Taste of the Highlands 3 days/2 nights

In the early afternoon, the luxury Belmond Royal Scotsman train departs Edinburgh for a 3-day tour of Scotland. It travels over the Firth of Forth on the impressive Forth Railway Bridge, considered one of the symbols of Scotland. The bridge, with a total length of over 2,5 km, was built in 1879–1890 according to the design of engineers Sir John Fowler and Sir Benjamin Baker. Its huge trusses are 110 m high and 521 m wide. In 2015, the bridge was included on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Initially, the train heads north through the lands of the Kingdom of Fife, then enters the Scottish highlands - the famous Highlands - and behind the train windows there are spectacular landscapes of this wonderful region. In the evening, the train reaches the quiet highland village of Boat of Garten, known as the "Osprey Village" due to the numerous birds of prey found in the area. Guests are invited to an informal dinner followed by music combined with traditional Scottish entertainment in the observation car.

In the morning, after breakfast, guests will travel by coach to the Rothiemurchus estate, located in the heart of the Cairngorms National Park. It will be an opportunity to fish, test your shooting skills during a clay pigeon shooting competition and tour the estate. Cairngorms National Park was established in 2003 and is the largest national park in Great Britain, with protected rocky heaths and areas that are breeding areas for numerous bird species. Rothiemurchus is a private estate situated north-east of the River Spey. It is one of the most valuable areas within the National Park due to the special bond between people and nature - which results from an extremely long history. Although this place has been managed by the Grant family since the 1226th century, its name comes from the 1574th century, when in the heart of the Great Caledonian Rainforest of Scotland (which grew in Scotland after the retreat of the glaciers, and of which only small fragments have survived to this day) founded by the Picts. The parish of Rothiemurchus belonged to the royal crown until XNUMX, when Alexander II gave it to the Bishop of Moray. In XNUMX, James I of England, King of Scotland, gave Rothiemurchus to Patrick Grant, whose descendants still rule the area today.

For dinner, guests return to the train as the luxurious Belmond Royal Scotsaman travels to Culloden. Here, guests will disembark the train to visit the battlefield of Culloden, which was the site of the last Jacobite uprising. Guests will visit the battlefield with a guide. Later, back on the train, they will head towards the market town of Keith, where they will have the opportunity to visit the Strathisla Distillery, which is Scotland's oldest continuously operating distillery. It was founded in 1789 by George Taylor as an alternative to the flax processing industry that was then disappearing in the city. It was originally called Milltown Distillery. From 1830, the distillery was owned by William Longmore. In 1879 it suffered from a fire, but was quickly rebuilt. Currently, since 1942, it has been owned by Chivas Brothers. Strathisla Scotch whiskey produced here has an aroma of fresh oak and fruit, with a perfectly harmonious sweet and dry taste with noticeable cherry accents. Strathisla is characterized by a mild, long aftertaste with notes of vanilla and chocolate sweetness. This distillery also produces Chivas Regal, which includes 40 types of carefully selected malt and grain whiskies. The youngest of them is aged for at least 12 years.

Guests return to the train in Keith. The journey continues south through Aberdeenshire and Angus. A formal dinner is served on the way to Dundee, on the north bank of the Tay Estuary on the Firth of Tay.

In the morning, as the luxury Belmond Royal Scotsman train departs from Dundee for Edinburgh, guests can enjoy a delicious breakfast. On site, at Waverely station - our joint trip to the Scottish highlands comes to an end.