Scottish Whisky & Ancient Urquhart Castle & Loch Ness from port

A memorable experience

Our guide Mo was very attentive to our needs and went out of her way to show us and tell us as much as possible. There were only four of us on the tour so it felt much like a private tour! …An extra bonus for us was that the other couple who attended the tour had an even more memorable experience—he proposed to her at Urquhart Castle, and hired a bagpiper to make the event even more special! Mo & Thistle staff coordinated this event very nicely, and we felt lucky to be a part of the special day!

Great day in Scotland.

We had a wonderful day with Emma Macaulay and Thistle Excursions on our trip to Urquhart Castle, Loch Ness with stops for Scotch tasting and to visit the Highland cows and a local farm. I highly recommend this tour.

We saw so much. A full day.

Our tour was amazing. We did so much in so little time and never felt rushed. I highly recommend. Tour guide was amazing

Trip to singleton distillery and dunrobin castle

Our tour guide June from Thistle tours did an amazing job hosting our small group. Like other reviews, this is a “choose your own adventure” itinerary based on your groups needs and the time you have available. For example, we couldn’t fit in the black rock gorge trip because our cruise ran late to dock and our group prioritized whiskey tasting. Additionally, you don’t have time for all the whiskey distilleries on the list so don’t plan on hitting every single one. It’s just not possible to fit it all in one day.

Not Whiskey Galore

Whiskey Galore was not, only went to one distillery and the Whiskey lovers on the trip were disappointed, tour guide hijacked tour and we saw places not on our wish list or listed on itinerary.

Thistle Excursion bait and switch

Where to start! I had booked this tour several months before arriving at Invergordon. It was supposed to be a semi private (i.e. maximum of 8 people) tour that went to different distilleries and include Harry Potter's Rock Gorge and Dunrobin Castle/Falcons. When I showed up for the tour we were to board on a bus with 32 persons and turned out to be a different tour with only 1 distillery visit at Ord plus Dunrobin Castle and Falcons. No Harry Potter Rock Gorge, no other distilleries. There had been no previous indication that the tour I had booked (and paid for) was not being provided. Maxine did give us a 15% refund but I have been left with a very sour taste and distrust of Thistle Excursions. Don't get me wrong, the distillery tour at Ord was excellent and Dunrobin Castle was worth the visit (although we could have used more time there). I had specifically booked a small tour to avoid an impersonal large group tour and the tedious time spent on a large bus.

Worth it!

June is an excellent tour guide. This was a fantastic tour. With the small group, we were able to have a more personalized experience.

Wonderful Introduction to the Highlands

Took the tour in a 6-seater minibus which made the experiences much more personal for all of us. Rhona, our tour guide, was very knowledgeable about the area, its history and culture. She made frequent stops at photo opportunities and points of interested beyond just the highlights of the tour. One example was a lunch stop at a local village bakery where we purchased a very tasty lunch made to order on fresh baked rolls! The whisky tour was very impressive even though I myself am not a whiskey drinker. The castle and grounds are very impressive and the falconry display was well worth seeing. The weather made the trip to the gorge questionable, so the group decided to opt for a longer shopping period instead. All in all, an excellent experience. We would love to return to this area again for an extended visit someday.

Excellent

The tour was excellent and our guide was super informative and kind - and a good driver!! Everything went smoothly - the only thing is be prepared for all kinds of weather

The tour company should stick to the same itinerary that was advertised.

It appears that we were put into Tour 1 rather than Tour 4 that we booked which skipped the seaboard villages and the Black Gorges (lower price too). We were told by the manager that those two places were not in the itinerary of our booked tour. In the end we did go to the Black Gorge, but not the seaboard villages.

Really enjoyable day

Emma was a great guide. Very knowledgeable and shared it well. The stops were timed well too. I don't like whiskey but the distillery tour was really interesting. Dunrobin Castle was disappointing inside bit the outside and grounds were spectacular. Only 15 of us on a brand new coach, so loads of room.

Whisky galore: great excursion to Clynelish distillery, Dornich and Dunrobin castle

There were only 6 of us so we were very lucky. Rhona, our friendly, knowledgeable guide and driver, picked us up in the cruise port. After a short visit to Dornoch we went to the Clynelish distillery where we spent 2 hours full of surprises. Alfie did an amazing presentation and showed us the distillery. We tasted several whiskies and we had so much fun! We enjoyed Dunrobin castle (really worth a visit!) and the falcon show before returning to the ship. The landscape was beautiful

Absolutely stunning tour

My Parents and myself booked this tour and got greeted by David our Tour Guide for this day. When I asked him, how many people will be today, he told us it was just my parents and me. We were so surprised. Also, David spoke such a nice "Tourist-friendly" English, which made it easy for me to translate everything to my parents. Hidden spots in the forest, where no one else from our cruise ship had the chance to see, a wonderful castle and a great destillery - David designed a wonderful tour for us and was also such a good driver with so much information. This day was definitely one of the highlights of our whole cruise. Thank you David!

Awesome Excursion

We were a group of 6 (4 adults and 2 teenagers) and spent a day touring with June from Thistle Excursions. We arrived in Invergordon via a cruise ship. The directions for meeting June were easy to follow and we had no issues. We had an awesome time on this excursion. We went to the Black Rock Gorge of Harry Potter fame, Dunrobin Castle, and Clynelish Distillery. We enjoyed our time with June as she shared her knowledge of the area. June was very personable and kept everyone interested. CLynelish Distillery was very interesting even though none of the adults are whiskey drinkers -- it was a must-stop while in Scotland. They even had some refreshments set up for the teenagers who were underage and not able to participate in the tastings. Dunrobin Castle and the falconry demonstration were also a lot of fun. We would recommend June and Thistle Excursions.

Best Tour Ever with David!!!

We are soooo happy we booked this tour with Thistle Excursions!! Our guide, David, was fantastic!!! A really great guy and so knowledgeable on the history and attractions on this tour, and very entertaining!. Every part of the Excursion was great and it became our favourite excursion on our British Isles cruise!

Great tour!

Emma was a lovely tour guide and a wealth of information! We had a great time, saw a lot and didn’t have to drive ourselves :)

Tour good, bus bad.

Glenmorangie and Dunrobin castle were both amazing. The pictish stones and falconary were also great and entertaining. The history of Glenmorangie, how whiskey was made, followed by tasting. The coach was full and beyond the advertised 20 out of 24 seats - it was 24 out of 24. This meant the heavyset man was forced out of a front seat and sent towards the back where his girth blocked almost half the aisle. Several people had to sit facing backwards due to the coach being full and one was vomiting at the first stop due to it. This wasn’t the driver’s or guide’s fault. I’m unsure if Viator or the tour company messed this up. Having a foward facing arrangement may have been better. Mary did an excellent job explaining the stops, keeping the trip on time and sharing knowledge about the locations we both stopped at or drove near.

Highly recommended cruise ship tour in Invergordon.

Excellent tour. We normally book private but we enjoyed going with the small group. We all ended up at the same restaurant for lunch. We would never have guessed this was Anna’s first solo tour. She was very sweet and shared information about her life and coming from the US I always find this an interesting part of any tour. We really enjoyed all of it. Seeing black rock gorge was beautiful. We loved the whiskey tour at Glenmorangie. And our favorite part was the castle and the falcon exhibit/show. Tour was the perfect length. Thank you. Highly recommend. Not a ton of walking which was also great for members of our group.

Amazing Day with Thistle Tours an Experience we Will Remember Forever!

WE LOVED THIS TOUR COMPANY AND THIS TOUR!!! Maxine, the owner, was always quick to respond and we were even treated to her personally coming to join us on one part of the tour. I felt like we were friends since we e-mailed so often, from the fact that we had them booked in May, 2020, when Covid cancelled everything, and we just kept moving the booking forward till we were finally able to take their tour in May 17, 2022! Our guide for the day was David, and he was absolutely wonderful. There were a total of 4 of us on the tour, and I appreciate that they keep their tours very small. So many highlights on this tour, but Dunrobin Castle was the thing we will remember forever followed by the beautiful Black Rock Gorge. Everything else was fantastic but those two sites were magical. David was so knowledgeable and there was nothing we could ask that he couldn't answer. It was one of the best tours we have ever taken! If we were going to Invergordon again, I would not hesitate to book another tour with Thistle tours!

Great customer service

Ditto on excellent customer service for COVid cancellation. We will definitely rebook when we can travel

Surprisingly good

We had a fun and educational day. The guide was very good. Recommended. Was our first Tripadvisor experience. Don't do anything else anymore

5 Sterne plus!

Nachdem wir schon im letzten Jahr mit Thistle Excursions eine ganz tolle Tour gemacht haben, wollten wir dieses Mal eine Whiskey Destillerie un Dunrobin Castle sehen. Wir wurden sehr freundlich von unserem Tourguide June empfangen und fuhren gemeinsam mit einem weiteren Paar in einem geräumigen Fahrzeug zunächst zum Millionärs view. Während der Fahrt und den Stops erzählte uns June viele interessante Informationen und Geschichten über Land und Leute. Wir hatten eine ausführliche Führung durch die Balblair Destillerie. Nach der interessanten Besichtigung konnten wir auch noch 3 Sorten Whisky verkosten. Im Anschluss fuhren wir nach Dornoch und hatten dort Zeit uns den Ort ansehen zu können und auch Fish&Chips zu essen. Weiter ging es nach Dunrobin Castle wo wir bei traumhaften Wetter zunächst den Park (inklusive Falken-Show) und anschließend das Castle von innen besichtigen konnten. Anschließend brachte uns June sicher und pünktlich zum Schiff zurück. Die Tour war sehr gut organisiert und June ist eine sehr nette und kompetente Reiseleiterin. Wir haben den Tag sehr genossen und würden jederzeit wieder bei Thistle buchen Andrea und Dirk

Wunderfull Highlands

Wir wurden freundlich von unserem Guide Lann empfangen. Es folgte eine sehenswerte Rundfahrt durch die Highlands mit interessanten Informationen und vielen Fotostopps.

Kann man machen!

Emma ist ein guter Guide und eine sehr gute Fahrerin. Leider war das Fahrzeug so ausgelegt dass man sich sehr eng auf den Vordersitz im Wechsel setzen musste. Wir hatten leider keinen Whisky in Hülle und Fülle sondern nur den Besuch einer Destillerie. Der Aufenthalt in den Dunrobin Castle ist mit 2, 5 Std zu lang gehalten. Leider war die Beschreibung des Treffpunktes nicht ausreichend so dass am Anfang etwas Hektik entstanden ist. Eine genaue Information über den Treffpunkt wo du nicht gegeben.