Edinburgh, Inverness & Durness, 8 Days

Make your own way to the ferry port at IJmuiden near Amsterdam. Boarding and departure towards Great Britain follow in the late afternoon, and the night is spent on board in the two-berth inside cabin with shower and WC. The machine crosses the North Sea alongside.

In the morning the ferry docks at Newcastle, and the road heads north via Alnwick Castle and through Northumberland to Edinburgh. The Scottish capital, with its castle towering above the city, invites a look around in the afternoon. Night in Edinburgh.

Via Perth the route enters Cairngorms National Park with its lochs and heathland, a first taste of the solitude of the Highlands. A detour leads to Elgin and its ruined cathedral, before the day ends in Inverness, the base for the coming three nights.

From Inverness the loop runs west to Eilean Donan Castle on Loch Duich. Along Loch Duich and Loch Cluanie it carries on via Fort Augustus and the northern shore of Loch Ness back to the base in Inverness.

A big loop runs via Lairg and Tongue far to the north. There is plenty of room along the way for the solitude of the Highland roads, with Durness, one of the northernmost places in Great Britain, as the turning point. The coast road leads back to Inverness.

Through Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park the way leads to the largest city in Scotland. Several route options are open for this day, around 270 to 370 kilometres, and the climate turns noticeably milder. Night in Glasgow.

Via Carlisle and Hadrian's Wall, once the northern frontier of the Roman Empire, the road runs back to Newcastle. Boarding and departure towards Amsterdam follow in the evening, and the night is again spent on board the ferry.

In the morning the ferry docks at IJmuiden near Amsterdam, and from there your own journey home begins. Behind you lie around 1,800 kilometres through the Highlands, along quiet lochs and the rugged coasts of northern Great Britain.