5 Days until Christmas 2025: Loch Ness, Scotland

Good morning! We are at our last weekend before Christmas!

Today, I get to talk about my favorite castle that we visited on this trip; Eilean Donan Castle.

Eilean Donan Castle has been refurbished and is set up like a museum. It’s decorated to how it would have looked while in use. We both enjoyed exploring the castle and seeing the views of the scenery.

We also took stairs that go down to the water for some photos and the very important task of seaweed throwing.

Next, we stopped for lunch in Fort Augustus, where we had a delicious smoked salmon sandwich and a double-decker ice cream of vanilla and bubblegum flavors.

There was a bonus stop to see one of the oldest bridges in Scotland and a lovely landscape that gave me Hagrid hut vibes along the river.

To finish off the day, we spent time at Drumnadrochit. This allowed us to explore Urquhart Castle, and I learned the skill of “best way to pry a stuck flat lollipop out of your son’s mouth.” Cannot say this trip wasn’t an adventure.

When taking a boat tour on Loch Ness, you have to look for Nessie the monster! We kept our eyes open, but at the end of the ride, my son did not want to leave because we didn’t spot the monster. Explaining that Nessie hasn’t been “seen” in over one hundred years did not do the trick. However, the rainbow helped…

…along with seeing a few Harry Coos.

My kiddo picked and painted (with his hands and feet) today’s tea cup and saucer. With the fun of Nessie, I added some Loch Ness decorations while drinking Edinburgh Tea and Coffee Company’s Heather Tea. The Africa and Assam  black tea mixes with malty yet slightly sweet flavor of the Heather. Good by itself or even better with a dash of milk on the first steep.

Have a great Saturday and 5 days until Christmas!