Scotland, from the Old Town to the Great Glen

Most Scottish itineraries begin in Edinburgh, and they should. The Old Town is a single ridge running from the castle down to Holyrood, and it is walkable in a morning, with the New Town's Georgian grid a few minutes north and entirely different in character. A day here before you head north sets everything else in context, and your chauffeur can move you between the two ends of the ridge rather than making you climb back up.

North of the city the country opens quickly. Stirling and the Trossachs come first, then Loch Lomond, and by early afternoon the road is running through Rannoch Moor and into Glencoe — a valley so severe and so beautiful that most people ask to stop twice. Beyond it lie Fort William, the Great Glen, Loch Ness and eventually the Skye road. The distances are long and the roads are single carriageway for much of it.

That is the case for being driven. Scottish touring involves five or six hours behind the wheel on some days, often in rain, often on roads where the passing places matter. Handing that to a professional means you arrive at your hotel in the evening still capable of enjoying dinner. It also means you can stop wherever the light breaks, which in the Highlands happens without warning and does not wait.

Winter itineraries need honest planning. Daylight in December runs from around half past eight to half past three, so we build shorter driving days and start early. Summer gives you light until eleven at night and a completely different sort of trip. Either way, the itinerary is built around your hotels and your interests, not around a fixed route.

On our side we provide the vehicle and the chauffeur, with your chauffeur's accommodation arranged by us and set out in the written quotation. Hotels, distillery visits and admissions are arranged by you. Your chauffeur is not a licensed guide and does not narrate, though we can arrange a qualified guide to travel with you for all or part of the trip.