Edinburgh: Part 3 - Day 3: Drive from Edinburgh to Portree

Day 3

Here is a summary of what is spent on Day 3.

25/9 Day 3: Drive from Edinburgh to Portree. Stop at Loch Lomond and Glencoe. Check in to B&B

Costs

(A) Transport and accommodation

(1) 5 day car rental from Arnold Clark Rental - SEK5 032,26

(2) Petrol at Glencoe @ £1.549 per liter - £20.51 (13.24 liter)

(3) 3 nights at The Braes Bed and Breakfast for 2 persons - SEK5359,83 including service fees of SEK804

(B) Food

(1) Breakfast at Printworks Coffee cafe - Breakfast roll with smoked bacon £3.40, cappucino £3.70 

(2) Lunch at Glencoe Inn - Chicken skewer £14, schweppes ginger beer £2

(3) Dinner at Fish & Chips - Fish and chips £10.50

(4) Snacks from Co-op for hiking - £5.15

(5) Beer at Portree Hotel - £10.10

The Story

25092023: Today, we collect our rented car from Arnold Clark! Excited that we will be driving from Edinburgh to Portree. We were nervous initially but I got over it as my boyfriend was worried on driving on the left side. Since I have more experience than him in driving on the left side (Malaysians drive on the left side), I thought I should have no reason to be worried. I was slightly worried though because I have a Swedish driving license now and I have not driven on the left side for quite sometime. 

First, breakfast! We found a cafe that was opened at 7.30am. Lucky for us. I was very surprised that my morning roll was so small. Good thing we are not doing much physical activity today. I think this cafe is expensive as the cappucino here costs more than the one we had yesterday at Hobz Cafe (£2.95). 

After breakfast, we walked to the car rental. Coincidentally, the Airbnb that I booked in Leith was located near the car rental which is located on Seafield Street. It is a 30-minutes walk. Initially, we looked at car rentals from Hertz or Sixt but realised that they were costly. So, I did a research on car rentals in Edinburgh and got a website on Arnold Clark with good feedback that it was cheap. I saw many hired cars from Arnold Clark during our drive so I was quite certain that we made the right choice. 

This is the car that we got - a Toyota CRV. There were no options available for automatic small cars so I chose the next size - compact. I read that the roads were narrow and there are no motorways. The only motorway in Scotland is from Edinburgh to Glasgow. I was beginning to wonder if Scotland was a developed country.  

I drove out from Arnold Clark and I was prepared to drive the whole way but at Loch Lomond where we stopped for a break, my boyfriend said that he was ready to drive without hesitation. Yahoo! We spent an hour at Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. The staff suggested that we take a walk to Balloch Castle, see a loch (lake) and then walk back to the car park. The castle was closed but there is a free public toilet inside. 

We saw a signboard that led to a walled garden. After some research, I found out that the layout of the garden has not changed in 200 years. In addition, this garden was used to produce fruits and vegetables for the castle. 

The roads were narrow, indeed, so we did slow down when we meet incoming cars. I took photos while my boyfriend drove. 

It rained a lot during the drive. It does not get better as we entered The Highlands. The wind was so strong! Rain and strong wind are not the best combination. We stopped by the roadside to take a break and experience the wind and rain. 

Our next stop was at Glencoe where we stopped for a late lunch and pumped petrol. Then, it stopped raining. The staff at the petrol station recommended Glencoe Inn which was just beside the petrol station and has a parking lot.

Our next stop was right before driving into Portree. We stopped at Kyle of Lochalsh. We did not stop long and my boyfriend took over. FINALLY, we are in Portree! We checked in our stuff and drove into Portree town to find food. We parked at a small parking space in the town centre. It was free parking after 6pm. I was advised by the owner of the Bed and Breakfast that we are staying in Portree to book spots in the restaurants. Well, I did not do that because I was unsure what time we will arrive and on other days where we will hike, I was unsure when we will be done and I did not want to miss out the hiking, I am not a foodie so I do not mind eating anywhere. Also, all restaurants are so expensive! When we went into a restaurant, the staff at the bar informed that bookings came in 3 months before. I thought that was super ridiculous to have the booking concept. 

All restaurants were booked. But we found some that did not require bookings and sure enough, there was a queue. Then, we found a little restaurant that has only take-away and accepts cash only. Thankfully, we brought cash with us. So, fish and chips it is on our first night in Portree. We ate by the jetty with raindrops on us. I was not enjoying it totally because I was hoping we could eat in the car but my boyfriend was too hungry. 

Then, we made our drive to our Bed and Breakfast. It is about a 10-minutes drive from Portree.