THISTLE BE YOUR GLENFINNAN DREAM YOU’LL NEVER WANT TO LEAVE
‘THE STANDARD’ MEANS RAISING THE JACOBITE STANDARD AT GLENFINNAN IN 1745
‘THE SECRETS’ MEAN THE HARRY POTTER FILM ‘THE CHAMBERS OF SECRETS’
‘THE STEAM’ MEANS THE JACOBITE STEAM TRAIN

MORE THAN JUST A TOUR.
This is a very exciting Glenfinnan Adventure, carefully handcrafted with love, for you to enjoy the best of Glenfinnan and Gleann Mòr (Great Glen).

PRIVATE HIGHLAND LOCAL EXPERT DRIVER-GUIDE.
At Thistle Tours we offer a unique touring experience in terms of being genuinely local to the area. Your Driver-Guide, very passionate local expert, will keep you all entertained and to drive you in safety, to make sure you have the magical experience you won’t forget.

TRAVEL WITH FAMILY & FRIENDS.
You will be part of our Highland Clan on a very personal tour with a maximum of Seven Clansmen, which means that you can travel at your own pace with family & friends as a small group, you are sure to get a one-on-one personal attention, the high-quality service and relaxed travel experience.

TRAVEL IN COMFORT.
Thistle Tours have set a high standard over the last 18 years providing perfectly tailored high-quality touring service in our comfortable Mercedes V Class Minibus and Landrover Discovery HSE Luxury, specifically chosen for touring the Highlands and Scotland in safety, comfort and style. All our vehicles are well cleaned, air conditioned, and spacious enough to ensure an efficient and personal service as well as an enjoyable and memorable touring experience.

REVIEWED IN YOUR OWN WORDS.
Your Glenfinnan Journey with Thistle Tours will be rich in legacy and adventure, and it will be completely tailored for you by the people who know the Highlands and Glenfinnan best. We promise, you won’t find anyone more welcoming than our Highland people or anywhere richer than the places we open exclusively for you. That’s what our mantra, ‘Thistle Be a Dream You’ll Never Want to Leave‘ is all about. We make it easy to travel your way, and we highly value all 5 star reviews & comments we received from our guests.

ENJOY ALL OF THE TOUR SPECIALS LISTED BELOW:
Your own exclusive photo shoot, catching a glimpse of the world-famous Jacobite Steam Train passing over the magnificent Glenfinnan Viaduct, with the carriages for the ‘Hogwarts Express’ as seen and used in the ‘Harry Potter’ films including ‘The Chambers of Secrets’ and other series.

TRAVEL SCOTLAND THE HIGHLAND STYLE WITH THISTLE TOURS

TOUR DATES AND OPERATION SEASON.
The Glenfinnan Trail is a small group tour, which runs all year around.

TOUR DURATION AND SPECIAL NOTE.
The Glenfinnan Trail is a Full Day Tour with an early start at 7.30am, and will last about 9hrs including lunch.

STARTING POINT AND TIME.
Glenfinnan Tour commences in Inverness from your accomodation at around 07:30hrs.

FINISHING POINT AND TIME.
Glenfinnan Tour concludes in Inverness at your accomodation at around 17:00hrs.

TOUR INCLUSIONS.
♦ Transportation in a 8-Seat Mercedes V Class c/w the PA System, or a 4-Seat Landrover Discovery HSE Luxury
♦ Private Highland Local Expert Driver-Guide
♦ Complementary Bottled Water.

TOUR EXCLUSIONS.
♦ Admission Fees& Lunch
Glenfinnan Tour does not include lunch in the tour price.
♦ Travel Insurance
Glenfinnan Tour does not include Travel Insurance, however, this is an important part of your travel with us and must be in place to ensure that you are fully covered in the event that you need to cancel your tour due to unforeseen circumstances, for more information, please see our Terms and Conditions here.

TOURING CAPACITY AND TRANSPORTATION.
Enjoy your Glenfinnan Tour in our comfortable Mercedes V Class Minibus (7 passengers) and Landrover Discovery HSE Luxury (4 passengers), specifically chosen for touring the Highlands and Scotland in safety, comfort and style. All our vehicles are well cleaned, air conditioned, and spacious enough to ensure an efficient and personal service as well as an enjoyable and memorable touring experience.

TRAVELLER AGE RANGE.
We regret that we cannot accept young children under the age of 5 years old on our tours, excluding VIP tours where any age is acceptable.

IMPORTANT INFORMATION.
This Tour includes some outdoor itinerary, such as visiting Glenfinnan, Fort Augustus and Loch Ness, please bring outdoor clothing and footwear (including umbrellas), suitable for this tour conditions and highly variable Highland weather. The tour doesn’t involve lengthy walks or require high levels of fitness, however, some tour locations may optionally involve walking up a short steep hill or stairs (e.g. in castles).

THE GLENFINNAN TRAIL

CALEDONIAN CANAL ANDGLEANN MÒR (GREATGLEN).
On our Glenfinnan Trail starting from Inverness, wetravel along the Caledonian Canal from the East coast of Inverness to the West coast of Fort William, coming into a huge Faultline Gleann Mòr (Great Glen), passing Loch Ness, Loch Oich and Loch Lochy, we just enter Fort William before we turn off heading for Glenfinnan.

LOCH SHIEL AND GLENFINNAN.
We should arrive at Glenfinnan to catch the Jacobite Steam Train crossing the Glenfinnan Viaduct. This viaduct was also the “Bridge to Hogwarts” in the Harry Potter movies. Glenfinnan has the most amazing scenery and history, this is the place where Bonnie Prince Charlie raised the Jacobite Standard, marking the beginning of the Jacobite Rising of 1745, we will see the statue of the Lone Highlander at the top of the Glenfinnan Monument at the beginning of Loch Shiel. The stunning Loch Shiel stretches South as far as the eye can see and the mountains rise steeply up from the shores.

BEN NEVIS ANDTHE COMMANDO MEMORIAL.
We travel back to Fort William for lunch, driving along Loch Eil, Clan Cameron Country, our lunch break will be in the shadow of Scotland’s highest mountain ‘Ben Nevis’, a must for all climbers. The South side of Ben Nevis being the easiest side to climb, the North side being the most dangerous.On the way back to Inverness, we have a more gentle drive, a few photo stops. The first one being the Commando Memorial unveiled in 1952, it is remembered for those who have served in the British Commandos Regiment, training for the second World War.

FORT AUGUSTUS LOCKS AND LOCH NESS.
We drive along part of the Caledonian Canal, where we stop in Fort Augustus to stretch our legs, cup of tea/coffee, and hopefully, to catch a boat or two passing through the five Locks that takes you on to our famous Loch Ness, after this a drive to Invermoriston for a photo stop, then we travel back to Inverness, and if the weather is kind to us, we can have more photo stops, especially an amazing view of Loch Ness, and you might get lucky, to catch a glimpse of the Water Beast, known locally as Nessie, never say, never!

WHAT HAPPENS IF I MISS MY TOUR?
If you miss your tour, our cancellation policy applies. 100% charges are applicablein the event of a ‘no show’, and you will not be entitled to a refund or alternative.

WHAT IS YOUR CANCELLATION POLICY?
CANCELLATION POLICY:
Thistle Tours operates on the basis of a 14-day Cancellation Policy for any tours / shore excursions in the Highlands.

Cancelled bookings out with the 14-days of the planned tour will be fully refunded minus 10% admin fees, should the Guest cancel less than 14-days prior to the booking start date of the tour, a cancellation fee equal to the full tour booking rate will be charged.

In the event of a ‘no show’ the Guest will be charged 100% of the tour price.

The Guest will be fully refunded, if the tour is unable to be completed due to unforeseen circumstances e.g. weather, road closures etc / if the cruise liner has been unable to dock at the arranged port of collection.

A sympathetic attitude will be taken as a general rule and in some cases, at the discretion of the proprietor, refunds may be made out with the circumstances detailed above.

Cancellations by us (not Government imposed restrictions relating to Covid etc). If we have to cancel your tour for any reason other than Government imposed restrictions relating to Covid etc, we offer a 100% refund, or an alternative date agreed by the Guest. More details can be found here.

CAN THE ITINERARY CHANGE?
Your tour will always follow the itinerary as closely as possible, however, we reserve the right to alter our itineraries at any time, due to unforeseen circumstances e.g. weather, road closures etc. We will endeavour to provide a service as close to the itinerary as possible in these circumstances. If your tour is unable to be completed for any reason, we will ensure that all passengers are returned to their point of departure and will repay money to the guests based upon the amount of the tour that was completed. These figures will be calculated based upon the time of day that the tour was aborted.

DO YOU HAVE SOME FLEXIBILITY IN WHAT WE SEE AND HOW LONG WE STAY AT EACH SITE? IS IT POSSIBLE TO EITHER SKIP A SITE, OR PERHAPS ADD SOME TIME ONTO THE TOUR?
Yes, absolutely. All our tours have flexibility in what you see, and how long you stay at each site, we can certainly incorporate the places you would like to visit in the itinerary, and skip other sites. Please let us know, if there are some other particular places you would like to visit, and we would be happy to tailor this for you.

IS THIS A PRIVATE TOUR, IN WHICH OURPARTY TRAVELSIN THE ENTIRE VENICLE, EVEN IF WE DON’T HAVE SEVEN TRAVELING WITH US?
Yes, all our tours would come as small group private tours in our comfortable Mercedes V Class, or Landrover Discovery in which your party would travel with us at your own pace in the entire vehicle, even if you don’t have the maximum people in your party. The price is per vehicle and NOT per person.

IN YOUR SEVEN SEAT MINIBUS, ARE ANY OF THE SEATS FACING BACKWARDS, AND IF SO, HOW MANY?
All of our seven seats in the Minibus are facing forward for a better view.

DO YOU TAKE CHILDREN ON YOUR TOURS?
We regret that we cannot accept children under the age of 5 years old on our tours, excluding VIP tours, where any age is acceptable.

WHAT ABOUT TRAVEL INSURANCE?
We Do Not Provide Travel Insurance, and we would strongly advise that you take out your own Travel Insurance before you travel with us.It is up to you to ensure that you are fully covered in the event that you need to cancel your tour, or leave the tour early, due to unforeseen circumstances.

WHAT’S THE WEATHER LIKE AND WHAT CLOTHING WILL BE SUITABLE FOR THE TOUR?
The Highland’s climate is actually quite moderate and very changeable, although on occasions it can get really hot or really cold. As the old Highland saying goes, ‘there’s no such thing as bad weather, only the wrong clothes!’
All of our tours include some outdoor itinerary, please bring outdoor clothing and footwear (including umbrellas), suitable for the tour conditions and highly variable Highland weather.

WHAT IS YOUR TOURS FITNESS AND MOBILITY CONDITIONS?
All our tours donot involve lengthy walks or require high levels of fitness, however, some tour locations may optionally involve walking up a short steep hill or stairs (e.g. in castles).

WHAT HAPPENS IF SOMEONE IS VERY NEGATIVE ON THE TOUR?
Our aim is to ensure that everyone on the tour have a fantastic experience in the Highlands. We would love everyone to have fun,to learn about Scotland and the Highland history, to enjoy stunning scenery on the journey. For most people coming on our tours it is the holiday of a lifetime and a very special experience. If some of the guests begin to dominate conversation with negative or depressing topics, then we will have no alternative other than to privately ask them to stop. We never intend to upset guests, however, it is our responsibility to ensure that everyone can enjoy the experience they have paid for.