If you're a Harry Potter fan, this is a must. You don't sit in closed private compartments but…read moreit's a relaxing ride to Mallaig. There you can find a cute little shop called Haggard Alley for all things Harry Potter. Not only do you go over the famous viaduct but you'll also pass the island where scenes were filmed and Dumbledore's grave. A very relaxing day trip.

Worth it. Totally worth it. Especially true if you're a Harry Potter fan as I am, but even if not,…read morethe scenery alone is majestic. There's plenty of info out there on how to book, routes, etc, so I won't go into that here. Tips I'll share: 1) book early - don't even think about trying to arrange this the night before. 2) don't do first class - while it's more comfy and usually our type of travel, we booked on one of the cars toward the back. That way you can see and video/snap pics of the front of the train as it goes over the viaduct. Makes you think lightening struck your forehead. 3) sit on the left side - if you're in the car facing to the front of the train, make sure your seat is on the left side. A much better view of the train going over the viaduct. 4) drink a beer or wine - even if it's 9:30 in the morning, which it was for us, have a brewskie...you're on vacation. 5) eat fast in Mallaig - don't spend a lot of time choosing restaurants. Pick a place the night before. When you arrive at Mallaig, run your happy bum to the restaurant you chose, order (and don't even try to get starters first then mains) and eat. You can take pics afterwards. Restaurants there are small, get slammed with each Twain's arrival, plus the local tourists who come by car. Hope this helps!

This is an excellent Visitor Centre located just above the harbor to the side of the main part of…read morethe city of Portree. It is very easy to find and a short walk up the hill. They have maps and information of all sorts and will help you book a tour should you need. They also have free wifi and a couple of benches outside to sit and get your email.

The Bright Water Visitor Centre is also known as the Gavin Maxwell Museum. The main offices of the…read moreVisitor Centre can be found on the pier in Kyleakin and there you can find out all that the visitor centre has to offer. The place I am reviewing is the nature reserve which can be seen below the Skye Bridge. There, you will see the original cottage where Gavin Maxwell (who wrote Ring of Bright Water)lived. This has been updated but kept as close as possible to the original. Obviously, Otters feature a lot on the island but there is a wealth of wildlife to be spotted by the keen naturalist. Tours and wildlife hide visits canbe booked at the Visitor Centre in Kyleakin and these are accessible for wheelchair users also. The guided tours are Monday to Friday from 2pm and you can take your place in the wildlife hide between 11am and 3pm on Mondays, Tuedays and Thursdays during the summer months. The actress Virgina McKenna is a regular visitor to the centre because of her work with the Eilean Ban Trust. I've been on a few of the wildlife walks and spent a couple of hours in the hide and I can tell you it's the most facinating and peaceful way to spend a day. The cottage is also available for holiday rental and sleeps up to 4 people and costs from £250 to £450 a week. I haven't stayed there myself but I hear it's a wonderful experience.

This ferry is one of only two ways to go to or from the Isle of Skye. The other way is driving via…read morethe Skye Bridge 20 miles to the north. Sometimes, weather can interfere with the ferry schedule and that can turn into quite a hassle for travelers. This ferry is fairly large and departs from the Armadale Ferry terminal. It can accommodate several big coach buses and we drove right on to it. There is comfortable seating both inside and outside and a coffee/snack shop onboard. I was told the fares are very reasonable and subsidized by the government. The fare for our 55 person coach bus for example was 160 GBP or $216 and I guess that is very reasonable. It takes about 25 minutes to reach the mainland and it is an enjoyable and scenic ride. I've personally never been on a ferry that was configured for both autos and buses. Apparently there are much bigger ferries out there, but this one was interesting enough.

10/11/2014: I don't think I've ever stayed in a Travelodge Hotel until this visit. It was a great…read morestay. Hotel staff were most helpful and friendly. The hotel from the front entrance to the room was immaculately clean. I am not one who needs frills in a hotel just the basics: clean bed and bth, comfy bed, decent TV, near where the things and places I want to visit, warm with good WiFi. (Pay the few bucks for the WiFi; it's worth it.) The Travelodge - Fort William was all of those things and it was so darn reasonably priced too. We noticed as soon as we made it to the room that there were signs showing their changes. It was apparent. Travelodge had been modernizing their hotels and it showed. Good job, Travelodge! Oh and that bed was HEAVEN!

We have stayed in this hotel before and like last time we had a lovely stay at the Travelodge which…read moreis perfectly located on the high street of Fort William with a Wetherspoon next door for breakfast although I wouldn't recommend the Wetherspoon. The sore feet sculpture is situated outside the hotel signifying the end of the West highland way so there is always a few tourists outside the hotel. The hotel beds were comfortable, the shower powerful, tea and coffee facilities in the room, our room was large and spacious. The walls are a bit thin but we weren't disturbed and we had a very pleasant stay. Would highly recommend!

This is for the Marine Bar that is part of the hotel. This is one of the first places you will see…read morewhen you enter the tony town of Mallaig. We had ridden up the steam train from Fort Williams and had a short stop here to grab food and drinks. We mostly just ended up in this bar drinking while we waited for the train. All the restaurants were packed with train people and other tourists so we did not have time to really wait. There were not a lot of people in the bar while we were there but the bartender was friendly and the place was clean.

We took the train from Fort William to Mallaig so we could experience the views of the Hogwarts…read moreExpress route, especially the Glenfinnan Aqueduct. Arriving at 11:45 in the evening we checked in, slept and then left the next morning at 10 am. The hotel was pretty small, but nice and fairly modern. Location was easily the best part as it was right off the train platform less than a minute walk away. Reserving the room on booking.com, I must have made a mistake because we ended up with a room to sleep four when we had five. The hotel understood the dilemma and accepted us anyway and brought us another comforter to make the stay more comfortable. My only knock is the location was also noisy. It wasn't because of the train or cars, but people on the street. Also for the amenities and the short stay it definitely felt overpriced. Well over $200 for the night and we got a bed. I've stayed in places with a full kitchen for that price.

* Nevis Bank Hotel, Fort Willliam. 3 Stars. A small, contemporary hotel, with attractive rooms…read morethat are very tight. The big issue here is safety. The bathtub has very high sides. That makes entry and especially exiting after a shower difficult and dangerous. There are no grab bars for safety. On that basis alone, I would absolutely not recommend this hotel.

I can't say much about the Hotel, but this included cool roadside stop. A "Shop and Dine,"…read moreCafeteria Style, on the Banks and Bend of Loch Linnhe & Loch Eil. Our tour bus along with many others have supported the livelihood of the fine people working in the shop and kitchen. Fish 'n Chip's in the Highlands of Scotland seemed the best option for a rewarding survival of the "Shop & and Female Companions." You place your order with tray in had. It then getting barked to the back and after a short and painless wait - botta bing the piping (no pun intended) hot food is on your tray! You progress to the sweet cashier lady and get reminded that you (me) don't have a beverage. Oops. I quickly I the chilled bottles of lagers and grab an Lemon Shandy. Seating inside and out. It was a beautiful sunning day and no debate was raised on "outside." With sun on my back, extra tarter sauce, and Shandy popped open, it was time to rate the Fish 'n Chip's may last dish on the Cape Cod to the States. No comparison, these Chips were crunchy outside and tender inside. Same applied to the Fish. Crunchy, fresh, and tender. A heavenly treat. Of course, the Shandy, weather, location, and company added greatly to the experience.

We stayed 2 nights at the Bosville in Portree and found it to be the perfect base to explore Skye…read morefrom. Portree is tiny, so any hotel within the city will have you a 5-minute max walk to anywhere else in the city. Our Premiere Double room was spacious, comfortable, and very tastefully appointed. It felt luxurious and upscale with lots of visual details and amenities for us to enjoy and feel well taken care. We had a great view from our room of the bay in one direction, and the street below in another. Breakfast in the restaurant was plentiful. They brought a continental plate over for the table each morning, which included croissants, yogurt, and fruit, plus you could order from the extensive breakfast menu, which included plenty of vegetarian options. The espresso machine was broken our first morning, but the French press coffee gave me the as-strong-as-I wanted-it-to-be coffee fix I needed. There is no official parking for the hotel, so if you're lucky enough to get one of the spots directly in front of the hotel, it's kind of like winning the lottery. We found it easy to park just up the road (heading out of town) about a block away...no parking limitations allowed us to leave our car there for 2 days. (And, worst case scenario, there's a long-term paid lot [Bayfield] not too far...but we didn't have to use it.) The only quirk was in the spacious and luxurious bathroom...there's no shampoo / conditioner / shower gel /shelf in the shower. There's a small soap shelf, but putting the provided shampoo/conditioner/gel bottles on top of it...well, they wouldn't all fit there, and pressing the dispenser makes it seem like that might break if sitting on top of it...so we had to put those provided items on the floor of the shower to use them. It seems like a basic thing to have a shelf for those in the shower, or wall mounts for them, as they have in almost every other hotel we've ever been to. We loved this hotel, its location, the service, and found it perfect to explore Portree and Skye.

While the restaurant and staff are top notch, the hotel is subpar at best. No elevator, just lots…read moreof steps up a narrow stairway. Decent bathroom but room is very small with no ventilation unless you open the windows. Sitting on a broken chair in the room writing this while my wife is sitting on the bed. Room 14's view is a brick wall. Very disappointed...

Very good and attentive staff. Extremely easy check in process. Rooms are cozy and have little…read moreextras like electric kettle for tea and coffee. Shower stalls are a bit small but clean and do the job. Plenty of storage cubbies which actually came in handy. Breakfast in the am was super good and sever quick. The porridge was very good. Eggs were made to style , coffee tea and biscuits also good. Plenty of extra things as well such as cereal , yogurt , juice etc. you won't leave breakfast hungry. Only "negatives " were the stairs . Definitely not good if you have any type of leg/knee issues and no outlet next to bed . Other than that we were very happy and the location is fantastic right in the center of town basically. For service would say 5 star

This place is clean, convenient and the owners are the best people ever. Breakfast is fantastic…read more(and we tried everything). I wouldn't stay anywhere else in Portree.