A lot of our guests arrive with us from Inverness or perhaps it’s the next destination on their travels. I have the feeling that quite a few of them are disappointed with their stay in the Big City so I decided to pop a few ideas down here to help with planning (as you know I love a plan).
The city is a great launch pad for exploring the Highlands – even as far as Skye (tho in my opinion the 6 hour round trip should only be considered if you’re really short of time and really want to see Skye’s Greatest Hits. If this is you, and you can budget for it, then an organised tour is probably best). But what to do when you’re actually in Inverness?
Places to stay. There are a huge variety of places to stay from swanky apartments to little houses tucked into slightly dodgy streets behind the co-op, from cosy bed and breakfasts to chain hotels. Places we have stayed and enjoyed include Druid House Bed & Breakfast (delightful host, great breakfast), River Ness self catering apartments (stunning views of the river, quite swanky) and (out of the main tourist season) the AC Marriot. As an aside the Marriot is dog friendly and has a great bar area with fabby, good value snacks (pictured) and banging Negronis if that’s your bag. Also if the weather is nice you can sit outside by the river.
Wandering about:
We are very excited that the castle is due to open next year. Our first selfie as Highland residents (now lost in the midst of digital cobwebs) was in front of the castle, covered in scaffolding, in 2014. It looks like it’s going to be absolutely beautiful inside and out with stunning views of the Ness from the gardens and an interior rooted in tradition and local culture while also looking forward to a Highland area with real future potential.
Walking along the river at dusk is an absolute joy. There are sparkly lights, food trucks and a general buzzy vibe.
The city itself is a little unremarkable but if you’re a fan of strange graffiti (is it just me?) life will be good.
There are some very lovely independent shops that are worth looking out for. We love
Judith Glue – Scottish crafts and clothes. The main shop is in Kirkwall Orkney but this one is cute if very spendy.
Isle of Skye Candle Company – you’ll probably have done all your candle shopping in the Portree branch of this store while waiting for your amazing Gasta pizza, but one can never have too many candles, right?
Leakey’s bookshop – situated in a deconsecrated Gaelic church, this ultimately instagramable second hand book shop is the largest in Scotland. If they were serious about cosy they’d have seats in the corners but it’s still rather lovely to have an open fire.
The Highland Whisky Shop – a family owned, exceptionally well stocked shop. The staff are super helpful and they often have special events.
Rebel Row: Prickly Thistle – ethical, sustainable clothing for women, made by women. The clothes are quite out there – but why not? Check their website for events.
Inverness Coffee Roasting Co. – amazing coffee to drink and buy. Always our first stop for an expresso to start up the shopping experience.
If you’re looking for highland dress, kilt hire, a bespoke kilt making service (when our own KiltQuine Leona is booked up obviously) then head to Highland House of Fraser . They’re really kind and patient and will answer all your questions and make sure your kilt is at the right length. You can also pop into the Scottish Kiltmaker visitor centre where you can learn about the history of tartans and see craftsfolk in action.
Known as the ‘Saville Row of Highland Dress’ Chisholms Highland Dress is an excellent destination for kilthire and custom made kilts. They do prefer appointments so check their website.
Let’s just take a minute to admire my kilt shall we? (made by Leona)
The Victorian Market – with over 30 wee businesses inside, the newly refurbished Victorian Market is a joy. It’s twinkly and bright and a great place to go if it’s cold or wet outside. Also if it isn’t. It’s also our favourite place to eat at any time of day and to grab a coffee.
The Food & Drink Hall is always busy with locals and tourists alike. Over the Christmas period there’s carols and live music and DJs and when we’ve been in the summer there’s often live local musicians. There is a huge variety of food stalls representing world cuisine. Our favourites so far are The Bad Girl Bakery for super coffee and cake (tho I wish they’d do a veggie sausage roll or pasty), Salt N Fire – great vegan street food and The Mart for absolutely banging burgers both meaty and not meaty.
For those of you who like a lil stiffener while shopping there’s a licensed bar area called Moonshine.
We haven’t had a chance to try any other stalls but they are on the list for the next Big Shop.
Places to Eat & Drink
There is a huge variety of restaurants, bars and pubs in Inverness. As always my advice is ‘if it’s bookable and you want to go, book it’. We haven’t been everywhere and some places we didn’t like but we’re not going to mention those here. If you’re staying with us and you want to check somewhere before you book it, just drop us an email.
Places we know we like:
HouHou Mie– the only things I miss about living in a town are a)being able to buy socks at an affordable price, not ones artisanally knitted out of pine martin’s eyelashes and b) a sit down Chinese. Hou Hou Mie is deservedly very popular and you’ll need to book in advance. It makes my taste buds sing with joy to eat there.
Rocpool (the one on the river/bridge not the Reserve) – superb fresh, Scottish-with-a-twist menu. A bit treat-y but worth it for a celebration if budgets allow.
Pizza Express – yeah yeah I know. But pizza is my death row food and I love this chain. Don’t go thinking you can walk in here tho, book.
Girvans – fantastic for breakfast/brunch and patisserie to die for (there’s a theme developing here).
XOKO Bakehouse and Cantina – if you’ve never had a banana bread latte have you even lived? Delicious baking too.
The White House – smart bistro, excellent for weekend bottomless brunches, lassies who lunch, lads who lunch, non binary lunchers too. They have cocktail masterclasses and a lovely light menu.
The RiverHouse – smart restaurant with great views serving excellent seafood. Good for a special occasion or a bit of romance.
Whisky & Rye: the place that introduced Johnny to a dram and a pony. Cheery pub food and a great malt selection.
MacGregor’s – cheery pub food and great live music. Last time we went the staff were the most delightful humans you could wish to encounter.
Johnny Foxes – a proper local knees up. Live music, boozy hens and stags, sticky floors and happy people. We’ve not eaten here so check internet reviews.
Prime – if you’re a seafood and steak kinda gal/guy/chum
Before you get to Inverness check what’s on at Eden Court. They often have great bands, both Scottish and further afield. Will Young (my boyfriend in my head. No, Listen… he’s not going to marry me anyway so it doesn’t matter that he’s gay. Sad times.) played last year. Jeanio and I were so close to the front.
So that’s some of my thoughts on Sneckie. If you think I’ve missed something out just pop it in the comments. It took us a long time to love the city but now we do – very much.
Leave a Reply