Invergordon

Watch for bottlenose dolphins as you sail into or out of port.

Invergordon’s terminal has little beyond a long pier and shorter pier, the latter able to take ships as large as the QE2. The setting is pleasant, with a small shop at the pier foot selling whisky, crafts, jewelry and Scottish food gifts from friendly locals. Town is only a few minutes away on foot. When all berths are occupied, ships may anchor and tender passengers ashore.

Invergordon welcomes all cruise ships with pipe bands and traditional dancing, giving passengers a glimpse of what the Highlands of Scotland offer visitors.

The station is a 10 minute walk away, with trains to Inverness taking 50 minutes. A one-way fare is £11.

Public bus 25X leaves Camerons Garden Center on Invergordon High Street, less than a 5-minute walk from the terminal. The trip lasts approximately 50 minutes and costs £12.60 return per person.!

Bring a printable map.

Check the cruise calendar for this port and the pier to be used.

With about 5,000 people, Invergordon is a relatively small city and the port for Inverness, the Scottish Highlands capital and a route junction. Look for building murals depicting local historic events, and collect brochures at the well-stocked pier information booth.

Invergordon Naval Museum and Heritage Centre opens 10am to 1pm on every day a cruise liner is in port.

An hour generally covers Invergordon, so most guests travel onwards to Inverness or beyond.

For questions about sightseeing from Invergordon, particularly if you are planning to do it yourself, contact this local volunteer group. These helpful area residents set up a booth at the pier exit on cruise ship arrival days and are happy to assist.

Cruise ships provide transport to Inverness, a pleasant 45 minutes bus ride at around 45 Euro. A better choice is public bus 25X from Invergordon High Street, steps from the pier, running to Inverness from 7:45 and every 30 minutes. The journey takes 45 minutes and a £12.60 day-ticket covers return travel. When two large liners visit, extra buses are added, so passengers are looked after; if the first queue is long, another bus will soon arrive. Great service!

For Inverness views, use the open-top double decker hop-on, hop-off tour. It has twelve stops around the city and gives both touring freedom and spectacular viewpoints.

Inverness, much larger and better known, has a population of 50,000 and lies 23 miles south of Invergordon on the Ness River.

For centuries Inverness was often the scene of conflict between Highland chiefs and the Crown. It is now a popular tourist town and a meeting point for surrounding clans, hosting traditional Scottish events each summer including the Highland Games and Sheep Dog Trials.

Excursions from Invergordon can take in several local attractions: the Battlefield of Culloden, Loch Ness, historic castles and old whisky distilleries, plus the villages of Tain and Cromarty. Tourism underpins much of the economy, alongside its fishing and agricultural industries.

Enjoy the picture-perfect landscape and perhaps chat with a Highlander keen to introduce their fabled land and rich heritage.

Invergordon has one main thoroughfare, High Street, with several shops and restaurants.

The pound (£) is used throughout the UK, also called quid in slang. Scottish bank notes are frowned upon elsewhere in the UK, so exchange them before leaving Scotland.

Cash machines, or “holes in the wall”, are extremely common and usually issue £10 and £20 notes.

Most shops and restaurants take Visa, Mastercard and Maestro.

English and Scottish are spoken here.

Most cafes and restaurants provide free WiFi.

The emergency number is 999, though the EU-wide 112 also works.

General shopping hours:

Small stores often open 6 or 7 days weekly from 10am - 6pm, while larger stores generally stay open until 9PM.