Outlander filming locations: every spot in Scotland to visit in 2026

Outlander filming locations in central Scotland

The vast majority of Outlander’s iconic locations sit in central Scotland’s within an hour’s drive of either Edinburgh or Glasgow.

NEW! North Third Reservoir (King’s Mountain)

The closing moments of the show – Jamie and Claire lying side by side on King’s Mountain after the battle that fans had been dreading for an entire season – were filmed not in North Carolina, but on the edge of a North Third Reservoir, near Stirling.

From the top of Lewis Hill, an outlier of the Touch Hills with a trig point perched right on the edge of the crags, you get panoramic views across the reservoir and, on a clear day, all the way to Ben Ledi, Stùc a’Chròin, and Ben Vorlich in the southern Highlands.

You can Lewis Hill on a circular route of around 5.6km (3½ miles), starting from a small layby beside the bridge over the Bannock Burn at the south end of the reservoir. The path climbs steeply at first through beech, larch, and oak woodland before opening out onto the crags and the trig point where the final scenes were filmed.

Free, open access. Very limited parking at layby on the south side of the reservoir near the bridge over the Bannock Burn.

Doune Castle (Castle Leoch)

Sitting on the River Teith between Stirling and Callander, this 14th-century castle was used as Castle Leoch, home of Clan MacKenzie, where Claire first meets Colum after being thrown back in time. The Great Hall, the kitchen, the courtyard, and the gatehouse all appear in countless scenes from season one onwards.

Doune Castle is one of Scotland’s best-preserved medieval castles, also famously the filming location for the Holy Grail in Monty Python and the original pilot of Game of Thrones. The audio guide narrated by Sam Heughan is brilliant.

Doune Castle is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Adults £10, free for members. There is restricted parking at the castle, use parking in the village car parks where possible. 

Midhope Castle (Lallybroch)

The other immediately recognisable Outlander filming location, Midhope Castle is the 15th-century tower house that stands in for Lallybroch, the Fraser family seat (also known as Broch Tuarach). Tucked away on the Hopetoun Estate near South Queensferry, the castle has become a pilgrimage site for fans.

A note – Midhope is the exterior only, the interior remains derelict but has recently been opened to the public.

The wider Hopetoun Estate appeared in countless other Outlander scenes too. The Paris street market, Jamie teaching Willie to ride, sword fights, duels. The estate has produced their own Outlander filming locations map if you want to find every spot.

Midhope Castle tickets are £6 for adults, or you can book a joint Midhope and Hopetoun House ticket for £18.50. Use postcode EH30 9RW and follow the single-track Farquhar Terrace for around 1.5 miles.

How to visit Hopetoun House.

Blackness Castle (Fort William)

Blackness Castle juts out into the Firth of Forth on a rocky promontory, shaped so much like a ship that it’s been nicknamed “the ship that never sailed.”

Built in the 1440s and fortified through the 16th century, it’s fortress not palace. Blackness is the perfect setting for one of Outlander’s most brutal storylines. In the show, Blackness stands in for Fort William, the headquarters of Black Jack Randall, and the scene of Jamie’s flogging. (You’ll remember.)

Blackness Castle is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Adults £7.50. There’s car parking on site, or you can catch the train to Linlithgow and the no. 49 First Bus.

Linlithgow Palace (Wentworth Prison)

Linlithgow Palace was the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scots, and it’s one of the most romantic ruined palaces in Scotland. In Outlander, the interiors of Linlithgow Palace become Wentworth Prison, the site of one of the most harrowing storylines in season one. Exterior shots of Wentworth were filmed at Bamburgh Castle in northern England. Linlithgow gave the interiors.

The palace itself is well worth a visit. The Great Hall, the King’s Fountain in the central courtyard, the chapel are all extraordinary.

Linlithgow Palace is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Adults £8.50, free for members. There’s a small car park on site, or it’s a five-minute walk from Linlithgow station.

Falkland (1940s Inverness)

Falkland in north-east Fife is one of Scotland’s prettiest conservation villages. The village has Royal Burgh status, cobbled streets, and painted shopfronts. In Outlander, the village stood in for 1940s Inverness, the setting for Claire and Frank’s second honeymoon at the start of season one.

In Falkland you can visit the Covenanters Inn (used as the exterior of Mrs Baird’s B&B) and the Bruce Fountain in the village square, behind which Claire first thinks she sees the ghost of Jamie.

After your filming location tour, don’t miss Falkland Palace (where Mary Queen of Scots played tennis) and the lovely Falkland Estate with its waterfall walks up the Maspie Den. East Lomond is the steep climb to the top for views across Fife.

Read more – How to visit Fife.

Culross (Cranesmuir)

Culross (it’s pronounced “coo-ris,” not “cull-ross”) is one of Scotland’s best-preserved 17th-century villages, and is located in West Fife on the Firth of Forth. In Outlander, the village becomes Cranesmuir, home of Geillis Duncan and the village closest to Castle Leoch.

The square at the Mercat Cross was used for many of the most memorable scenes. Including the witch trial of Geillis and Claire, and the squeamish pillory scene from season one. The buildings around the square were painted blue for filming. The Study House, built in 1610 for a wealthy Culross merchant, became Geillis Duncan’s home. The gardens of Culross Palace and the West Kirk outside the village were also used as Outlander filming locations.

Culross is in West Fife near Dunfermline. From Edinburgh or Glasgow the drive is around 40 minutes to an hour. Free parking at each end of the village.

Read more my full guide to Culross.

Culross West Kirk (the Black Kirk)

A mile west of Culross village, are the ruins of Culross West Kirk. In season one episode three, “The Way Out,” the West Kirk stands in for the Black Kirk: the ruined Benedictine monastery where two boys from Cranesmuir are believed to have been possessed by demons. Claire investigates with Jamie and works out the real culprit: lily of the valley, mistaken by the boys for wild garlic.

Free, open access. About a mile’s walk uphill from Culross village.

Aberdour Castle (the monastery)

Aberdour Castle in Fife is one of the oldest castles in Scotland, dating back to the 12th century. In Outlander, the castle was transformed into the monastery in France where Claire and Murtagh bring Jamie to recover after his time in Wentworth Prison. The painted ceilings in the upper rooms and the medieval dovecot in the gardens are particularly beautiful.

Aberdour Castle is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Adults £8.50, free for members.

Dysart Harbour (Le Havre, France)

Just along the Fife coast from Kirkcaldy is Dysart, a small fishing village with an enchanting harbour. In Outlander, Dysart Harbour stood in for Le Havre in France, the harbour from which Claire and Jamie sail to America.

Stop for a coffee at the Fife Coastal Path centre at the Harbourmaster’s House before wandering on along the coast path to West Wemyss. Along the way is the small but mighty Ravenscraig Castle, built in 1460. Dysart is accessible along the Fife Coastal Path from Kirkcaldy.

Preston Mill (Lallybroch Mill)

Preston Mill in East Lothian is a working 18th-century water mill with a distinctive conical kiln and red pantile roof. In Outlander, it becomes Lallybroch Mill, the scene where Jamie strips off and goes for a swim, Mr Darcy style, to clear a blockage.

The mill is now run by the National Trust for Scotland and has been carefully restored.

Preston Mill & Phantassie Doocot is £11 for adults, free for NTS members. Book in advance.

Glencorse Old Kirk (Jamie and Claire’s wedding)

The lovely little Glencorse Old Kirk sits in the hills south of Edinburgh, near Penicuik. This is where Claire and Jamie get married in season one. The kirk dates back to the 12th century in some form, with the present building from the early 1800s, and it’s still a working church for occasional services and weddings.

Glencorse Old Kirk is open by appointment only. Plan ahead and email the kirk to arrange a visit.

Outlander filming locations in Edinburgh

Edinburgh’s Old Town gave Outlander some of its most atmospheric scenes. Particularly in season three, when Claire returns through the stones to find Jamie running a print shop on Carfax Close. Many of the closes off the Royal Mile were used for filming, often heavily dressed and decorated to recreate 18th-century Edinburgh.

Bakehouse Close (Carfax Close. Jamie’s print shop)

Bakehouse Close, just off the Royal Mile near Canongate, stood in for the fictional Carfax Close, home to A. Malcolm’s Print Shop, where Claire is reunited with Jamie after twenty years apart.

The print shop itself doesn’t exist. The door at the top of those famous steps leads to a dead end. But you can walk through the tunnelled archway and up the same staircase that Claire climbed.

The neighbouring Acheson House also appeared in Outlander, its exterior used for Madame Jeanne’s brothel. And the building was, historically, actually a brothel called the Cock and Trumpet.

Free, open access. Look for the sign for Bakehouse Close at Huntly House on the Royal Mile, near Canongate. Easy to miss if you’re not looking for it.

Tweeddale Court (the marketplace)

Almost opposite Bakehouse Close is Tweeddale Court, another atmospheric Edinburgh close.

In season three of Outlander, the court was transformed into a bustling 18th-century marketplace, where Claire and Jamie meet Fergus shortly after their reunion. The court dates from the 14th century and includes a surviving section of the medieval King’s Wall.

Free, open access. Off the High Street, near the World’s End pub.

The Signet Library (the Governor’s Mansion in Jamaica)

The Signet Library on Parliament Square has one of the most spectacular Georgian interiors in Edinburgh. A double-height hall with Corinthian columns and ornate plasterwork. In Outlander season three, it was transformed into the Governor’s Mansion in Jamaica, where Claire and Jamie attend a society ball.

The library is a working legal institution and not generally open to the public, but the Colonnades restaurant downstairs serves one of the best afternoon teas in Edinburgh, in the same building.

Book afternoon tea at Colonnades to access the Signet Library building. The Upper Library is closed to the public except on special open days.

Craigmillar Castle (Ardsmuir Prison)

Craigmillar Castle is a 14th-century fortress just south of Edinburgh’s city centre, with one of the best-preserved medieval interiors in Scotland. In Outlander season three, Craigmillar stands in for Ardsmuir Prison, where Jamie is held after Culloden alongside other Jacobite prisoners. And where he meets Lord John Grey for the first time.

Craigmillar is also where Mary, Queen of Scots took refuge after the murder of David Rizzio. The local area is still known as “Little France” because of her French retinue. It is quieter than Edinburgh Castle, often almost empty, and the views over the city are remarkable.

Craigmillar Castle is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Adults £8, free for members. About 20 minutes from the Royal Mile by bus, or 10 minutes by car. The Northwest Gilmour Tower is currently closed.

Summerhall (Claire’s medical school)

The atmospheric anatomy lecture theatre at Summerhall, in Edinburgh’s southside, was used to film the scene where Claire begins her medical studies in 1960s Boston and meets her friend Joe Abernathy. The room is the original Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies anatomy lecture theatre, with steep banks of wooden benches.

Summerhall hosts events year-round and the lecture theatre is sometimes open as part of arts events and tours.

The Palace of Holyroodhouse (in the books)

The Palace of Holyroodhouse, the King’s official Scottish residence at the foot of the Royal Mile, doesn’t actually appear as a filming location. But Outlander book readers will know it as the palace where Claire and Jamie beseech Bonnie Prince Charlie to abandon his Jacobite cause. The real Prince Charlie did indeed spend time at Holyrood in 1745, and a visit makes a perfect bookend to a Royal Mile Outlander walk.

The Palace of Holyroodhouse is open year-round. Adults £20.

Outlander filming locations in Glasgow

Glasgow’s grand Victorian architecture and dense city centre stood in for a number of Outlander’s overseas locations. Paris, Boston, and 1960s Harvard. Most are walkable in an afternoon.

Glasgow Cathedral (L’Hôpital des Anges, Paris)

Glasgow Cathedral is the only medieval cathedral on mainland Scotland to have survived the Reformation intact, dating from the 12th century. In Outlander season two, the cathedral’s crypt was used to film the scenes set in L’Hôpital des Anges in Paris. The hospital where Claire volunteers as a healer and where she suffers the stillbirth of her daughter Faith. The atmospheric vaulted stone of the crypt makes it one of the most affecting filming locations in Scotland.

Glasgow Cathedral is free to visit, open year-round. Volunteer guides offer free tours.

Don’t miss the Glasgow Necropolis on the hill behind the cathedral. A vast Victorian garden cemetery with sweeping views over the city.

University of Glasgow (Harvard University)

The University of Glasgow’s Gothic Revival Main Building, with its vaulted cloisters and Bute Hall, doubled as Harvard University in seasons three and four. This is where Frank Randall teaches in 1960s Boston, and decades later where Brianna studies and Roger Wakefield works. The cloisters and main quadrangle are the most recognisable spots.

The university sits in the West End, surrounded by the Hunterian Museum, Kelvingrove Park, and some of Glasgow’s best restaurants and bars. Free to walk the cloisters and quadrangle. Best visited Monday to Friday. Allow an hour.

Pollok Country Park (the grounds of Castle Leoch)

Pollok Country Park, south of the Clyde, is one of Glasgow’s largest parks. The woodlands and grounds were used for several Outlander filming scenes. Including the surrounding grounds of Castle Leoch and parts of the French countryside in season two.

The park is also home to the Burrell Collection, one of the UK’s best art galleries.

Pollok Country Park is free, open year-round.

George Square (Frank and Claire’s 1940s Boston)

Glasgow’s George Square was dressed for filming as 1940s Boston, where Frank Randall proposes to Claire in flashbacks from season one.

George Square is at the centre of Glasgow, surrounded by City Chambers and the city’s classic Victorian and Edwardian architecture.

Outlander filming locations in the Highlands

The Highlands provide Outlander’s emotional core. Culloden, Clava Cairns, Craigh na Dun. These are the sites worth crossing the country for, and they pair well with a road trip up the A9 from Perthshire to Inverness.

Kinloch Rannoch (Craigh na Dun)

The stone circle at Craigh na Dun, where Claire first hears the buzzing and travels back in time to 1743, isn’t real. The stones were a film set, installed on a remote outcrop above Kinloch Rannoch in Highland Perthshire and removed after filming. But you can still visit the outcrop itself, and the views across Loch Rannoch and the surrounding mountains are some of the most spectacular in Scotland.

The outcrop is on private estate land but the path up is accessible under the Scottish Outdoor Access Code. Park in Kinloch Rannoch village and walk up.

Clava Cairns

If Kinloch Rannoch is the filming location for Craigh na Dun, Clava Cairns near Inverness is the inspiration. The 4,000-year-old Bronze Age burial cairns are surrounded by a real stone circle. And Diana Gabaldon has confirmed they inspired the fictional Craigh na Dun in her novels.

It is a deeply atmospheric place. The cairns are aligned to the midwinter solstice and the surrounding standing stones still mark a real prehistoric calendar. It’s free to visit, almost always empty, and unforgettable.

Clava Cairns is managed by Historic Environment Scotland. Free, open access. About 10 minutes from Culloden Battlefield.

Culloden Battlefield (the Fraser memorial stone)

The Battle of Culloden took place on Culloden Moor in April 1746, ending the Jacobite cause and changing Highland Scotland forever. In Outlander, the show’s battle scenes weren’t filmed on the moor itself. Out of respect for the war graves it still contains. But Claire visits the field at the end of season two to see the Fraser clan memorial stone.

The National Trust for Scotland visitor centre is excellent. The walk out across the moor itself is sobering. Please remember that the real Fraser clansmen who died here have nothing to do with the fictional Outlander story. Keep voices low and respect the graves.

Culloden Battlefield is £16 for adults, free for NTS members. Allow 2-3 hours including the moor walk.

Read more – How to visit Inverness.

Highland Folk Museum, Newtonmore (the MacKenzie village)

The Highland Folk Museum at Newtonmore is an open-air living history museum, with a recreated 18th-century township of turf-roofed cottages. In Outlander season one, the township was used for the rent-collecting scenes where Dougal MacKenzie and his men visit a Highland clachan. A beautifully atmospheric set that gives a real sense of what 18th-century Highland life looked like.

Highland Folk Museum is free to visit, open April to October. The site is huge, so allow 3-4 hours.

Glencoe (the Highland landscape)

Glencoe is one of Scotland’s most dramatic mountain landscapes, the site of the 1692 Massacre of Glencoe, and the backdrop for several Outlander sweeping landscape shots throughout the series. The Three Sisters, the Pass of Glencoe, and the surrounding mountains provide the iconic Highland scenery that defines Outlander’s visual identity.

Free, open access. The NTS visitor centre explains the area’s history. 2 hours from Glasgow, 1.5 hours from Inverness.

Drummond Castle Gardens (Versailles)

Drummond Castle, built in 1490 on the Gask Ridge near Crieff, has one of the most spectacular formal gardens in Europe. A vast 17th-century parterre with intricate boxwood patterns, sculpted yew, statues and fountains. In Outlander, the gardens stood in for Versailles, where Claire comes face to face with Black Jack Randall in the gardens of the French court in season two.

The tower house itself is private, but the gardens are open to the public from May to October. Adults £8, children £4. About 20 minutes’ drive from Crieff.

Tibbermore Parish Kirk (Cranesmuir Church and the witch trial)

Four miles west of Perth, tucked between the A9 and the A85, is Tibbermore Parish Kirk. The 17th-century church became Cranesmuir Church in season one episode 11, “The Devil’s Mark.” This is where the interior witch trial scenes were filmed.

Tibbermore ceased to be a parish church in 1986 and is now cared for by Historic Churches Scotland. Free, donations welcomed. Open daily April to October, by request at other times. Postcode PH1 1QJ. About 15 minutes’ drive west of Perth.

Outlander filming locations in the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs

The Loch Lomond and Trossachs National Park sits just north of Glasgow and was used for some of Outlander’s most memorable scenes.

Finnich Glen and the Devil’s Pulpit (the Liar’s Spring)

One of Outlander’s most famous scenes. Dougal MacKenzie taking Claire down into St Ninian’s Spring to test whether she is lying. Was filmed at the Devil’s Pulpit in Finnich Glen, near Drymen. The narrow red sandstone gorge is dramatic, ethereal, and entirely otherworldly.

A word of warning: the access path is steep, muddy and seriously slippery. People have been seriously hurt here. Avoid after heavy rain.

Access to Finnich Glen is by car only via the A809/B834 junction near Drymen. Wear walking boots.

Loch Katrine (Brianna and Roger’s first date)

Loch Katrine in the heart of the Trossachs is where Brianna and Roger spend time together in season two. The loch sits at the heart of Sir Walter Scott country, and you can sail across it on the Victorian steamship Sir Walter Scott. One of the loveliest day trips from Glasgow.

Loch Katrine cruises run from Trossachs Pier from April to October.

Stately homes used as Outlander filming locations

Hopetoun House

Hopetoun House, near South Queensferry, is one of the finest 18th-century stately homes in Scotland. And one of Outlander’s hardest-working filming locations. The estate has appeared as the streets of Paris (season two), the Duke of Sandringham’s home (season one), the location where Jamie teaches Willie to ride, and many of the sword fights and duels across multiple seasons.

The house itself is a Robert Adam masterpiece, with Georgian state rooms, an Adam-designed entrance hall, and 6,500 acres of parkland. The same estate is home to Midhope Castle (Lallybroch).

Hopetoun House is open Friday to Monday. Adults £14 for the house and grounds, £5.50 for grounds only. Joint Midhope/Hopetoun tickets £18.50.

Gosford House, East Lothian (Helwater Estate)

Gosford House, near Longniddry in East Lothian, is one of the great Robert Adam houses of Scotland. The exterior stood in for Helwater Estate, where Jamie is sent to work as a stable hand after his imprisonment at Ardsmuir. And where he fathers his illegitimate son William.

Gosford House is a wedding venue with occasional tours of the house.

Newhailes House, Musselburgh (Governor Tryon’s North Carolina home)

Newhailes is a perfectly preserved 17th-century house just east of Edinburgh, with original Georgian interiors. In Outlander, it doubled for Governor Tryon’s home in North Carolina in the later seasons.

Newhailes House is managed by the National Trust for Scotland. Adults £15, free for NTS members.

How to plan an Outlander filming locations tour

If you want to visit the headline locations in one trip, here’s how I’d structure a few different itineraries depending on how much time you have.

One day from Edinburgh: Hire a car or join a tour. Drive west to Midhope Castle (Lallybroch), then to Blackness Castle (Fort William), then to Linlithgow Palace (Wentworth Prison). After lunch, drive to Doune Castle (Castle Leoch). Return to Edinburgh via Culross (Cranesmuir) if you have energy left.

2nd day from Edinburgh: Drive north from Edinburgh to Aberdour, Dysart and then Falkland.

One day in Edinburgh: Walk the Royal Mile to see Bakehouse Close (Carfax Close), Tweeddale Court, and the Signet Library. Afternoon at Craigmillar Castle (Ardsmuir Prison).

A week in Scotland: Edinburgh first as above, then drive north via Drummond Castle Gardens (Versailles) to Kinloch Rannoch (Craigh na Dun) and the Highland Folk Museum at Newtonmore. End in Inverness for Culloden Battlefield and Clava Cairns. Drive back via the Trossachs for Finnich Glen.

Tour operators including Timberbush, Highland Explorer Tours, Rabbie’s, Mercat Tours and Private Tours Edinburgh all run dedicated Outlander day tours from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness. Useful if you don’t want to drive.

Frequently asked questions

Are you planning your Outlander pilgrimage? Let me know your favourite filming location.

Love from Scotland x

Read more

• The Jacobite Rising and the real Bonnie Prince Charlie
• Clans of Scotland travel guide
• How to visit Culross, Fife. The Outlander village
• How to visit Hopetoun House
• How to visit the Buccaneers filming locations
• Best places to visit in Fife
• How to visit Inverness