The bagpiper boy at a 13th century castle in the village of Dornie in Scotland. We met this young and earnest person bagpiping away like he had done it all his life during Easter break three years ago.
In the conversation that ensued once he had stopped for a break, it turned out that his surname was Mackenzie. “But a cannae tell ye for sure that a am fae yon family that lived in the castle,” he added in his soft burr. He was referring to the Clan Mackenzie who had long held the castle as their domain along with their allies, the Clan MacRae which owns the castle today.
His backdrop possibly could not be more dramatic as the castle of Eilean Donan, named after a Gaelic priest called Donnán who is supposed to have established a church on this island before he was martyred. The castle was built upon the small tidal island with the scenic Kintail ranges in its backdrop. Its main purpose was to be a fortification against Viking raids in those early times, but after, it went through the turbulent Jacobite rebellion period that haunts Scottish history and was abandoned for 200 years post the rebellion.
How to Get There: The preferred mode of travel is a car. Hire one from Glasgow and drive down to the castle via the A82 or A9. You are looking at a time span of roughly 4 hours. There are bus tours that bring you to the castle too from Inverness, Edinburgh and Glasgow. For train journeys, you can start with a train from Inverness, take another train to the Kyle of Lochalsh and finally a taxi or bus to Eilean Donan, because if you did plan to walk from the Kyle of Lochalsh, you would be on the road for a couple of hours. I repeat, a car would really be your most hassle-free option.
Best time to be there: Sunset. You see why?
Entrance price: £7.50. Worth it. The MacRae descendant who bought and restored the castle in the 90s has done a bang-up job. You will see life recreated as it must have been once inside the castle.
Opening Times: Between 10am-to 6pm during high season (March-October). Otherwise it is open between 10am-4pm.
Have you been to the dreamy Eilean Donan?
ARUNDHATI BASU 
I have… and I drove you there Dippy Dotty 🙂
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Absolutely. Had I been driving, we might have been charting the waters of the loch 😉
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:-9 🙂
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It almost happened to Dina as she spotted the castle. Beautiful post from the two of you. 🙂
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Thank you Klausbernd. Adi is always delighted to be acknowledged too and you see what I mean by the photos! I am fishing out the ones that were still bearable.
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🙂
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Looks beautiful! Scotland is my 2018 trip and Eilean Donan is on my itinerary. Is it 2018 yet???? 😛
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Ha ha a few glasses of wine later? 😀 Scotland is magical. You are in for unfettered beauty.
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Beautiful scenes! I expect Nessy to pop up.
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The thing about being a celebrity is that she is bloody busy.
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Beautiful pictures! I loved my visit here but it was too short to go inside so you’ve convinced me to head back 🙂
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Hello Vanessa, it is nice inside. The way they showcase life as it used to be in the old days with the large kitchen, the hearth of the home and all that…they have most aspects of life inside the castle even replicated and I thought it was neatly done. So maybe you will not curse me 😉
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[…] Fort William and we were finally on the Road to the Isles, the A830, that took us into Dornie to Eilean Donan. The sun had started the process of retiring for the day, in the backdrop of the castle, and with a […]
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