Eilean Donan Castle stands on a small island at Dornie, about 56 miles (90 km) west of Drumnadrochit, or 1 hour 15 minutes by car via Invermoriston and the A887 and A87. Adult tickets cost £13 and are sold only at the castle on the day. In 2026 it opened from 1 February, with January closed.
Eilean Donan Castle sits on a small island at Dornie, where three sea lochs meet on the road to Skye. From Drumnadrochit on Loch Ness it is about 56 miles (90 km) west, roughly 1 hour 15 minutes by car via Invermoriston, the A887 and the A87. Adult tickets cost £13 in 2026 and are sold only at the castle on the day.
What you see is mostly a 20th-century rebuild. Government warships wrecked the medieval castle in 1719, and it lay in ruins for almost 200 years until a MacRae bought the island in 1911 and spent two decades rebuilding it.
Head south on the A82 along Loch Ness to Invermoriston, about 19 minutes away. Turn right on the A887 up Glen Moriston, then join the A87 west to Dornie. The castle stands just off the A87, the main road to Skye.
| Route | Distance | Drive time |
|---|---|---|
| Drumnadrochit to Eilean Donan | About 56 miles (90 km) | About 1 h 15 min |
| Inverness to Eilean Donan | About 70 miles (113 km) | About 1 h 40 min |
| Eilean Donan to the Skye bridge (Kyle of Lochalsh) | 8 miles, per the castle |
Drive times are free-flow estimates from OpenStreetMap routing; allow more in summer traffic and for stops.
This is one of the best reasons to base yourself on Loch Ness rather than in Inverness. Drumnadrochit is about 20 minutes closer to the castle than the city, and you pass Urquhart Castle on the way out.
Checked October 2026 on the castle’s opening hours page.
| Ticket | Price |
|---|---|
| Adult | £13.00 |
| Concession (seniors aged 60+) | £12.00 |
| Child over 5 | £6.50 |
| Family (2 adults and 3 children aged 5 to 15) | £38.00 |
| Under 5 | Free |
| Dates (2026) | Castle open | Last admission |
|---|---|---|
| 1 February to 28 March | 10am to 4pm | 3pm |
| 29 March to 30 April | 10am to 6pm | 5pm |
| May | 9.30am to 6pm | 5pm |
| June to August | 9am to 6pm | 5pm |
| September | 9.30am to 6pm | 5pm |
| 1 to 24 October | 10am to 6pm | 5pm |
| 25 October to 22 December | 10am to 4pm | 3pm |
Closed in 2026 to 2027 on 1, 7, 8 and 15 November, 4 December, the whole of January and 14 February 2027.
Two rules catch people out. There is no online booking: you buy the ticket at the visitor centre on the day. And rucksacks and large bags are not allowed inside the castle; leave them in the car or in the free lockers by the visitor centre.
The castle’s own history page tells the story this way.
The name. Eilean Donan means the island of Donan, most probably after Bishop Donan, a 6th-century Irish saint who came to Scotland around 580 AD. A small religious community may have lived on the island in the late 7th century.
The first castle. The first fortified building went up in the early 13th century, to defend the lands of Kintail against Viking raids. The medieval castle was probably the largest version, with a curtain wall around nearly the whole island. Around the end of the 14th century it shrank to about a fifth of that size, and a hornwork was added in the 16th century as a firing platform for cannon.
Mackenzies and MacRaes. In 1509 John MacKenzie of Kintail received a Crown charter for the lands and castle. From then the MacRaes often garrisoned it for the Mackenzie chiefs, and they became its constables in 1511.
1719. During the Jacobite rising of that year, 46 Spanish soldiers supporting the Jacobites garrisoned the castle and stored gunpowder there. The government sent three frigates, the Flamborough, the Worcester and the Enterprise. Their bombardment lasted three days but made little impression on walls up to 14 feet thick. In the end Captain Herdman of the Enterprise landed his men, overwhelmed the defenders, found 343 barrels of gunpowder and used them to blow up what was left.
The rebuild. The ruins stood abandoned until Lieutenant Colonel John MacRae-Gilstrap bought the island in 1911. Work began in 1912 with the architect George Mackie Watson and the clerk of works Farquhar MacRae, following the surviving ground plan. The castle and its arched bridge were formally opened on 22 July 1932. It opened to the public in 1955, and since 1983 a MacRae family charity, the Conchra Charitable Trust, has run it.
The visitor centre holds the ticket office, gift shop and coffee shop, and Visit Inverness Loch Ness describes ample parking around it. Sources disagree on whether the car park charges during opening hours, so check the signs when you arrive.
A sensible day from Drumnadrochit: leave early, stop at Invermoriston’s falls and old bridge, reach Eilean Donan when it opens, then either continue 8 miles to Skye or drive back the way you came. The castle closes at 6pm in summer, and the drive home is around 1 hour 15 minutes, so a late return still gets you to the village for dinner (see Drumnadrochit restaurants).
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.
from$91
Check availability12 hours
A top-rated small-group Skye day that passes Urquhart Castle on the way out, then stops at Eilean Donan, Portree, the Old Man of Storr, Kilt Rock and the Quiraing.
from$94
Check availabilityPrices and ratings were taken from GetYourGuide and can change. Booking through these links supports this site at no extra cost to you.
From Drumnadrochit it is about 56 miles (90 km), roughly 1 hour 15 minutes by car without stops: south along the A82 to Invermoriston, then west on the A887 and A87 to Dornie. From Inverness it is about 70 miles and 1 hour 40 minutes by the same road. Add time in summer traffic.
You cannot. The castle says admission tickets are sold only on site, on the day of your visit, and there is no online system for booking ahead. In 2026 an adult ticket cost £13, seniors aged 60 and over £12, children over 5 £6.50 and a family ticket £38. Under-5s go free.
It closes for the whole of January. For the 2026 to 2027 winter the castle also lists closures on 1, 7, 8 and 15 November, 4 December and 14 February 2027. From 25 October to 22 December 2026 it opens 10am to 4pm, with last admission at 3pm. In 2026 it reopened on 1 February, open 10am to 4pm.
Yes, on a long day. Both Skye day trips on GetYourGuide take about 12 hours from Inverness, drive down Loch Ness, stop at Eilean Donan, then cross to Skye for Portree and the Old Man of Storr. The castle says the Skye bridge at Kyle of Lochalsh is 8 miles beyond Eilean Donan, so pairing them by car is straightforward.
Yes. Scottish Citylink's 917 runs from Inverness to Portree on Skye, calling at Drumnadrochit and at Dornie, Bridge Road End, a short walk from the castle. It ran four to five times a day from Inverness in October 2026. Check the timetable with Citylink, as times change between summer and winter.
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.
The best Loch Ness tour from Inverness is the 3.5-hour coach, cruise and Urquhart Castle trip from the bus station, from $75 on GetYourGuide with entry included.
For most first visits, stay in Drumnadrochit: Urquhart Castle is 6 minutes by car and the Inverness coaches stop in the village.
Urquhart Castle is a ruined castle on a rock above Loch Ness, about 2 miles from Drumnadrochit, run by Historic Environment Scotland.