful hotel: small, cramped, worn and no A/C during a heat wave. Evans Tours messed up my train reservation.
Beautiful Edinburgh!
Colleen O,Jun 28, 2018
- Review from Tripadvisor
5.00The 3 day rail trip to Edinburgh, Loch Ness and the Scottish Highlands was fantastic! Edinburgh is a beautiful old city with loads of charm. The people were nice and friendly. The Highlands are magnificent! Breathtaking views of gorgeous lush mountains, lakes and countryside. Loch Ness is beautiful and a little restaurant right on the lake serves delicious food at reasonable prices with a great view and their own local Loch Ness Ale. The trip was even better than we anticipated. The tour bus driver was a lot of fun and full of interesting facts. I highly recommend this trip!
The person that arranged our rail...
Ronald M,Mar 19, 2018
- Review from Viator
4.00The person that arranged our rail trip did not give us accurate or adequate information regarding how to get to our hotel from the train station. We had upgraded our train trip to first class to make sure we had a reserved seat and had that on the trip to Edinburgh but they had not arranged for reserved seat on the way back so we ended up having to jockey for an available seat. It was really an uncomfortable situation. Accommodations were nothing special but comfortable and adequate.
The best part of the trip was our trip to the Highlands - our guide was Duncan and he did a very good job pointing out highlights and also letting us rest it was a long trip. The rest of the trip you are on your own and it was nice to be in control of where and when you wanted to go.
My husband and I took this quick...
neri,Dec 18, 2017
- Review from Viator
5.00My husband and I took this quick trip in December. We were not given the tour vouchers and did not have our accommodation details until the morning of the tour. However, we trusted Viator since we have joined other tours before in various cities.
The tour was well-organised from London Kings Cross Station to Edinburgh and Loch Ness. The first class coach was worth the extra, since it was a very early trip to Edinburgh and late return to London. We were pleasantly surprised that the quoted B and B was Hilton hotel in a central location in Edinburgh. The hotel was a short walk to Waverley Station, Christmas Markets , the Royal Mile and Edinburgh Castle.Going up to Loch Ness the view was magical .. the bends and loch were all covered with snow. Our lady tour bus driver and tour guide, Katryn was excellent considering we were going up the Highlands in snowy winter weather. Being a local from Edinburgh, she was very proud of her heritage and managed to give us a good history and interesting folklores of the Scottish Highlands. The Loch Ness cruise was optional but it was an interesting experience to go through the deep black waters with humorous local guides .Unfortunately, Nessie must be frozen under the lake .
Thank you Viator for another exceptional experience!
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Operated by Evan Evans Tours