Speyside Whisky Tours: The 14 Best Distillery Days

1.1 Day Moray Coast Tour with Speyside Whisky from Inverness

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 306 reviews · 11 hours 30 minutes (approx.) Our pick

Spend 11.5 hours with a local English-speaking guide exploring Findhorn, Bow Fiddle Rock, Cullen, Spey Bay or Troup Head, and Carrbridge. The day includes coastal walks, wildlife chances, scenic villages, and a stop at Strathisla Distillery. Whisky tastings and food cost extra. Guides may include Karen, Sonia, Amber, Willie, Emily, or Iain.

“Our tour guide was amazing and very personable! She made it very interesting with her vast knowledge of the area. The views were breathtaking!”

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2.3-Day Speyside Whisky Tour from Edinburgh Including Admissions

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 114 reviews · 3 days (approx.) · from $809

Travel from Edinburgh to Speyside in a 16-seat Mercedes mini-coach, tasting whisky at Lindores Abbey, Glenlivet, Cardhu, Dalwhinnie, and the Speyside Cooperage. Stay two nights in Grantown-on-Spey, with Scottish history, Highland scenery, and flexible stops led by an English-speaking driver-guide such as Keith, Pete, Stevie, or Barney.

“Fantastic trip well organized and our driver Peter was amazing well worth taking”

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3.Clan Tour – of Speyside Distilleries

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 91 reviews · 7 to 8 hours (approx.) · from $228

Travel from Inverness into Speyside with a kilted local guide such as George, Sarah, or Alistair. Visit several distilleries, see coopers at work, and sample whisky where available. The small group, usually capped at eight, allows room for itinerary changes, but entry fees, meals, and drinks are extra.

“We had a great time with George! It turned out to be just my husband and I on our tour so we got a really personalized experience. We got to feed Diesal, a cutie pie Highland coo as a bonus too. George had a couple twists thrown at him unexpectedly (Glenlivet didn’t have enough staff to pour us a dram) and he was able to quickly pivot and get us to a different distillery (Craggenmore) that ended up giving us three really interesting drama, one being on my husbands wanted to try list. Overall a really awesome day that we very much enjoyed.”

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4.Speyside Whisky Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 84 reviews · 8 to 10 hours (approx.)

David of Scenic Routes takes your private group of up to three from Inverness into Speyside for a custom whisky day. Choose from distilleries such as Glenlivet, Glenfiddich, Ballindalloch, and Macallan, with room for tastings, lunch, countryside stops, and local stories. Pickup, water, and shortbread are included, but tours, tastings, and lunch cost extra.

“A wonderful day spent with David. He was so great to communicate with before the tour and he thoughtfully planned out our day so we could see everything we wanted to. Clean comfortable car and just a wonderful man!! This is a must if you come to Inverness!!”

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5.Private Speyside Whisky Tour including 10+ Single Malt Tastings

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 80 reviews · 8 hours (approx.)

Travel from Inverness into Speyside with a private driver-guide such as Gavin, Liam, Peter, Doug, or Jason. Taste 10 or more single malts, visit distilleries including Benromach, Glenfiddich, Aberlour, and Glenfarclas, and add the Speyside Cooperage or Macallan when available. Tastings and tour fees at distilleries cost extra.

“What is a trip to Scotland without sampling a variety of whisky the country has to offer? We worked with Gavin and used his expertise to cover all the bases and different flavor variations of the Speyside region and then some. Gavin is extremely knowledgeable, friendly, and experienced in the art of touring. He taught us about the different flavor profiles as well as the history of each. Each location selected, it was clear he spent the time to establish relationship for the best and highest quality of experience. I would say the highlight for us was the Speyside Cooperage and figuring out our favorite styles of whisky. Gavin was…”

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6.Speyside Whisky Day Tour from Inverness Including Admissions

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 50 reviews · from $0

Spend about nine and a half hours exploring Scottish whisky country from Inverness. Visit Tomatin and Glen Moray with tastings included, pause at Elgin Cathedral, and hear Highland stories from a driver-guide such as Alec, Amy, Helen, or Scott. Transport is by a 16-seat Mercedes mini-coach.

“An amazing day with Scott who imparted so much valuable information and passion for the Scottish Highlands. The tour of the first distillery was excellent. Again a very good tour for someone who is not a whisky drinker. Learnt so much about the distillation process. Great lunch stop and tasting at the last distillery. Amazing scenery and great commentary.”

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7.Speyside Whisky Full Day Private Tour from Inverness

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 50 reviews · 9 hours (approx.)

Spend about nine hours with a kilted guide exploring Glen Moray, Glenfiddich, Cardhu, and Glenfarclas from Inverness. Guides such as Robbie, Craig, Bill, and Tony bring whisky, Scottish history, music, and local stories to the day. Tastings and tours cost extra, and the private vehicle suits groups of up to three.

“Our guide & driver Rob was the best part of our day. He recited Robbie Burns, sang songs about the Gordon clan, and entertained us with tales of the Orange versus the Jacobites. He knows every rock band worth its salt, can play the entire guitar solo from Metallica’s Whisky In The Jar, and told us all about salmon fishing on the Beauly. Plus he looked after each of us and made sure we each had a lovely day. We went on this tour to drink whisky but had no idea that the whisky would be completely overshadowed by a true gentleman and a scholar. We will never forget the…”

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8.Speyside Whisky Trail Day Tour from Aberdeen Including Admissions

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 34 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $143Best value

Spend about 10 hours traveling from Aberdeen through Royal Deeside and Speyside. You’ll visit Corgarff Castle, stop at the Whisky Castle, see how casks are made at Speyside Cooperage, and take Cardhu’s Flavour Journey tasting. Guides such as Neil, Chris, Jim, and Doug have led this route, which carries up to 16 people.

“Neil was a fantastic guide and host. The scenery was so beautiful, and the distilleries were awesome! I only wish I could have tipped him, I wasn’t able to exchange money before my trip commenced. I will highly recommend Rabbies for tours, and for future trips.”

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9.Speyside Whisky Trails from Inverness

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 25 reviews · 10 hours (approx.) · from $438

Join Highland guide John for a private, flexible whisky day from Inverness. You can visit Glen Moray, Glen Grant, Glenfiddich, Cardhu, Glenfarclas, or Macallan, with time for tastings, gardens, river views, lunch, and whisky shopping. Pickup and drop-off are included, but tastings and lunch cost extra.

“Excellent tour. I promised our guide, John, a 1 star review (it was a joke). This was one of our favorite tours of our trip. It was nice to have a professional move us around rather than using the transport God gave me. It was both educational and entertaining, and there was plenty of whisky to taste. Highly recommended”

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10.Deluxe 5 star Private Speyside Whisky Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 25 reviews · 7 to 8 hours (approx.)

Spend 7 to 8 hours with Craig on a private Speyside whisky tour from Inverness. Your group of up to four gets hotel, station, airport, or guesthouse pickup, bottled water, Wi-Fi, and a flexible route through famous distilleries such as Glenlivet, Glenfarclas, Macallan, and Glenfiddich. Distillery tours and meals cost extra.

“This day trip was better than we were expecting, and we were expecting a lot. The itinerary Craig put together was perfect, the distilleries were fantastic and the timing excellent. We had enough time at each place we visited, no rushing. Absolutely would book with Craig again.”

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11.Speyside Full-Day Private Whisky Tour

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 23 reviews · 8 hours 30 minutes (approx.)

Travel from Inverness into Speyside with Lawrence or Billy of Highlander Private Tours. This private eight-and-a-half-hour day links Glenfiddich, GlenAllachie, the Speyside Cooperage, Aberlour, Glenfarclas, Glenlivet, Macallan, and Cardhu. Distillery admissions, lunch, and tastings are extra, so plan your stops and budget ahead.

“After months of checking reviews on private tour companies in Inverness & multiple emails with different companies Highlander Private Tours did not disappoint. My emails to Lawrence regarding a non-standard tour with a long list of distilleries that we wanted to see for my husband's birthday in various areas was immediately answered. It came to my attention that I had no idea how vast the area was! After great detailed emails from Lawrence he set an itinerary for the whiskey tours doing the areas we wanted. Turns out that instead of my planned 2 days using Highlander I ended up booking 4 ! We spent 2 days with Lawrence and…”

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12.Full-Day Private Speyside Malt Whisky Trail Tour from Grantown-on-Spey

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 22 reviews · from $514

Spend about eight hours with a private driver-guide exploring Speyside from Grantown-on-Spey. Visit Cragganmore, Glenlivet, Aberlour, Glenfiddich, and the Speyside Cooperage, with time for tastings and local sights. John and Chris have guided past tours, but tasting and entrance fees are extra.

“Great trip along the Malt Whisky trail. John was a great guide. Got us some very good tours and tastings. Had a blast. Would recommend to anyone looking to enjoy the whisky experience.”

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13.Speyside Whisky Tour – Three Distilleries Included – Private – 5 Star Reviews

★★★★★★★★★★4.5 · 18 reviews · 12 to 14 hours (approx.) · from $1,091

Set out from Edinburgh around 7am with Whiskywheels Tours for a private Speyside whisky day. Your driver-guide, often Euan, arranges three distillery visits with tastings, such as Aberlour, Glenfarclas, Macallan, Glenlivet, or Glenfiddich. Expect a very long day, roughly 12 to 14 hours, with pickup and return included.

“Going to distilleries in a hurry. We could not enjoy for the price we paid. Our last distillery private tour was totally better.”

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14.Speyside Whisky Experience

★★★★★★★★★★5.0 · 5 reviews · 8 hours (approx.)

Set out from Inverness with a private English-speaking driver-guide for an eight-hour Speyside whisky day. Choose from about 50 distilleries, with Glenfiddich, Macallan, and Glenfarclas suggested as starting points. Tour fees are extra, and Regan is a guide worth requesting if available.

“The Glenlivet tour was great. Regan, our guide, was awesome. Helpful, friendly and was concerned about our experience.”

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