SPECIAL – only 7 spots available
HARRY POTTER TRIP SCOTLAND
€1875,-
Alohomora! We are opening our doors to an 8-day magical Road trip in our ‘Knight Bus’, our English double-decker bus! We’ll travel through the Wizarding World of Harry Potter! A unique journey where we’ll explore many of the Harry Potter highlights in the beautiful and enchanting Scottish highlands.
We are mountainbiking to the Steall Falls, where Harry fought the dragon during the Triwizard Tournament, we pass Dumbledore’s final resting place, Visit the inspiration for the black lake and Rannoch Moor, the place where the dementors stopped the train looking for Harry.
We ride the famous Hogwarts Express steam train to Mallaig and visit the Glenfinnan Viaduct by bus, where in addition to beautiful views we will also see the train pass by!
In Edinburgh, our HP guide tells us all about the origins of this remarkable book series and the period in which J.K Rowling wrote her story during a special tour through the beautiful city.
Of course, Alnwick Castle, or Hogwarts, should not be missed – if we’re lucky we can even try flying a broom!
Then it’s time to end this enchanting journey. We take the ferry to the Netherlands from Newcastle.
So expect to:
– visit ‘Hogwarts‘
Castle (Alnwick)
– Ride the Jacobite Steam train aka
Hogwarts Express
– The Glenfinnan Viaduct
while the train passes
– Learn even more on the guided Harry Potter city tour
– Mountainbike to the famous
Steall Falls
– See locations where the Triwizard Tournaments
have been filmed
– Hike Glencoe Lochan Trail, where multiple scenes have been filmed
(all included)
For the entire itinerary, see below.
By clicking ‘Book Now’ you’ll be lead to our Booking System ‘We Travel”
Because this is a new trip, the aftermovie and reviews are from different trips. It does give a pretty good idea of what to expect in term of the vibe & bus. 🙂
TRIP INFORMATION
Pick Up & Drop-Off
PICK-UP: INVERNESS – Oct 11th, 08.30
DROP-OFF: IJMUIDEN / HAARLEM (NL) – Oct 18th.
We will pick you up at 08.30 at the trainstation of Inverness.
From here we’ll drive in our 47-year old bus to the first stop – see the entire itinerary on the side.
On October 17th, we’ll take the ferry to The Netherlands together. We will arrive in IJmuiden (NL) around 10 A.M. the next morning. For those who wish, we can also drop you at Haarlem train station. From here it’s only 15min train ride to Amsterdam Central station.
The ferry is included. However, do you want to stick around Newcastle a little longer? You can! Let us know and we’ll see if we can get some money back from the ferry-company to refund to you.
Food & Drinks
Almost all meals (except for 1 night in Edinburgh and your meal on the ferry) are included, we will cook together on te bus. All food is vegetarian.
You can drink as much coffee, tea, water or lemonade as you like. Other drinks like beer, wine or soda are not included, but can be bought on the bus if you wish.
Currency
In Scotland & England, they pay with pounds. Everywhere, you can pay with your debit card, so there’s no need to take cash. If you want to buy drinks on the bus, you can pay with euros or through a bank transfer at the
end of the week. So no need to have pounds on you. Want to know the most up-to-date exchange rate? You can find it
here.
The Bus
Of course part of the fun is to be living in our ancient bus, transformed from an old public transportation bus
into a comfortable group accommodation.
You’ll sleep in a comfortable bed, either a bunk-bed or a single bed. Your bed has its own little light, curtain and storage pace for your belongings.
Upstairs you’ll also find the lounge with a view, while downstairs is the living area, with kitchen and dining area. Both areas have what we call in Dutch ‘ARKO’ (Alle Ramen Kunnen Open’) and a heating system for the colder nights.
Downstairs we have a big lounge / dining area with heater, where you can start your day with a cup of coffee or try to beat us playing board games (good luck!).
The Campsites
We’ll park the bus at beautiful campsites along the way. We will use the sanitary facilities such as shower and toilet from the campsites.
GENERAL
- 6 nights accommodation in the bus
- 1 night accommodation on the ferry to the NL (shared room)
- 2 hosts (also drivers, cooks, mechanics)
- Transportation during the trip
- Transportation from Newcastle (SC) to IJmuiden (NL) on the ferry (shared rooms)
FOOD & DRINKS
- Almost all your meals (6x breakfast, 6x lunch, 5x dinner) – of course in Harry Potter style!
- All your coffee, tea, water & lemonade
ACTIVITIES
- Visit to ‘Hogwarts ‘ Castle (Alnwick) and learn to fly a broom!
- The Hogwarts Express Train
- Visit to Edinburgh
- Guided Harry Potter Tour through Edinburgh
- Mountain bike trip to Steal Falls
- Visit to famous Glenfinnan Viaduct to see the train pass
- Visit several locations where the
Triwizard Tournaments have been filmed
- Hike Glencoe Lochan Trail – where many scenes have been filmed
- Visit the outdoor town of Fort William
- Ferry trip from Scotland to The Netherlands
- Transportation to Inverness
- Transportation from IJmuiden / Haarlem
- Towel
- Travel Insurance
OPTIONAL ACTIVITIES
- Whisky tasting (€21,50)
- Harry Potter Escape Room (€29,00)
FOOD & DRINKS
- Dinner in Edinburgh
- Dinner on the ferry to The Netherlands
- Drinks other than the above mentioned (drinks can be bought on the bus)
TO INVERNESS
Flight
There are many flights taking off and arriving in Inverness airport daily. It might be worth checking out tickets to Edinburgh as well, since it sometimes has more frequent and cheaper flights. From Edinburgh there’s a direct train connection to Inverness.
We like these websites:
Google Flights or
Skyscanner.
Train
Would you like to feel on a holiday as soon as you leave your doorstep? Then consider the train!
There’s a good connection between Amsterdam and London, which will take you there in 4 hours. From there you could take a train up to Inverness.
For tickets and the schedule,
check the Eurostar website.
Please note: at the moment of writing it’s unclear if this connection will still be available in September 2024. They’re working on a solution however. Keep an eye out on the Eurostar website for updated information.
From London you can take the train to Inverness, our starting point. There are direct connections available. Depending on the choice of your train it can take between 8-12 hours. The earlier you book, the cheaper it is.
Find all the info on the trains in the UK here.
If you’re coming from abroad, then
this website might be useful when planning your trip.
BACK HOME
We end the trip in IJmuiden or Haarlem, The Netherlands. There are very good train connections, it only take 15 minutes to get to Amsterdam Central from Haarlem. You can find all the information on the public transportation in The Netherlands here.
From Amsterdam Airport there are very frequent flights to basically anywhere.
We would recommend you to just join. 😉
But if inevitable, and you do really have to cancel your trip:
- Within 48 hours after booking: 100% refund
- More than 120 days prior to departure: administration fee of €45
- Till 120 days prior to departure: 10% of the travel fee (with a minimum of €45 administration fee)
- Till 90 days prior to departure: 20% of the travel fee
- Till 60 days prior to departure: 30% of the travel fee
- Till 30 days prior to departure: 50% of the travel fee
- 15 – 29 days prior to departure: 80% of the travel fee
- Less than 15 days prior to departure: 100% of the travel fee
ITINERARY
Pick-up, mountainbike to the ‘Harry Potter Waterfall’.
On this first day we will pick you up in Inverness. After getting to know each other,putting away your luggage and choosing beds, we will head off!
We drive along the famous Loch Ness lake towards the enchanting heart of the Scottish highlands; Fort William. Here we jump on our bikes and mountain bike to the Steall Falls, where the battle with the dragon was recorded during the Triwizard Tournament. This location has also been used for scenes during quidditch matches, so keep your eyes peeled for the golden snitch! In addition to a unique film location, this is also a beautiful route and a wonderful trip. With a height of 120 meters, this is also Scotland’s second highest waterfall.
We sleep at a campsite just outside the city, where we eat together and enjoy the view of the famous Ben Nevis mountain.
Day 2 – Glenfinnan Viaduct, Fort William and whisky tasting
We leave on time towards the Glenfinnan Viaduct, where we see the Jacobite steam train (Hogwarts Express) passing over the iconic viaduct. We will also visit the famous film location Loch Shiel, or the Black Lake. Known from the second part of the Triwizard Tournament.
When we return it is time for a Whisky Tour (optional) in the Ben Nevis Whisky Distillery of Fort William. You’ll learn all about the whisky making process and of course get to try some at the end of the tour!
If you prefer some free time instead of the Whisky tour, you can explore Fort William on your own, a very nice town with restaurants, a climbing hall, beautiful hikes around and shops. Be careful that the muggles don’t recognize you!
We will cook & have dinner in the bus tonight on a campsite close to Fort William.
Day 3 – Hop on the Hogwarts Express
All aboard! Today we’ll take the Jacobite Steam Train (Hogwarts Express) from Fort William to Mallaig, considered one of the world’s most beautiful train journeys of all time! This famous Harry Potter train should of course not be missed. In Mallaig you can imagine yourself in the Diagon Alley between all the Harry Potter souvenir shops where the Every Flavour Beans and magic wands are not to be missed!
When we arrive back in Fort William, the bus is waiting for you and we drive on to the next campsite in Glencoe where beautiful views await us again tomorrow.
Glencoe Hagrid’s Hut & Dementor Hunt
Today we hike the Glencoe Lochan Trail. This two-hour walk takes us through an area used in several scenes around Hogwarts, the dark forest and during quidditch matches. We continue our way and visit the place where Hagrid’s Hut used to be. The hut itself was only there during the filming of the movies, but true Potterheads will immediately recognize the area!
Time for a road trip. After lunch we drive to the beautiful Rannoch Moor viewpoint, where the dementors stopped the train in Deathly Hallows part 1. This is located on the A82, one of the most breathtaking roads in Scotland with amazing views.
Edinburgh incl. guided Harry Potter walking tour
As the birthplace of Harry Potter, where J.K. Rowling has written most of her books, Edinburgh is of course a place not to be missed on this Harry Potter Special. We are doing a guided Harry Potter walking tour through Edinburgh. Find out which house at Hogwarts you belong to and whether you are a pure blood, Muggle or Squib. Visit Tom Riddle’s grave at Greyfriars Kirkyard and The Elephant House where J.K. Rowling wrote most of her books. On this tour we will see all this and much more.
After the walking tour we will have some free time to further explore the city. We then get together as the true Order of the Phoenix, gathering for a Harry Potter Escape Room (optional activity). Enter the Department of Mysteries and defeat ‘you-know-who’ before it’s too late! Will you be able to unravel the ‘Prophesy quest’?
We’re going out for dinner together in Edinburgh tonight (at your own expense) and then maybe go to the pub for a glass of Guinness (or butterbeer!).
Day 6: Alnwick Castle, a visit to Hogwarts
Save the best for last – we end the trip going to one of the major high lights: we will visit Hogwarts! This castle (Alnwick) featured as Hogwarts in the first two movies. If we’re lucky we can even learn how to fly the broom!
It’s our final night in Scotland so we’ll end the day with dreaming back on the trip with a nice drink, good food & marshmallows smoked on the bonfire to go with it!
Day 7: Newcastle & ferry to the Netherlands
Today we can recover from all the impressions of last week in the morning. We take it easy, pack our things again, and slowly head to Newcastle to catch the ferry.
We’ll all go on the ferry to the Netherlands together! We can go over all the things we’ve done together on this trip one more time or simply show off during the karaoke. The ferry leaves today around 17.00 and arrives in IJmuiden on October 18th around 10.00 A.M. For those who wish; we can drop you off at the Haarlem train station. (you’ll share a room on the ferry)
Want to stick around Newcastle a little longer? Or prefer to fly home from Great Brittain? You can! Let us know and we’ll see if we can get some money back from the ferry-company to refund to you.
Please note: We highly recommend you don’t book any flights home within 4 hours after our estimated arrival time, just in case we have any delays on the way. We are traveling in an old-timer bus after all – delays can be part of the adventure. Also, the ferry can sometimes be delayed.
Around 10.00 A.M. we arrive in IJmuiden, The Netherlands. For those who wish; we can take you to the train station in Haarlem – From there you can easily reach Amsterdam Central Station to continue your journey.
Prefer to book a trip with a group of friends but the date doesn’t match or you’d like to change the itinerary a bit? Contact us for the possibilities!
By clicking ‘Book Now’ you’ll be lead to our Booking System ‘We Travel’.
Any more questions? Please contact us!
