Coo-where? The ultimate guide to where to see (+pet) Highland Cows in Scotland

The best places to see Highland cows in Scotland

These five are my picks of the best places to see Highland Coos in Scotland:

• The Highland Coos at The Trossachs Woollen Mill, Callander. This is the most easily accessible place to see Highland Cows in Scotland – a field of coos directly beside the A84 at the Trossachs Woollen Mill, on the road most people drive on their way north. Feed bags cost about £1 in the shop, and it’s free to stop. Find the coos.
• Swanston Farm, Edinburgh. Free, on the edge of the Pentlands, and the only place I know in Scotland where you can see a Highland cow having arrived by a bus from the city. There are usually three in a paddock beside the cafe and more roaming free about half an hour uphill if you fancy the walk. The views back over Edinburgh are worth the climb on their own. Visit Swanston Farm.
• Kitchen Coos & Ewes, Newton Stewart. Probably the best farm Highland Cow experience in the country. You’re taken out across the hill farm on a tractor-drawn trailer with time to brush and feed them, and it finishes with tea and home baking. Book well ahead.
• Rothiemurchus Hairy Coo Safari, Aviemore. A ranger leads you out in your own car to feed the herd, calves included, on one of Scotland’s great estates. There’s an excellent farm shop at the end of it, and if the weather turns there’s plenty else in the Cairngorms National Park to fall back on. Book online.
• Untethered Skye, Portree. Skye has a reputation for Highland cows that the island doesn’t quite live up to – but this is the exception. A little cafe on the Torvaig road above Portree with coos in the field beside it, feed pellets for sale, and no entry fee. Buy a coffee and enjoy the view. Visit Untethered Skye.

Where to see Highland cows near Edinburgh

• Swanston Farm – free, ten minutes from the bypass, and reachable on the Lothian bus network, which matters if you’re visiting Edinburgh without a car. Park at the farm, walk up past the paddock, and keep going uphill if you want to find the free-roaming ones. Find the coos.
• Forty minutes north over the bridge, The Kelty Highland Coos in Fife is the closest proper experience to the city. Joanne takes small groups into the field to brush and feed the herd, and the access to calves is better than anywhere else within an hour of Edinburgh.
• Menagerie Edinburgh at Damhead runs guided visits and children’s parties on a small volunteer-run farm – worth a call to check what’s in the fields before you book.
• Further afield but still an easy day out: Jacksons at Jedburgh in the Borders, about an hour and a half south, where you can either walk the fields yourself or book Farmer Fenwick’s tractor tour.

Where to see Highland cows near Glasgow

• Pollok Country Park is completely free, open around the clock, and a short walk from the Burrell Collection. One tip from experience: if the cattle are lying at the far end of their field, don’t stand at the roadside fence hoping. Take the path that runs round the side and you’ll get much closer.
• Kilmacolm Farm Tours at Muirhouse Farm, 45 minutes west, runs a Highland cow trailer tour with Farmer Wendy, plus lambing experiences in spring. It’s high up and exposed, so dress considerably warmer than you think you need to.
• Monty’s Farm Park at Cardross, half an hour down the Clyde, is the family option – feed bags, soft play, farm shop, and coos in among it all.
• Auchengree Farm Shop near Beith is free to wander round and has coos, extremely pushy goats and a decent cafe.

Where to see Highland cows on the Isle of Skye

• Skye’s Highland cows are more concentrated than most visitors expect. Rather than being scattered across the island, the reliable ones are clustered in a single small area on the Torvaig road above Portree, where there are three or four spots within about a mile of each other – including Untethered Skye where you can buy a coffee and a bag of feed pellets and get properly close.
• The other dependable stop is the lay-by at Sconser, on the Broadford to Portree road, where the farm allows access to the field with a donation box. There’s parking for about a dozen cars and it fills up fast in summer.
• Just off the island, The Croft Cafe at Duirinish near Kyle of Lochalsh has coos grazing beside the tables and runs a farmer-led tour. It’s an easy stop on the way to or from the bridge.

Read more – the complete guide to the Isle of Skye

Where to see Highland cows on the North Coast 500

Let me be honest about this one, the NC500 has a reputation for Highland cows around every bend, and the reality is patchier.

• Bealach na Bà, the mountain pass above Applecross, is the best-known roadside stretch, with cattle grazing near the road particularly in the warmer months. It’s spectacular, but it’s a single-track road with steep gradients and passing places, so stopping needs care and there is nowhere to simply pull over on a whim.
• Kirkton Farm at Melvich, near Thurso, is the only bookable coo experience on the north coast, and it’s a good one – Willie’s buggy tour runs around two and a half hours, takes in the coos, sheep, a Shetland pony and a Viking burial site, and costs about £60 for two. There are motorhome pitches on the farm too.

Read more – the complete guide to the North Coast 500

Where to see Highland cows near Inverness and Loch Ness

This is the best corner of Scotland for coos, with more places to see them than anywhere else in the country — thirteen within an easy drive of Inverness.

• Farm Ness is a mile out of the city on the Loch Ness road, with a feeding chute, alpacas, goats and a play area. It’s the easiest option if you’re short of time.
• Drumbuie Farm at Drumnadrochit is the best value on the loch. Five pounds buys a cup of feed with no booking needed, and there’s a bookable coo picnic and afternoon tea if you want to make more of it. The Quila Cridhe tearoom is on site.
• The Camerons Tea Room at Foyers sits on the quiet south side of Loch Ness, with coos, deer and horses on the farm and very good baking. Pair it with the Falls of Foyers.
• Robertson’s at Beauly is home to Jamie Fraser and Katie Morag, two orphaned coos hand-reared by the owner. Free to visit, and buying something in the shop helps pay for their keep.
• Culloden Battlefield is grazed by Highland cattle, so you may well meet one among the clan markers. It depends where the herd has been put that season, so treat it as a bonus rather than the reason to go — but the moor is free to walk and you can get there by bus from Inverness.
• For something hands-on, Invercannich Farm in Glen Affric runs tours with alpacas and goats alongside the coos, and South Clunes Farm at Kirkhill does a walking safari taking in beaver dams and the sheepdogs at work.
• And if you haven’t got a car, The Highland Coo Experience collects you in Inverness and drives you out to the farm, scones included.

Where to see Highland cows near Aberdeen and in Angus

The east coast is one of the best places in Scotland for a proper coo experience.

• Newton Farm Holidays & Tours near Forfar is the standout. Graeme and Louise won Best Outdoor Experience at VisitScotland’s Regional Thistle Awards in 2024, and the tour lets you groom the coos and feed the resident alpacas while learning how the farm actually runs. There are cottages and a farmhouse if you want to stay.
• Aikenshill Farm at Foveran, north of Aberdeen, is the other one worth the drive. James Duthie walks you round his fold to brush and feed them, with sea views across the coast — and he keeps wellies and coats in your size so you don’t ruin your own clothes. Come in spring for the calves.
• Aberdeenshire Highland Beef at Banchory runs weekend tours with Clydesdale horses and a pygmy goat alongside the coos.
• For free, Glen Tanar Estate near Aboyne has cattle grazing fields by the road on the eastern edge of the Cairngorms — luck rather than certainty, but the glen is worth the drive anyway. Arbikie Highland Estate Distillery near Montrose has coos in the field alongside it, which makes it the one place in Scotland where you can combine a whisky tour with a coo.
• In Dundee, Camperdown Wildlife Centre sits inside Camperdown Country Park and is reachable by bus from the city.

Highland cows on the Isle of Arran

Arran has two of the best coo experiences in Scotland:

• Hairy Coo Encounters at the Maol Fold near Machrie. Andrew takes small groups in among the fold to brush and pet them, with plenty of time for photographs.
• Bellevue Farm Tours at Blackwaterfoot runs a fully guided two-hour tour where you feed and pet the coos alongside alpacas, goats, pigs and hens, finishing with a cuppa that’s included in the ticket. Their own ice cream and milk are worth staying for, and there are holiday cottages on the farm.

Both need booking. The ferry goes from Ardrossan, which is under an hour from Glasgow by train, so Arran works as a long day out or a much better overnight.

How much does it cost to see a Highland cow?

Anything from nothing to about £40 a head, depending on how close you want to get. Fifteen of the 53 places in this guide are free.

What you’re buying	Typical cost	How long	Book ahead?
Roadside stop or country park	Free	10 minutes	No
Feed bags at a farm shop or mill	About £1	15 minutes	No
Feed cup at a tearoom	About £5	20–30 minutes	No
Farm park or wildlife park entry	£12–£15 an adult	Half a day	Book online, it’s cheaper
Guided farm tour or coo safari	Varies, often £25–£40 a head	1–2.5 hours	Yes, weeks ahead in summer

For example: feed bags at Kilmahog cost about £1 and the stop itself is free. Drumbuie Farm charges £5 for a cup of feed with no booking. Kirkton Farm on the north coast is around £60 for two people for a two-and-a-half-hour buggy tour. Auchingarrich is around £14 an adult and Mabie Farm Park around £12, both with everything included once you’re through the gate.

Can you see a Highland cow without a car?

• Swanston Farm, Edinburgh – on the Lothian bus network, there are three coos in a paddock beside the cafe
• Pollok Country Park, Glasgow – free, walkable from the train or bus
• Camperdown Wildlife Centre, Dundee – reachable by bus from the city centre
• Culloden Battlefield – bus from Inverness, free to walk the moor
• The Highland Coo Experience – collects you in Inverness and drives you to the farm

If you’re relying on public transport, Edinburgh and Glasgow are much the easiest bases.

Free places to see Highland cows in Scotland

Twelve of the places in this guide cost nothing at all. The best of them:

• Pollok Country Park, Glasgow – free, open 24 hours, beside the Burrell Collection
• Swanston Farm, Edinburgh – free, reachable by bus
• Kilmahog, Callander – free to stop, feed bags about £1
• Untethered Skye, Portree – no entry fee, feed pellets extra
• Sconser lay-by, Skye – donation box
• The Camerons Tea Room, Foyers – free to visit the farm on the quiet side of Loch Ness
• Robertson’s, Beauly – home to two hand-reared orphan coos, Jamie and Katie
• The Croft Cafe, Duirinish – coos beside the tables
• Auchengree Farm Shop, Beith – free to wander

Use the Free to visit filter on the map above to see all of them.

Highland cow experiences: feeding, brushing and farm safaris

There are three quite different things being sold under the same heading, and it’s worth knowing which you’re buying.

Feed-a-coo at a tearoom or farm shop. You turn up, buy a cup or bag of feed for a pound or two, and hand-feed cattle over a fence. Drumbuie Farm at Drumnadrochit does this for £5 with no booking needed, which is the best value on Loch Ness. Kilmahog and Untethered Skye work the same way. Ten minutes, no planning, ideal if you’re passing.

A farm tour or safari. You book a slot, and a farmer takes you out among the herd – usually on a tractor-drawn trailer, an ATV or a buggy – with time to brush them, feed them and hear about how the farm works. Book – Kitchen Coos & Ewes, Cladich by Loch Awe, Kilmacolm, Drumad Estate in Perthshire, Kirkton Farm on the north coast. Expect one to three hours, usually with tea and cake at the end, and expect to book weeks ahead in summer.

Farm parks and wildlife parks. Highland Wildlife Park at Kincraig, Heads of Ayr, Blair Drummond, Auchingarrich, Camperdown in Dundee. You’ll see coos in a paddock rather than get among them, but the sighting is guaranteed and there’s a full day out attached – which makes these the right answer if you’ve got children or the weather has collapsed.

When is the best time to see Highland cows?

Highland cattle live outdoors year-round, so there’s no closed season – but two things are worth considering:

Calves arrive in spring. Most Scottish herds calve from around March to June, so that’s when you’ll see them at their smallest. Highland cows calve easily and unassisted, which is part of why the breed suits rough hill ground so well. Farms that run experiences often combine coo visits with lambing at this time of year.

The coat is at its best in winter. That famous shaggy outer layer is thickest between about November and April. Highland cattle shed the heavy hair as the weather warms. Winter also tends to bring herds down into lower fields nearer the roads, rather than out on the open hill.

How to behave around Highland cattle

Highland cattle are farmed animals on working land, not wildlife. Under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code your right to roam does extend to fields with farm animals, but the guidance is clear and worth following.

• Keep a sensible distance, and never come between a cow and her calf. Cows with calves can react aggressively and are treated as being as much of a risk as a bull.
• Don’t feed them without permission. The Access Code asks visitors not to feed farm animals. The places in this guide that sell feed are the exception, not the rule.
• Never take a dog into a field with calves. Anywhere else near livestock, keep it on a short lead or close at heel.
• If cattle move towards you and you have a dog with you, let the dog go and take the shortest safe route out of the field. Your dog can outrun them. You can’t.
• Don’t try to pet or corner an animal in an open field – they are farm animals, not pets.
• Leave gates as you find them, whether open or closed.

Despite the horns, Highland cattle have a reputation as one of the calmest breeds in Britain – which is exactly why so many farms can run hands-on experiences. But calm is not the same as tame.

Highland cow facts

Both sexes have horns. It’s unusual among cattle. A cow’s horns are finer and sweep upwards; a bull’s are thicker and point forward. They’re not only for defence – cattle use them to dig through snow to reach grazing, and for a good scratch.

The coat is double-layered. An oily outer layer, the longest of any cattle breed and sometimes over 30cm, sheds rain and snow, and a soft downy undercoat traps warmth. Between them they mean a Highland cow needs no barn, even in a Scottish winter.

That fringe has a name. It’s called the dossan, and it shields the eyes from wind, rain and insects.

They’re not all ginger. Around 60% are the familiar reddish brown, roughly 22% are yellow, and the rest are black, dun, silver, white or brindle.

It’s Scotland’s oldest registered breed. The Highland Cattle Society was founded in 1884 and the first herd book published the year after, though the cattle themselves go back centuries further.

A group of Highland Cattle is called a fold. The name comes from the open stone shelters, or folds, where cattle were once kept overnight.

There’s a royal fold. Queen Elizabeth II founded a fold at Balmoral in 1953, the year of her coronation, and Highland cattle are kept there still.

“Coo” is simply Scots for cow. A heilan coo is a Highland cow – say it hay-lan coo.

Highland cows in Scotland FAQs

Wherever you’re heading in Scotland, there’s a coo within reach – and if you only do one thing on this list, make it a farm experience rather than a roadside stop. Standing in a field brushing a Highland cow that has decided you’re worth leaning on is a fabulous experience – and photo opp!

Love, from Scotland x

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