balmoral land rover safari

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Balmoral expedition tours.

Enjoy a wonderful tour of Balmoral, the Scottish holiday home to the Royal Family. The Balmoral Expedition Tour is a wonderful experience for you to enjoy as a social household bubble.

The charge for the Balmoral Expedition Tour is £350 and one ticket covers a maximum of six people. The expedition is a two hour Landrover tour on the Estate and includes admission when Balmoral Castle is open to the Public.

Parking is available by the Estates Office.

Please check the Balmoral Castle website for availability and to make your booking online. Timings for the Morning Expedition:- Arrive at Estates Office for 0945 and the tour will be from 1000 until 1200 Timings for the Afternoon Expedition:- Arrive at Estates Office for 1245 and the tour will be from 1300 until 1500 We only offer a limited number of Balmoral Expeditions, so it is best to book early to avoid disappointment..

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Please see availability and book through the Balmoral Castle & Estate website

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Balmoral Safari Tour - Balmoral Castle

• Europe    
• United Kingdom (UK)    
• Scotland    
• Aberdeenshire    
• Ballater    
• Ballater - Things to Do    
• Balmoral Castle

Balmoral Safari Tour

Went on the Landrover tour around Balmoral Castle. The guide/ driver was excellent and we spotted Stags and Roe deer. Our guide had excellent knowledge and answered all our questions. The views were stunning. I got some great pictures on my cameras. The tourist office were friendly and courteous too.

Hello, Many thanks for your lovely 5 star review. I am delighted that you enjoyed your Safari and thank you for your kind words regarding the staff at the information center. Regards Garry

Aparently it's clear, on the website, that a ticket does not entitle anyone access to the castle. I'm a member of The National Trust, in England, and also visited stately homes and castles that are private residences all over the Uk. I have never been asked to pay £20 for a walk in a park!!!!!

Hello and many thanks for your review. The reason only one room is open in the Castle is that Balmoral is the Scottish home to the British Royal family and the remainder of the Castle is Her Majesty's private residence. We do state this in our leaflet and on our web site. At Balmoral we do include in the admission an Audio Guide in a number of languages, exhibitions in the stable block including our "Land Rover, 70 years in the making" exhibition, history and wildlife displays along with an audio visual introduction to the estate. The production and amenity gardens are included as are the way marked walks and trails that take in some of the many monuments and cairns erected since Queen Victoria and Prince Albert purchased the estate in 1852. Car parking is also free and we provide transport from the car parks to the main site. For the avoidance of doubt and to prevent others bring misled the charges are £11.50 for an adult. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Great place to visit as well as church across the road. Very friendly helpful staff. Lots of walks and area to explore and well signed

Hello and thank you for your lovely 5 star review. I am pleased that you enjoyed your visit to Balmoral and Crathie Kirk. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Good. Value if you like walking. Friendly staff, willing to chat about anything you ask, dog friendly in grounds.

Hello and thank you for your lovely 5 star review. I am pleased that you enjoyed your visit to Balmoral. Thank you for your kind words regarding the staff. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Beautiful place to visit, super scenery, fabulous gardens. Did a very interesting tour with a guide which was most informative in the woods. The staff are friendly and welcoming. Many thanks to the lovely Steph who was particularly friendly and most helpful. Heartily recommend the restaurant most reasonably priced with lovely produce.

Hello and thank you for your lovely 5 star review. I am pleased that you enjoyed your visit to Balmoral. Thank you for your kind words regarding Steph and the cafe. I know the team there work hard to provide a good service to all of our customers. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Enjoyed visiting Balmorel and spent a relaxing morning visiting Craithie and then touring round the grounds. We enjoyed the audio commentary which came with the ticket and found everyone we met along the way to be most helpful. Only downside of the visit (and it is made perfectly clear and is quite understandable) is that the only part of the castle that can be visited is the adjacent ballroom which houses various display items.

Hello and thank you for your lovely 4 star review. I am pleased that you enjoyed your visit to Balmoral. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

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Balmoral land rover safari - Balmoral Castle

• Europe    
• United Kingdom (UK)    
• Scotland    
• Aberdeenshire    
• Ballater    
• Ballater - Things to Do    
• Balmoral Castle

Balmoral land rover safari

Saturday we went on a 3 hour drive around the 55000 acres of balmoral with Chris our driver, it was an amazing afternoon getting to see places not normally available to the public,we visited the pony stud farm,and all the queens favourite places on her estate. I learned a lot about the conservation work done on the estate. The price was £60 per person. It's worth every penny,it also gives you access to the castle grounds and the ballroom. All the staff were friendly and we had lunch there too,the standard of food served was very good and prices pretty good as well. Would I go back again. Yes can't wait for another visit in the future.

Hello and thank you for your lovely 5 star review. I am pleased that you enjoyed your visit to Balmoral. Many thanks for your kind words regarding the staff and we look forward to welcoming you back in the future. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

We joined Aberdeen Tours for a day at Balmoral! Our guide, Carl, made our drive the perfect experience. The grounds of Balmoral are amazing and serene. Visitors only get to see the ballroom in the castle, but the exterior is amazing nonetheless.

Hello and thank you for your lovely 5 star review. I am pleased that you enjoyed your visit to Balmoral. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Although the Royal Family doesn't let tourists in further than the ballroom, you are free to walk the grounds which are beautiful and serene. It would be helpful if they told people upfront that we can't tour the inside of the castle other than just the ballroom.

Hello and many thanks for your 4 star review. The reason only one room is open in the Castle is that Balmoral is the Scottish home to the British Royal family and the remainder of the Castle is Her Majesty's private residence. We do state this in our leaflet and on our web site. At Balmoral we do include in the admission an Audio Guide in a number of languages, exhibitions in the stable block including our "Land Rover, 70 years in the making" exhibition, history and wildlife displays along with an audio visual introduction to the estate. The production and amenity gardens are included as are the way marked walks and trails that take in some of the many monuments and cairns erected since Queen Victoria and Prince Albert purchased the estate in 1852. Car parking is also free and we provide transport from the car parks to the main site. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Traveling thru Scotland, visiting Balmoral was a must on my mother’s bucket list. Absolutely beautiful drive to the estate from Perth and equally impressive landscape surrounding the estate. Extremely helpful staff.

The grounds are beautiful but the only part inside the castle you get to see is the ballroom and no photos allowed in the ballroom.

Hello and many thanks for your review. The reason only one room is open in the Castle is that Balmoral is the Scottish home to the British Royal family and the remainder of the Castle is Her Majesty's private residence. We do state this in our leaflet and on our web site. At Balmoral we do include in the admission an Audio Guide in a number of languages, exhibitions in the stable block including our "Land Rover, 70 years in the making" exhibition, history and wildlife displays along with an audio visual introduction to the estate. The production and amenity gardens are included as are the way marked walks and trails that take in some of the many monuments and cairns erected since Queen Victoria and Prince Albert purchased the estate in 1852. Car parking is also free and we provide transport from the car parks to the main site. Kind Regards Garry Marsden Visitor Enterprise Manager

Have always wanted to see Balmoral. The exhibitions are good and the grounds and gardens beautiful, you can only see one room which is the old ballroom as this is the Queens private residence. A sense of love and serenity.

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Balmoral winter land rover safari.

Balmoral Estate The Estate Office Balmoral Ballater AB35 5TB

Accompany one of our guides on a fascinating tour of Balmoral Estate. The safari tour takes you through the manicured parkland and gardens in front of Balmoral Castle. You then travel through the Estate farm to enter the old Caledonian Pine Forest. This is one of the country's most important habitats and home to the elusive capercaillie.After spending some time exploring this pristine area we head out of the woods onto the open hillside. The views soon start to open up as we travel through the heather high up the flanks of Lochnagar, one of Scotlands most famous mountains.The safari then heads back to civilisation via the monuments and historical buildings of Easter Balmoral. Discover the intriguing life stories of the resident wildlife and learn about the conservation management that is currently underway to help protect some of the United Kingdoms rarest species. Although there are no guarantees, wildlife species which are regularly encountered, include birds of prey, red squirrels, red deer, red grouse, black grouse, snow bunting and salmon.For the winter season 2019 safaris run for three hours and start at 10.00 a.m. The cost is �70.00 per person. Minimum group size of two and maximum group size of six. Binoculars are provided.Please notethat if you only want to book a single person we would ask that you contact us direct to book on 013397 42534. Thank you!

© 2024 Event information from Data Thistle .

The information included in the What's On Data has been supplied to VisitAberdeenshire by Data Thistle and is subject to changes. Readers are advised to check with the venue or event organiser before relying in any way on the details published here. VisitAberdeenshire and Data Thistle are unable to accept responsibility for any loss or liability arising from any errors, omissions or inaccuracies in these listings.

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Land Rover Safari - Balmoral Castle

• Europe    
• United Kingdom (UK)    
• Scotland    
• Aberdeenshire    
• Ballater    
• Ballater - Attractions    
• Balmoral Castle

Land Rover Safari

Thank you George A chance to travel deep into the estate and experience the highlands. George had a huge knowledge base covering history, events and wildlife. An honest exposition of the life and times of the Balmoral estate. We were so lucky to see a herd (c.60) stags, and when they upped and ran, what a site. Well done Land Rover Discovery, what an advert for an off-roader, that actually can. And thanks for the loan of some great binoculars - enough for everyone in the vehicle. We've done the tour before (thanks Sandy), and we'd do it again - worth every penny.

The tour of Balmoral castle (which is not cheap) is overall a poor value for money. The tour guides, however, are passionate and do their best, so their efforts are truly appreciated. Visitors do not actually have access to the castle, which is understandable as it is a functioning castle with living quarters and privacy should be respected. It should be clear, though, that the royals cannot have it both ways - charge fees for castle tour yet deny access to the castle. Considering that one must actually make an effort to get there, it is truly not a worthwhile experience.

If you have an interest in the Royal family, History or Castles, this is a must visit. You are free to walk the gardens which are massive and go into one small part of the castle. Loads of History here and very beautiful. Great for photographers also. We visited in the August,( however if the Royals are vacationing I'm not sure you can visit) We hired a car and drove around the countryside.

We had such a lovely visit to Balmoral Castle. The audio guides were very nice to have and we enjoyed walking the grounds, even as it began to snow! Being from Texas and not seeing much snow, we were so excited about it! I loved the greenhouses and the gift shop was great. We bought a few things, had a cup of tea, and enjoyed the view of the snow coming down.

I really wanted to give to give this 5 out of 5, but 4 it is I felt the tour fell a little short on others we have done within Aberdeenshire. £15 for the winter tour gives you a tour guide lasting about 60 mins, 60% is outside. You spend about 15 mins in an exhibit room with pictures and other items. You get to walk around the castle and only get to enter one room in the castle which is the ballroom. Clearly a private residence, so it is what it is. I did enjoy our time, around 2.5 hours in total, walking the grounds, visiting the gardens and greenhouse, not much to see in the winter in the garden. A walk down to the river was nice. Overall, a good 2/3 hours. As said the tour fell a little short and when we listened in to another tour, we picked up a lot of info not shared on our tour.

Our small walking group decided to visit Balmoral, and it surpassed our expectations. First, the price was reasonable and staff cordial. Second, the house and grounds were very pleasant and welcoming; I think we had feared it might be quite stuffy and restrictive. The small museum/gallery in the home was also interesting. The castle was not an opulent, immense and showy place; rather it was tasteful and nicely proportioned, and well represented the Royal family. The gardens were wonderful without being too fancy, and the deeply wooded and stream-side walking trails (we hiked 8 miles) were unforgettable ... charming and a bit haunting. A nearby unexpected bonus was the Lochnagar Distilery; the single malt here is fine indeed. And don’t miss a quick tour of the nearby small country church the Queen frequently attends when in the area.

You can go on safari at the Queen's beloved Scottish residence, Balmoral – find out how

The royal family visit balmoral every summer.

The Queen 's Scottish residence of Balmoral is said to be one of her favourite places in the entire world, and now visitors can get the opportunity to discover exactly what it is the royals love so much about the country estate. Senior royals including the Queen and Duke of Edinburgh , Prince Charles and the Duchess of Cornwall , and the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visit Balmoral for holidays every summer, and prior to their arrival in 2020, a series of exciting safari tours are being hosted on the estate.

WATCH: Take a look inside the royal residences

Promising to show the best of the Balmoral estate, the tours run between April and August, and take a maximum of six guests on a Land Rover safari starting in front of the historic castle before travelling through the estate farm and into the old Caledonian Pine Forest. The three-hour trip continues with a drive high up the Lochnager mountain, before heading back down via the monuments and historical buildings of Easter Balmoral.

Visitors can take a safari tour around the Queen's Balmoral Estate

While on a traditional safari abroad you could expect to see the big five such as leopards and rhinos, this UK-based safari may allow visitors to see resident wildlife including birds of prey, red squirrels, red deer, snow bunting birds and salmon.

GALLERY: See inside the Queen's Scottish residence, the Balmoral estate

Located in Royal Deeside, Aberdeenshire, the Balmoral Estate is set amid mountains, lochs and glens. Like Queen Victoria before her, the monarch is said to love her relaxing downtime there during the summer, with her granddaughter Princess Eugenie saying the Queen is at her happiest there.

The Queen is said to be at her happiest in Balmoral

"Walks, picnics, dogs – a lot of dogs, there's always dogs – and people coming in and out all the time. It's a lovely base for Granny and Grandpa, for us to come and see them up there; where you just have room to breathe and run." Speaking on ITV's Our Queen At Ninety , she added: "It's the most beautiful place on earth. I think Granny is the most happy there. I think she really, really loves the Highlands."

MORE: How the royals spend their summer holidays in Balmoral

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Land Rover Safari - Balmoral Castle

• Europe    
• United Kingdom (UK)    
• Scotland    
• Aberdeenshire    
• Ballater    
• Ballater - Places to Visit    
• Balmoral Castle

Land Rover Safari

Thank you George A chance to travel deep into the estate and experience the highlands. George had a huge knowledge base covering history, events and wildlife. An honest exposition of the life and times of the Balmoral estate. We were so lucky to see a herd (c.60) stags, and when they upped and ran, what a site. Well done Land Rover Discovery, what an advert for an off-roader, that actually can. And thanks for the loan of some great binoculars - enough for everyone in the vehicle. We've done the tour before (thanks Sandy), and we'd do it again - worth every penny.

The tour of Balmoral castle (which is not cheap) is overall a poor value for money. The tour guides, however, are passionate and do their best, so their efforts are truly appreciated. Visitors do not actually have access to the castle, which is understandable as it is a functioning castle with living quarters and privacy should be respected. It should be clear, though, that the royals cannot have it both ways - charge fees for castle tour yet deny access to the castle. Considering that one must actually make an effort to get there, it is truly not a worthwhile experience.

If you have an interest in the Royal family, History or Castles, this is a must visit. You are free to walk the gardens which are massive and go into one small part of the castle. Loads of History here and very beautiful. Great for photographers also. We visited in the August,( however if the Royals are vacationing I'm not sure you can visit) We hired a car and drove around the countryside.

We had such a lovely visit to Balmoral Castle. The audio guides were very nice to have and we enjoyed walking the grounds, even as it began to snow! Being from Texas and not seeing much snow, we were so excited about it! I loved the greenhouses and the gift shop was great. We bought a few things, had a cup of tea, and enjoyed the view of the snow coming down.

I really wanted to give to give this 5 out of 5, but 4 it is I felt the tour fell a little short on others we have done within Aberdeenshire. £15 for the winter tour gives you a tour guide lasting about 60 mins, 60% is outside. You spend about 15 mins in an exhibit room with pictures and other items. You get to walk around the castle and only get to enter one room in the castle which is the ballroom. Clearly a private residence, so it is what it is. I did enjoy our time, around 2.5 hours in total, walking the grounds, visiting the gardens and greenhouse, not much to see in the winter in the garden. A walk down to the river was nice. Overall, a good 2/3 hours. As said the tour fell a little short and when we listened in to another tour, we picked up a lot of info not shared on our tour.

Our small walking group decided to visit Balmoral, and it surpassed our expectations. First, the price was reasonable and staff cordial. Second, the house and grounds were very pleasant and welcoming; I think we had feared it might be quite stuffy and restrictive. The small museum/gallery in the home was also interesting. The castle was not an opulent, immense and showy place; rather it was tasteful and nicely proportioned, and well represented the Royal family. The gardens were wonderful without being too fancy, and the deeply wooded and stream-side walking trails (we hiked 8 miles) were unforgettable ... charming and a bit haunting. A nearby unexpected bonus was the Lochnagar Distilery; the single malt here is fine indeed. And don’t miss a quick tour of the nearby small country church the Queen frequently attends when in the area.

Ranger Service

The Balmoral Ranger Service was one of the first Ranger Services to be established in Scotland. They have a base in the Estates Office and also a Visitor Centre near Loch Muick.

The car park at Loch Muick is open but can be exceptionally busy. However please note that the toilet facilities are not available.

As the number of visitors to the area has grown additional staff have been employed. The Ranger Service now consists of two full time Rangers, and two Seasonal Rangers. The Ranger Service is grant aided by The Cairngorms National Park Authority.

A Ranger’s work is very varied - there is no typical daily routine. One of the Ranger Services’ main roles is to provide advice and information to members of the public and user groups wishing to use the estate. Rangers regularly patrol the estate on foot and a great deal of advice is given to the public face to face. However, nowadays the public are able to access information about the estate via this web-site and much time is spent responding to e-mails.

A large proportion of the Rangers time is spent on routine maintenance such as maintaining footpaths, fences and bridges and unfortunately too much time is spent picking up litter.

The Ranger Service monitors key wildlife species present on the estate including birds, bats and insects. These key wildlife species are an important indicator of the general health of the environment and habitats. Most of the work is undertaken during the spring and early summer and the results analysed during the winter. The results of the surveys help inform the management of the estate.

The Ranger Service provides guided walks, talks and land rover safaris to the general public and responds to requests for talks and information from educational groups. The Ranger Services educational activities are designed to give visiting groups an opportunity to enjoy, explore and appreciate the landscape and wildlife found on a traditionally managed, privately owned Highland Estate.

The visitor centre at The Spittal of Glen Muick is opened and maintained by the Balmoral Ranger Service throughout the year. Approximately 50,000 people per year make use of the visitor centre. A Ranger tries to be available in the early morning and late afternoon each day. Up to date weather forecasts are displayed in the visitor centre every day and avalanche forecasts are displayed during the winter months.

A monthly wildlife board details some of the wildlife that can be observed. Wildlife leaflets and leaflets describing walks in the local area can all be obtained from the visitor centre

The Ranger Service have a base in the Estates Office at Balmoral and another at the Visitors Centre at Loch Muick.

If you have any queries for the Ranger Service please do not hesitate to contact them.

Estates Office: 013397 42534 Visitor Centre: 013397 55059 E-mail: [email protected]

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