From Edinburgh, take the direct ScotRail train to Inverness, about 3 hours 45 minutes, then a Citylink or Stagecoach bus to Drumnadrochit in 25 to 34 minutes. Driving is about 173 miles and just under four hours. A day tour from Edinburgh takes 12.5 hours, most of it on the coach.
Edinburgh to Loch Ness takes about four hours whichever way you go. The simplest is the direct ScotRail train from Edinburgh Waverley to Inverness, averaging 3 hours 45 minutes, then a Citylink or Stagecoach bus to Drumnadrochit in 25 to 34 minutes. Driving is about 173 miles, just under four hours without stops. A coach day tour from Edinburgh is possible, but it lasts 12.5 hours and only part of that is at the loch.
The question is less how to get there than whether to go for the day. If you can, stay a night.
| Option | Time | Cost | Best for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Train to Inverness, then bus | About 3 h 45 min, plus 25 to 34 min on the bus | Train fare varies (check ScotRail); bus £2 single | Overnight stays, car-free travel |
| Drive | About 173 miles, 3 h 50 min free-flow | Fuel | The south shore, Glen Affric, flexible days |
| Coach day tour | 12.5 hours return | From $59 on GetYourGuide | One free day and no wish to stay |
Checked October 2026. Train times from ScotRail; drive time from OSRM routing on 14 October 2026; bus fare from Transport Scotland; tour prices from GetYourGuide.
There is no train to Drumnadrochit. You take the train to Inverness and the bus down the loch.
ScotRail runs direct trains from Edinburgh Waverley to Inverness: 11 a day, averaging 3 hours 45 minutes, with the first at 06:36. Weekend and bank holiday journeys are “slightly longer”, ScotRail says. Inverness bus station is a short walk from the railway station. From there:
All bus times checked October 2026. Adult singles are capped at £2 under the Scottish fare-cap pilot. The full timetable, stops and Sunday advice are on the Inverness to Drumnadrochit page. Book castle tickets before you travel; in summer Historic Environment Scotland says they often sell out.
An early train makes a long day possible: catch the first and you can be at Urquhart Castle by early afternoon. But we have not checked the evening trains back to Edinburgh, and a missed bus leaves little slack, so plan both directions before committing.
The fastest route by OSRM’s reckoning is the M90 across the Forth, the A9 north to Inverness, then the A82 down the north-west shore of the loch: about 173 miles and 3 hours 50 minutes to Drumnadrochit in free-flowing traffic. Add stops and summer traffic and four and a half hours is more honest.
Once there, Urquhart Castle’s car park is free but only guaranteed when booked with your ticket; see Urquhart Castle parking. The A82 along the loch has overnight closures for resurfacing most years, so check Traffic Scotland before a late arrival. A car earns its keep if you want the south shore at Foyers and Dores, or the far end of Glen Affric.
By train. ScotRail runs direct from Glasgow Queen Street to Inverness: up to 12 trains a day, averaging 3 hours 35 minutes, first at 07:07 and last at 19:37 (ScotRail, checked October 2026). Then take the bus to Drumnadrochit as above.
By car. The quickest drive from Glasgow takes the A82 north via Fort William, about 158 miles and 3 hours 40 minutes. That road reaches Loch Ness at Fort Augustus, the south end, then runs up the shore through Invermoriston to Drumnadrochit, so you see the length of the loch on the way in. The Fort Augustus guide covers the first stop. If you are weighing the two lochs, read Loch Lomond vs Loch Ness.
By bus. Coaches run too, and the 919 covers the Fort William end of the loch; plan the whole journey on Traveline Scotland, since times change by season.
A day tour is the only way to see Loch Ness from Edinburgh and be back the same night without driving eight hours yourself. The trade-off is time: these are 12.5-hour days, and the loch stop is a short part of them. None of them stops in Drumnadrochit itself.
From Glasgow, Timberbush’s 11.5-hour tour (from $83, 4.6 from 2,087 reviews) goes past Loch Lomond, Glencoe and Fort William to Fort Augustus, with an optional one-hour cruise. Highland Experience’s version (from $80, 4.8 from 103 reviews) spends two hours in Fort Augustus and adds a Highland cow stop in Perthshire.
All prices are GetYourGuide “from” prices in US dollars, checked October 2026. If you want Urquhart Castle on the day, book the Timberbush tour or the Hairy Coo’s Castle & Cruise date and pay the add-on; a standard Fort Augustus stop does not include it. More options are on the Loch Ness tours page.
Stay a night if you can. The train or the drive takes four hours each way, and a night in Drumnadrochit or Inverness turns a rushed coach stop into an early castle slot and an evening by the loch. The where to stay at Loch Ness guide compares the villages. If one day is all you have, the Timberbush tour from Edinburgh with the castle add-on is the most direct way to stand inside Urquhart Castle and still sleep in the city.
12.5 hours
GYG's most-reviewed Highlands day from Edinburgh: Glencoe on the way north, then a stop by the loch where you can pay extra for a cruise and Urquhart Castle, and Pitlochry on the way home.
from$77
Check availability12.5 hours
The cheapest Edinburgh day to the loch, with Glencoe and Highland cows; book the Castle & Cruise version (not daily) if you want Urquhart Castle, otherwise the stop is Fort Augustus.
from$59
Check availability11.5 hours
A long coach day from Glasgow past Loch Lomond, Glencoe and Fort William to the south end of Loch Ness at Fort Augustus, with an optional cruise.
from$83
Check availability11.5 hours
A Glasgow day with Luss, a Glencoe photo stop and two hours in Fort Augustus at the foot of the loch, where a cruise is an optional extra, before a Highland cow stop in Perthshire.
from$80
Check availabilityPrices and ratings were taken from GetYourGuide and can change. Booking through these links supports this site at no extra cost to you.
About four hours either way. ScotRail's direct trains from Edinburgh Waverley to Inverness average 3 hours 45 minutes, and the bus on to Drumnadrochit takes 25 to 34 minutes. Driving is about 173 miles and 3 hours 50 minutes without stops or traffic. A coach day tour from Edinburgh lasts 12.5 hours in total, there and back.
Yes, on a coach tour, but it is a long day. The two most-reviewed Edinburgh tours on GetYourGuide both take 12.5 hours and go via Glencoe. One stops by the loch near the Clansman Hotel, the other at Fort Augustus. Urquhart Castle and a cruise cost extra on both, and on the cheaper tour only on its Castle & Cruise dates. A night at the loch shows you far more.
The train goes to Inverness, not to the loch. ScotRail runs 11 direct trains a day from Edinburgh Waverley to Inverness, averaging 3 hours 45 minutes, with the first at 06:36 (checked October 2026). Inverness bus station is a short walk from the railway station, and Citylink's 919 reaches Drumnadrochit in about 33 minutes and Urquhart Castle in 38.
Take ScotRail's direct train from Glasgow Queen Street to Inverness, about 3 hours 35 minutes with up to 12 a day, then the bus to Drumnadrochit. The quickest drive takes the A82 via Fort William, about 158 miles and 3 hours 40 minutes, arriving at Fort Augustus at the south end of the loch first.
Take the train if you are staying in Drumnadrochit or Inverness: the time is the same, and the bus covers the castle. Drive if you want the south shore at Foyers and Dores or the glens beyond Cannich. The route is the M90 and the A9 to Inverness, then the A82 along the loch, about 173 miles.
Three buses run from Inverness bus station to Drumnadrochit: Scottish Citylink's 919 and 917 (about 33 minutes, and on to Urquhart Castle) and Stagecoach's 17 (about 25 minutes, Monday to Saturday).
For most people the best Loch Ness tour is the 3.5-hour cruise and Urquhart Castle trip from Inverness, from $75 on GetYourGuide with castle entry included.
For most first visits, stay in Drumnadrochit: Urquhart Castle is 6 minutes by car and the Inverness coaches stop in the village.
Choose Loch Lomond for a day out from Glasgow or Edinburgh: it is 34 minutes' drive from Glasgow and has the biggest surface of any British lake.