Things to see and do Inveraray

Home of the Dukes of Argyll, this romantic neo-gothic castle is the fruit of the genius of William Adam and Roger Morris. Built between 1745 and 1790, it stands on 6.5 hectares of gardens in the centre of a 24,000 hectare estate. Its great beauty earned it the right to serve as the setting for an episode of the Downtown Abbey series. In addition to its finely furnished and ornamented rooms, it contains more than 1,300 weapons. You will admire the rich State Dining Room and the Tapestry Drawing Room. Stroll through the beautiful gardens and enjoy a snack in the elegant, traditional tearoom.

Crarae Garden is considered to be the finest example of a Himalayan style garden in Britain. Here you won't see the yeti, but exceptional tree varieties, as well as brilliant azaleas and rhododendrons. The garden takes shape between gorges, valleys, waterfalls and cliffs, for a peaceful and dreamlike stroll, in an astonishingly colourful and exotic elsewhere. The fauna is also rich and, with a bit of luck, you will see red squirrels, deer, woodpeckers, buzzards or peregrine falcons.

Discover here the most beautiful set of bells in Scotland (there are 10 of them) and the second largest collection in the world (by weight). You can discover the bell ringers as well as the mechanisms of the bells. On the ground floor, a free exhibition tells the story of the bells, cast in 1920, of their ringing and reveals their little names. It is possible to climb the 176 steps of the spiral staircase to gain height on Inveraray and admire the magnificent carillon, as well as the panoramic view of the mountains and Loch Fyne.

This lively and colorful attraction was developed in a former prison built in 1819. Thanks to actors in costume and a staging faithful to reality, one is immersed in the daily life of the prisoners, from their trial to the cells. Attention is paid to every detail and one is not left indifferent to the stories of torture and forced labor. Many men were subjected to it, but also women and children. The audio guide is included in the entrance fee, and there is a French version of the guided tour.

This is the name of the small mountain next to the castle. A short and easy walk leads to its summit, which offers a superb view of the loch and its surroundings.

The Highlands were long a land of agriculture where ranching and farming families lived in small communities called townships . In the ^nineteenth century, the Highland Clearances wiped out many of these communities, so that by 1850, most had disappeared. Those that survived mutated with new technologies and the Industrial Revolution. Here in Auchindrain, the change was much less noticeable than elsewhere and the area was preserved in its original form. A real trip back in time!