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What a trip to Scotland costs
The prices we quote, what they include and the costs that stay yours, with a worked example for two travellers.
The prices we quote, what they include and the costs that stay yours, with a worked example for two travellers.
This page gives the prices we quote at The Kilted Unicorn, a local Scotland agency based in Edinburgh since 2018, and the costs that sit outside them: fuel, meals, tips, the ETA, insurance and flights. Every price is in pounds sterling. Change the currency in the menu for an indicative equivalent in US, Canadian or Australian dollars, or in euros.
A self-drive tour with us starts from £2,000 per person per week, based on two sharing. A ten to twelve day trip usually comes to £2,900 to £3,500 per person. That covers every night of accommodation with breakfast, the hire car with unlimited mileage, the ferry crossings on your route, entry fees to the sites in your itinerary, your travel book and our support by phone and WhatsApp while you travel. Fuel, lunches, dinners, flights and travel insurance stay yours.
Our published routes and the price each one starts from:
| Route | Length | Fromper person, two sharing |
|---|---|---|
| The Scotland Essential | 8 days | £2,000 |
| Outlander Trail & Scottish roots | 8 days | £2,400 |
| Isle of Skye & the Road to the Isles | 10 days | £2,600 |
| Family Scotland | 10 days | £2,900 |
| The Whisky Route | 10 days | £3,100 |
| The Highlands & Skye at your pace | 10 days | £3,500 |
| North Coast 500 · Grand Tour | 14 days | £4,000 |
Four things move the price. The season: July and August cost the most, and November to March runs 20 to 40% below summer. The accommodation: 4-star boutique B&Bs and inns as standard, restored manors and castle hotels on the upper tiers. The length, since every extra day is another night and another day of car hire. Your party: the price assumes two people sharing a room and a car, so a solo traveller pays more per head.
When your route crosses to an island, we book the ferry and its fare is in the price. The hire car comes with collision damage waiver, third-party and theft cover; extras such as an excess waiver, a second driver or a child seat are paid to the hire company. All seven routes are on our self-drive tours page.
Prices shown in GBP. Foreign currency equivalents are indicative and updated daily. Contracts and payments are in GBP only.
A private guided tour starts from £4,000 per person per week, based on four sharing, in May, June, September and October. July and August cost more and the rest of the year less. The price covers your driver-guide and the vehicle for the whole trip, 4-star boutique accommodation as standard and an itinerary built around your party. Nobody else joins your departure.
| Route | Length | Fromper person, four sharing, mid-season |
|---|---|---|
| Scottish Escapade · Highlands short break | 7 days | £4,000 |
| NC500 Highlights & Edinburgh | 7 days | £4,400 |
| The Whisky Grand Tour · Premium | 8 days | £4,900 |
Why four sharing? The driver-guide and the vehicle are shared between the travellers, so for two people the price per person is higher. We price the trip for your exact party when we talk. The three circuits are on our private guided tours page.
Prices shown in GBP. Foreign currency equivalents are indicative and updated daily. Contracts and payments are in GBP only.
Day tours from Edinburgh are one flat rate for the whole party, from one to eight travellers: £650 for a full day with a private driver-guide and van, and £190 for the two-hour Edinburgh Old Town walking tour. The price stays the same whether you are two or eight. Entry fees are not included and are paid on the day, typically £8 to £22 per adult per site and £15 to £45 for a distillery tasting.
The £650 covers the van, the driver-guide, fuel, and pick-up and drop-off in Edinburgh. On our Loch Lomond and Trossachs day, for example, Stirling Castle costs about £17 per adult, Doune Castle about £10 and the Loch Katrine sailing about £19 per person, all paid on the day. The six days we run are on our day tours page.
Prices shown in GBP. Foreign currency equivalents are indicative and updated daily. Contracts and payments are in GBP only.
International flights, travel insurance, the UK ETA, most meals and, on a self-drive tour, fuel. The ETA costs £20 per person, children included, for most visitors who do not need a visa; British and Irish citizens do not need one. Comprehensive travel insurance is a condition of every booking and is bought separately. Fuel for a week of self-drive comes to roughly £120 to £180 at October 2026 prices. Scotland has no toll roads or toll bridges.
Tipping is never compulsory in Scotland, and the amounts are modest. In a restaurant with table service, 10 to 12.5% is usual when the bill does not already include a service charge, so check the bill first. Round a taxi fare up to the nearest pound. Bar staff are not tipped for drinks, and B&B hosts do not expect anything. For a guide or a driver-guide, £10 to £20 per person per day is a common thank-you when the day went well, cash preferred. Tips are never included in our prices.
For two people on a ten to twelve day self-drive tour, the trip itself comes to £5,800 to £7,000 for the two of you, with accommodation, breakfast, car hire, ferries and entry fees to the sites in the itinerary included. Add roughly £160 to £240 of fuel, £750 to £1,400 for lunches and dinners, £40 for two ETAs if you need them, then your travel insurance and flights. On those figures, the trip on the ground comes to about £6,750 to £8,700 for two.
| Cost | Two people, 10 to 12 days |
|---|---|
| Self-drive tour: accommodation, breakfast, car hire, ferries, entry fees, planning | £5,800 to £7,000 |
| Fuel, 800 to 1,200 miles | £160 to £240 |
| Lunches and dinners | £750 to £1,400 |
| UK ETA, if you need one | £40 |
| Travel insurance | Depends on your age, cover and country |
| International flights | Depends on where you fly from |
The same ten days as a private guided tour cost more per person and remove the fuel line: your driver-guide and the vehicle are in the price.
Prices shown in GBP. Foreign currency equivalents are indicative and updated daily. Contracts and payments are in GBP only.
November to March is the cheapest time to visit Scotland, with prices 20 to 40% below summer and the quietest roads of the year. July and August cost the most and fill first, especially on Skye and the North Coast 500. For a balance of price, light and space, we suggest April, May, September or October.
Winter has its trade-offs. In December Edinburgh gets around seven hours of daylight, some island accommodation and attractions close for the season, and snow can shut the Highland passes. We plan winter trips around them, with shorter driving days. Why we push the shoulder months is explained on our sustainable tourism page.
Travel in April, May, September or October rather than July and August, share the car and the rooms, and choose a self-drive tour if you are happy to drive: it starts from £2,000 rather than £4,000 per person per week. Fewer bases, with two or three nights each, also mean less driving and less fuel. If time is short, stay in Edinburgh and add a day tour or two: one flat price covers up to eight of you.
Two things we would not cut. Travel insurance, which is a condition of booking anyway. And time: a trip squeezed into too few days spends the savings on long hours at the wheel.
Through a conversation. You send a request through our form, which takes about three minutes, and we reply within one working day to arrange a 30-minute call. If the trip works, we send a day-by-day proposal with a detailed price in GBP, free and without obligation, valid for five days. A 30% deposit confirms the booking, and the balance is due 45 days before departure, or 60 days for a private guided tour.
Once the booking is confirmed, the price is fixed. The Package Travel Regulations 2018 allow a revision only for changes in fuel costs, taxes or exchange rates, notified at least 20 days before departure and capped at 8%. All quotes, contracts and payments are in GBP.
Tour prices are our own, quoted in GBP, and inclusions follow our Booking Terms and Conditions v1.0. Meal figures and tipping customs come from our team on the road. Fuel, the ETA and the tipping rules come from the official sources below, checked on 18 October 2026.