Dunvegan Castle
The Clan MacLeod has had its family seat at Dunvegan Castle since about the 12th century. It remains the seat of the Clan and a castle well worth visiting for its history and excellent state of repair
Among all the historic houses of Scotland there is none that for sheer manifold fascination overtops Dunvegan Castle.
It is at once the greatest and most renowned among Hebridean strongholds, and the only one which has been continuously owned and (with the exception of the eighty years after the Potato Famine of the last century) occupied by the same family, during a period now reaching back over a span of very nearly 8 centuries. Architecturally it is a structure of high importance, containing work of at least ten building periods. Its history, and that of the famous Clan whose Chiefs have ruled from their castled Rock during all these many generations, is rich with drama and packed with colourful interest.
Within Dunvegan's stately halls are priceless heirlooms, some of which have descended in the hands of the Chiefs of MacLeod since medieval times.
The picturesque quality of the building itself is matched by its glorious surroundings. "Ane starke strengthe biggit upon ane craig", so it is described by a writer of 1549; and so it still remains. Rising sheer from the almost perpendicular edges of the rock, its massive grey towers and hoary battlements stand forth against an unrivalled background of sky and mountain and islet-spangled sea. On the landward side the castle - no longer girt by the bare wine-dark moorland, as when Dr Johnson visited it in 1773 - is now sheltered by extensive and thriving plantations, through which re-echoes the ceaseless murmur or"Rory Mor's Nurse" - that 'torrent's roaring might" celebrated by Sir Walter Scott in the Lord of the Isles. Around those waterfalls are being reclaimed today the gardens of the castle, whose beauty and range of plant life have already attracted the interest of serious gardeners from all over the world.
But if you wish to seek out the authentic spirit of the Isles you will find her enthroned at Dunvegan, where the castle and its contents embody the essence of all that Gaeldom has meant in the Highlands of Scotland.
Opening Times
1 April to 15 October
Daily 10am - 5.30pm (last entry 5pm)
16 October to 31 March
Open for Groups by appointment - weekdays only
Castle & Gardens closed Christmas & New Year
Contact Phone Number
+441470521206Websites to Visit
Visitor Attractions
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Neist Point
Dramatic Lighthouse look west at the far western tip of Skye. Sunsets to die for! Requires a walk.
Dunvegan Castle Cottages and Holiday SelfCatering
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Taigh Agnes Cottage, Isle of Skye - Sleeps 6
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Loch Bay Boat House, Skye - sleeps 6
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Pooltiel House, Skye - Sleeps 4-6
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Fleet Cottage, Portree, Sleeps 4
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Half of 6 Croft - Sleeps 4
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The Old Cottage Sleep 2 Suladale Isle of Skye
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77/78 Aird Self Catering Portree on the Isle of Skye Sleeps 4
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Greep Luxury Cottage, Skye West Coast, Sleeps 6
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Mag Findargat,Dunvegan, sleeps 4
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The Ploughmans Cottage, Isle of Skye - Sleeps 6/8
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A View for Two apartment Dunvegan - sleeps 2
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Red Chimneys Cottage, Colbost - sleeps 4
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Cuillin View, Skye - Sleeps 2
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The Stables, Isle of Skye - Sleeps 2
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The Log Cabin Dunvegan - Sleeps 2
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Brae Cottage near Dunvegan on Skye - Sleeps 8
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