Dundreggan Rewilding Centre is Trees for Life's free visitor centre on the A887 in Glenmoriston, six miles west of Invermoriston and about 19 miles (27 minutes) from Drumnadrochit. In 2026 it opened daily from March to October, 9.30am to 6.30pm, with a cafe, exhibitions and four forest trails open all year.
The Dundreggan Rewilding Centre is a free visitor centre run by the charity Trees for Life on its Dundreggan estate in Glenmoriston. It sits on the A887 Skye road, six miles west of Invermoriston and about 19 miles (roughly half an hour) from Drumnadrochit. In 2026 it opened daily from March to October, 9.30am to 6.30pm. Entry and parking are free, dogs are welcome, and the four forest trails stay open all year.
Trees for Life bills it as the first visitor attraction of its kind in the world. It opened in April 2023 as a gateway to the 10,000-acre estate, where the charity has been letting native forest grow back since 2008.
Checked October 2026, from the centre’s website:
| Detail | |
|---|---|
| Season | Open daily, March to October |
| Hours | 9.30am to 6.30pm |
| Cafe | An Nead cafe; hot food until 6pm |
| Winter (November to February) | Hours differ and had not been published; call or email ahead |
| Trails and car park | Open all year |
| Entry | Free |
| Parking | Free, with accessible spaces and two EV charging points |
| Dogs | Welcome, including in the cafe |
| Contact | 01320 340380, Dundreggan Estate, Glenmoriston, IV63 7YJ |
The centre sometimes closes for private events: it shut on Saturday 10 October 2026 for a wedding, for example. Check the opening hours page before a long drive.
Bookable activities, such as guided rewilding walks, tree nursery tours, bushcraft, woodcraft and photography workshops, cost extra. Their prices are on the centre’s activities page; this guide does not list them because they change.
Inside, the exhibitions cover rewilding, the estate’s wildlife and the Gaelic heritage of the glen, with displays in English and Gaelic. The centre also features a tree sculpture of reclaimed metal by the artist Helen Denerley. Children get a natural play area, and the An Nead cafe (Gaelic for “the nest”) serves soups, pastries, salads and home-made cakes, with children’s portions.
The real point is the land. Trees for Life says the estate was damaged by centuries of grazing by sheep, goats and deer, and that letting the forest regenerate has created habitat for over 4,000 species of plants and animals, golden eagles and black grouse among them. Its tree nursery, which you can see on the oak path, grows tens of thousands of trees a year, including rare species.
Checked October 2026:
| Path | Distance | Time | Grade |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ceum an Aitinn, the juniper path | 916 m | 30 min | All-access; optional steeper detour to a waterfall viewpoint |
| Ceum an Daraich, the oak path | 1.2 km | 45 min | Moderate; past the tree nursery and old oaks |
| Ceum a’ Ghiuthais, the pine path | 2.2 km | 1 h 30 min | Strenuous; steep, rough, boggy in places |
| Ceum an Fhraoich, the heather path | 4 km | 2 hours | Strenuous; rocky track onto open moorland |
The juniper path is wide and surfaced, suitable for wheelchairs and buggies. The two longer paths climb onto open hill with views over Glenmoriston, and the centre warns that some burn crossings on them may be impassable after rain.
Drive south on the A82 along Loch Ness to Invermoriston, about 13 miles, then turn right onto the A887. Dundreggan is six miles up the glen on that road. Total: about 19 miles, roughly 27 minutes by OSRM routing.
Without a car, the Scottish Citylink 917 from Inverness to Skye calls at Drumnadrochit and passes the centre. It is a request stop on the far side of the road from the entrance. The centre says the fare is £2 under the Scottish bus fare cap pilot, which runs in the Highlands until at least early 2027. Check times with Citylink before you travel; the 917 runs only a few times a day.
Dundreggan works well on the way to or from Skye, or as a half day from the loch. Invermoriston, where you turn off the A82, has Telford’s old bridge over the River Moriston falls. Further down the loch is Fort Augustus and its canal locks. The Skye day trips from Inverness stop at Invermoriston for coffee but not at Dundreggan, so the centre is best reached by car or the 917.
For a different side of the same rewilding story, Trees for Life also worked with Forestry and Land Scotland to return beavers to Glen Affric in October 2025.
The centre has its own rooms (20 double and twin bedrooms in its An Spiris building), and Drumnadrochit is half an hour away for more choice; see where to stay at Loch Ness.
12 hours
The most-reviewed Skye day from Inverness, driving down Loch Ness to Invermoriston, then on to Eilean Donan Castle, Portree, the Old Man of Storr, Kilt Rock and Lealt Falls.
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Yes. The centre's own website says entry is free, parking is free and dogs are welcome, and that was still the case in October 2026. You pay only for the cafe, the An Spiris accommodation and the bookable activities, such as guided rewilding walks, tree nursery tours and bushcraft or woodcraft sessions.
For 2026 the centre opened daily from March to October, 9.30am to 6.30pm, with hot food in the An Nead cafe until 6pm. Winter hours differ and had not been published in October 2026, so call 01320 340380 or email before travelling in winter. The car park and footpaths stay open all year.
Drive the A82 to Invermoriston and turn west onto the A887, the Skye road. The centre is six miles along it, about 19 miles and half an hour from Drumnadrochit. Without a car, the Scottish Citylink 917 from Inverness passes the centre; it is a request stop on the opposite side of the road.
Walk the four waymarked trails, from a 916 m all-access juniper path to a 4 km heather path onto open moorland. Inside are hands-on exhibitions in English and Gaelic and a natural play area, and the An Nead cafe serves seasonal food. Guided walks and workshops run through the year and need booking.
Trees for Life has rewilded the Dundreggan estate since 2008, letting native forest regrow after centuries of grazing by sheep, goats and deer. The charity says the land now supports over 4,000 species of plants and animals, including golden eagles and black grouse, and its tree nursery grows tens of thousands of trees each year.
Invermoriston is a small village on the west shore of Loch Ness, 13 miles (19 minutes) south of Drumnadrochit, where the A887 turns west up Glenmoriston, the road towards Skye.
Glen Affric is a National Nature Reserve of old Caledonian pinewood, lochs and mountains west of Cannich, about 17 miles (25 minutes) from Drumnadrochit.
Fort Augustus is the village at the south-west end of Loch Ness, 19 miles (27 minutes) from Drumnadrochit and about 50 minutes from Inverness.
For most first visits, stay in Drumnadrochit: Urquhart Castle is 6 minutes by car and the Inverness coaches stop in the village.