Adventure Travel: Scotland Guide

Adventure in Scotland doesn’t have to mean an expedition. It can be a family Munro before lunch, an afternoon paddle on a quiet loch, or a canoe drifting down the Tay to a pub on the riverbank.

This guide covers the outdoor experiences we love most, most of which we’ve done ourselves, and how to fit them into a self-drive trip. Your vehicle carries the kit and gets you to the trailhead, and your route can bend around the weather.

Talk to us about your adventure

Walking and Munro's

Scotland has 282 Munros, mountains over 3,000 feet, and a good number are closer to Perth than most visitors realise. Our kids have climbed four of them, all in Highland Perthshire:

• Ben Lawers and Beinn Ghlas, above Loch Tay. Most people climb them together, and Ben Lawers is the highest mountain in Perthshire.
• Schiehallion, near Kinloch Rannoch. A good path most of the way, then a long boulder field to the summit that needs care.
• Ben Chonzie, near Comrie. Quieter, gentler, and a good first Munro.

If you’d like a smaller hill first, Ben Vrackie above Pitlochry isn’t a Munro but has a well-made path and big views.

For something longer, we’ve walked both the West Highland Way (Milngavie to Fort William) and the Great Glen Way (Fort William to Inverness). With a vehicle you can walk your favourite sections as day walks, rather than committing to the whole route.

Ben Nevis is a big day, and the Cuillin Ridge on Skye is a serious scramble that most people tackle with a mountain guide. Check the forecast, take a map, and start early.

Scotland Travel Guide
Activities

On the Water

Some of our best family days have been on rivers and lochs.

Canoeing the Tay. We’ve taken a Canadian canoe down the River Tay and pulled in at the Taybank in Dunkeld for lunch. It’s an easy, sociable way to see Highland Perthshire, and local outfitters can provide boats, guides and transport back to your car.

Paddleboarding and wild swimming. We’ve paddled and swum at Loch Lomond, Loch Tay and on the Isle of Harris. Loch Tay is calm and close to our Perth base. Loch Lomond is easy to reach from Glasgow. On Harris, the water off the white-sand beaches looks Caribbean and feels very Scottish.

Sea kayaking. For something more remote, the west coast around Arisaig, Skye and Mull offers sheltered bays, seals and the odd dolphin. Go with a guide unless you’re experienced on the sea.

Scottish water is cold all year. Never swim alone, get in slowly, and check conditions and depth first.

Explore our articles:

Wild Swimming in Scotland
Hot & Cold Water Therapy
Outer Hebrides Family Road Trip

Child stood on waters edge in dry robe, with paddle board in background

Wildlife & Boat Trips

Much of Scotland’s wildlife turns up unplanned: red deer by the roadside, an eagle over a ridge, dolphins seen from a ferry. Driving slowly and building in time to stop is the best way to see it.

For a better chance, take a boat. Trips run from Mull, Skye and Ullapool to the Summer Isles, and further out to St Kilda and the Corryvreckan whirlpool. Depending on the season, you may see whales, basking sharks, puffins and sea eagles.

Most wildlife boat trips run from spring to early autumn, and puffins are usually around from about April to early August. Book ahead in summer.

Mountain Biking

Sandy and Alex from our team are both keen mountain bikers, and their favourite place to ride is Comrie Croft, half an hour from Perth, where you can hire bikes and pick from trails of different difficulty.

Ask them for their favourite runs when you collect your vehicle. Further afield, Glentress in the Borders, the Nevis Range at Fort William and the forest trails of the Cairngorms are all worth a detour.

Two bikers on a trail in Perthshire at Comrie Croft

Winter Adventures

Adventure doesn’t stop in October. We’ve taken the kids sledging at Glenshee, where snowy hillsides sit right beside the road over to Braemar. Quieter roads, low winter light and the chance of snow on the tops make it a very different trip.

Our Highland Reset combines a wild swim, a wood-fired sauna and two nights in Highland Perthshire. It’s an easy way to try cold water with someone looking after the details.

Explore:

The Winter Collection
Scotland in Winter

Land Rover Defender parked on a snow covered Highland pass

Scotlands Best Regions for Adventure

Highland Perthshire – Munros, canoeing in the Tay, paddleboarding at Loch Tay, Comrie Croft
Isle of Skye – The Cuillin, Fairy Pools, sea kayaking, Old Man of Storr
Torridon & Wester Ross – Remote mountains, empty beaches, wild swimming
Glencoe & Lochaber – Ben Nevis, the end of the West Highland Way, mountain biking
Cairngorms – Forests, wildlife, Loch Morlich, Glenshee in winter
Outer Hebrides – White-sand beaches, paddleboarding on Harris, island hopping

Plan your adventure with us

Tell us what you’d like to do, whether that’s a first Munro for the kids, a paddle on Harris or a week of walking, and we’ll build a bespoke self-drive route around it, with places to stay and activities booked where they need to be.

You’ll collect your Defender or Jimny in Perth, an hour from Edinburgh Airport, and we’re on WhatsApp throughout your trip.

Plan My Trip

Testimonials

We had a great time spending 4 nights camping with Nomadic, visiting Cullen and Fortrose and then spending a couple of nights in the Cairngorms. The team were great, the car was an almost brand new Defender 110 with loads of space, and Nomadic provide all the kit you need and more (which was all high quality and in as new condition). Highly recommend as a great way of travelling around Scotland.