[Closed] Things to do around inverness area?

Odd timing, weather-wise, as it will still be pretty chilly for sustained outdoor stuff.

I'm taking my five-year old daughter up over the Easter weekend, to a village on the Tarbat peninsula, and I'm kinda looking for stuff to do too.
There's the Tarbat Discovery Centre in said village, focussing on the Pictish History of the local area, but I'm unsure when it opens for the 'summer' season.

I was hoping to get a visit in to the Falls of Shin and all, as the river will be in speight then too, and more impressive.

En route I shall be popping in to the Black Isle brewery for some supplies, and they do tours. Given that it is, essentially, a micro-brewery, the tours last ten minutes at most.

You could take in Culloden battlefield too, but the wee ones may just look at you like you're daft!

There should be plenty of wee villages or towns around and about that you could visit (Strathpeffer, Tain), and more than a few castles (Dunrobin) amongst other attractions.

As mentioned though, the high-season opening hours may not apply just at the time of your visit.

Check out Visit Scotland for more detailed info.
I'm making assumptions that you'll be staying 'north' of Innir-nish (Gaelic pronunciation - get kudos in the local pub), but there's a whole lot more than I suggested.

Nevertheless, I hope you have a good time whilst away, and that all the family enjoy it.

Plenty of shopping and outdoor activities - Dolphin Cruise - Loch Ness Exhibition - Castles & Whisky (not great for the kids perhaps...). Water slides at Inverness leisure centre might be more their thing.

Worth visiting Aviemore and Moray too - Check out [url= http://www.greaterspeyside.com ]Greater Speyside[/url]for local events and things to do nearby.

If in Aviemore visit the Mountain Cafe at the very top of the High Street or the 'Ord Ban' restaurant / cafe on the Rothiemurcus estate (Best Cake in the area - Doesn't sell Clarky cat though 😕 Loch Morlich & Bothy Bikes nearby for some family trail fun.

Enjoy !

Things I can think of that may be open when you're here:

Brodie Castle, nr Forres. National Trust for Scotland. 16th-century tower house with art and antiques. Castle open 1 Apr to 25 Oct varying times/ days. Grounds open all year, daily, with child-friendly duck pond.

Dunrobin Castle, nr Golspie. About 1 hour from Inverness. Fairytale style castle and victorian grounds. Open April to October.

Falls of Shin, as mentioned above. Although a pal of mine re-named it the Falls of Sh*t, following a visit. I've not been myself so can't comment.

Fort George, Ardersier. Open all year. Massive fort with artillery fortifications; regimental museum of the Queen’s Own Highlanders; collection of 18th-century arms and military equipment; barrack rooms recreating soldiers’ living conditions in olden times etc. Prob one for little boys, rather than little girls?

Plodda Falls, nr Tomich. 2x circular, shortish waymarked walks to Plodda falls from the car park. From the A831, from either Beauly or Drumnadrochit, take the unclassified road signposted to Tomich. Go through Tomich and continue along the bumpy forest track. Plodda falls carpark is 3.5 miles along this road.

Jacobite Cruises on Loch Ness. I can recommend the 'Freedom' tour, which consists of 30mins boat trip on the loch to Castle Urquhart, an hour to look around this pretty impressive castle, then 30mins boat trip back. Operates all year round.

Culbin Forest, near Forres. Forestry Commission plantation on former sand dunes. Easy gradient well surfaced paths with interest points along the way. Lookout tower in the forest. Good if you can hire/ borrow a couple of bikes with child seats (don't know if this is feasible).

If you find yourself on the Black Ilse, you could try spotting dolphins at low tide at Chanonry point, nr Fortrose. Fortrose cathedral is worth a look too (its actually a ruined church).

Tain takes about 5 mins to look around IMHO. Although the Glenmorangie distillery nearby is excellent (you'll have to lose the kids first :-)).

Does not matter what you want to do,by the end of the first day you will be getting stuffed into a wickerman.

its a nice drive to fort augustus, especially if you go the back way via Foyers (impressive waterfall there)
At FA you can take a fast RIB trip on the Loch, not to be missed.

Inverness itself has a good leisure pool with waves and stuff.

Ness Islands has a ride-on train set and are worth a wee explore.

Glen Ord distillery does tours.

Falls of Rogie near Contin are OK for kids.

druidh - Member
...Falls of Rogie near Contin are OK for kids.