Eilean Donan – The Island Castle and Lunch in Broadford
A few hours.
The route
Eilean Donan sits on a small island at the meeting of three sea lochs, joined to the shore by an arched stone bridge.
It was blown up in 1719 and rebuilt from its ruins over twenty years, and its rooms are open to visit. Then it's over the Skye Bridge for lunch in Broadford, looking out across the bay.
The day
Lochalsh
A castle morning in Lochalsh, and lunch on the Skye side of the bridge.
A morning, with lunch after
Eilean Donan Castle
An attraction
The castle's car park, by the visitor centre, charges by the hour while the castle is open. From 25 October to 22 December the castle opens 10am to 4pm, with last entry at 3pm. It's closed on 1, 7, 8 and 15 November and 4 December, for all of January and on 14 February. Tickets are sold at the castle on the day only: £13 for adults in 2026 and £6.50 for children over five. Rucksacks and big bags stay outside, in the car or in the free lockers by the visitor centre. In the Billeting Room are cannonballs fired at the castle in 1719, and the Banqueting Hall's beams are Douglas fir shipped from British Columbia, given by Canada's Macraes. Inside, the stairs are narrow and the steps uneven.
More about Eilean Donan Castle36 min by car
The Broadford Hotel
Lunch
Over the Skye Bridge, it's 36 minutes' drive to the Broadford Hotel, just along the Elgol road from the main road through the village. Lunch is served every day from noon to 2pm in the restaurant looking over Broadford Bay. You can walk in without booking, whether or not you're staying. The kitchen cooks with Skye produce and local fish and seafood, with vegetarian, vegan and gluten-free choices and a menu for children. The hotel calls itself the original home of Drambuie.
If it rains
The castle's rooms and the hotel's restaurant are indoors; only the bridge and the island are out in the weather.
Gasta, Broadford, a café in Broadford.
The Coffee Bothy, a café in Broadford.
Make it a weekend
More days out near Kyle of Lochalsh.
Photographs by Dennis gober, ram kumar and Broadford Hotel via Google