We put together this blog and ‘Places to visit for Outlander Fans In the Inverness Area‘ to help Outlander fans who are in Inverness and wonder what they should visit. We hope these blogs help you discover the beauty and history of Inverness.
Inverness Castle
Destroyed in 1746 during the Jacobite Rising the present Castle was rebuilt in 1834.
From the Castle you can enjoy great views up and down the River Ness.
The Flora MacDonald statue stands in front of the castle. We meet Flora in ‘A Breath Of Snow and Ashes’, chapter 54, “Flora MacDonald’s Barbecue” when The Frasers attend a barbecue at River Run.
Flora MacDonald outside Inverness Castle
Inverness Castle Viewpoint
Click here for information on the Castle Viewpoint: https://www.highlifehighland.com/invernesscastleviewpoint/
We were lucky enough to visit the new castle viewpoint in the first week that it opened up to the public.
You can watch a video we took here:
From the viewpoint you get a 360° view of Inverness and can see many well known landmarks in the surrounding area. We spent ages at the top of the tower trying to find places we know – some of us even spotted our houses!
At the moment you can only visit the viewpoint at Inverness Castle but there are plans to make Inverness Castle a tourist attraction in the near future.
Inverness Museum
Click Here for Information on IMAG
Learn about Inverness, Scottish history and the Jacobites and step back in time looking at artefacts from the 18th century and Jacobite Rising.
We had a wonderful hands on experience here at a Jacobite event that the meuseum organised for us. We held Portrait miniatures, solid gold coins, paintings, glasses and even had the Bonnie Prince Charlie’s death mask in our hands.
Karin’s photo @Montrave Some of the artefacts that we got to hold.
Inverness Library
Before the Library moved to it’s present building it was where the Inverness Museum is now on Castle Wynd so this is where Claire would have brought Frank’s Books in 1968.
“I had brought several of Frank’s books with me, intending to donate them to the Inverness Library…..” (Dragonfly in Amber: Mustering the roll pg 17).
Now you can visit all the Jacobite artefacts inside.
The building that is used today as the library was built as a school, Bell’s Institution in 1841. It ceased to be a school in 1937 and has had many uses as a courthouse, police station and theatre before becoming a public library in 1980. It’s beside the bus station in Farraline park if you’d like to drop in for a visit.
Click here for Library Opening Hours
Farm and Household
‘An Echo In The Bone’ – ‘Farm and Household Store just might have a pump for a milk separator. A large bewildering crowded building on the edge of Inverness, the Farm and Household supplied just about anything a farm might need including pitchforks, rubber fire buckets, bailing wire and washing machines, as well as crockery, jars for canning and not a few mysterious implements whose use she could only guess at.’
Inverness Train Station
In ‘Dragonfly in Amber’ Roger’s car is spotted parked in Inverness Train Station Car park.
The Train station hasn’t changed that much since the 1960’s except I wouldn’t advise parking there and taking a trip to Edinburgh and back as you might find yourself with a hefty parking fine!
Leakey’s Book Shop
Like them on Facebook click here
It was originally the Old Gaelic Church built 1649. During the Jacobite Rising the Church became a temporary hospital.
It was from here that the sick and wounded Jacobite soldiers were taken out and shot against the wall of the Old High Church.
Leakey’s is also a must visit place for any book lover as it’s a wonderful second hand book store.
The Old High Church
Click for Information on the Old High Church
The Old High Church became a prison for The Jacobites after Culloden when the executions were carried out in the church yard.
The High Church is mentioned a few times in An Echo in the Bone.
‘The Old High Church of St Stephen’s stood serene on the banks of the Ness, the weathered stones in its kirkyard a testament to righteous peace’ .
For our full blog about the Old High Church in Inverness and it’s Outlander Connections Click Here
St Mary’s Church
Click here for Information on St Mary’s
St Mary’s doesn’t get mentioned by name in Dragonfly in Amber when Brianna and Roger go to Church on Christmas Eve but it’s the main Catholic church in Inverness.
SPOILER: It is mentioned by name in later books when Roger becomes a Choir Master in St Mary’s.
From An Echo in the Bone ‘ Would you come with us to Mass at St Mary’s?’ she asked because then we could all just go across to St Stephen’s together’
View from the top of the Old High Church tower over the River Ness to St Mary’s.
Ness Walk
In Dragonfly In Amber Part Seven ‘Witch -Hunt’ both Brianna and Roger ‘stroll down the narrow walk by the River Ness ‘
This is a lovely walk to do, you can follow the path right up to and around Ness Islands and you could also keep going and do the start of the Great Glen Way.
Highland Archive Centre
Click here for Information on the Archive Centre
We were very lucky when in March 2015 the Archive Centre gave us a fantastic Jacobite tour of their facilities. We got to see old maps of Inverness and read about the people who lived in Inverness before the rising. We also learned how you would look up your family history. It was such an interesting visit and if you have time we would totally recommend spending a few hours here.
Inverness Botanic Gardens
This is a short walk along the River Ness and is free to enter that’s well worth a visit for anyone who like Claire has an interest in plants.
Tomnahurich Hill
Tomnahurich Hill on a frosty morning
The hill, known as a fairy hill, has a wealth of traditions and old folklore stories associated with it.
‘Drums of Autumn’ (chapter 32 Grimoire). ” May 1,1963. Tomnahurich, Scotland. Body of female, indentified as Mary Walker Willis.”
Click here for more information on Tomnahurich Hill
Tomnahurich Hill is on Glenurquhart Road. In the eighth Outlander book ‘Written in My Own Hearts Blood’ we find out the Manse’s address is ‘669 Glenurquhart Road’ (ch. 38 The Number of the Beast). Unfortunately the house numbers on Glenurquhart Road don’t go up that high so you can’t drop into Fiona for a cup of tea.
The Great Glen Way and Craigh Na Dun
The Great Glen Way is Scotland’s fourth National Long Distance Walking Route. It runs from Inverness to Fort William. The route is 73 miles (118 Km) in length following closely the line of the Caledonian Canal. We are not saying that you have to do the whole 73 miles but if you start it along the River Ness and follow the path up the hill, you get some great views overlooking Inverness. This path is also the old drovers road and was used by a lot of Jacobites escaping the aftermath of Culloden up there you will also find the real Craigh Na Dun .
To read about how to find the real Craigh Na Dun in Inverness Click Here
We hope you enjoyed this blog and it helps give you ideas to Outlander related places to visit when you’re in Inverness. Don’t forget to check out our other blogs and follow us on twitter @InverOutlanders .
Inverness Outlanders 
Beautiful pictures! Can’t wait to see Scotland!
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I so enjoyed reading your blog. My sister and I were in Inverness in May of last year and seen all but a few of the sites you mentioned. I can’t wait to return as Inverness has so much history and places to see and it’s a friendly, beautiful piece of Scotland.
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Reblogged this on Irish history, folklore and all that.
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