5 Parks to Explore in Highland

The Castle of Mey was built between 1566 and 1572, possibly on the site of an earlier fortification, by George Sinclair, 4th Earl of Caithness. The castle was used as an officers' rest home during the Second World War.

Castle Leod is the seat of the Clan Mackenzie. The castle grounds are listed in the national listing of significant gardens. The castle is believed to have been built on the site of a very ancient Pictish fort from before the 12th century. Castle Leod is widely considered to be the inspiration behind Castle Leoch, the seat and home of the laird of Clan Mackenzie, in Diana Gabaldon's Outlander historical fiction series.

Cawdor Castle is set amid gardens. The castle is built around a 15th-century tower house, with substantial additions in later centuries. The castle is best known for its literary connection to William Shakespeare's tragedy Macbeth, in which the title character is made "Thane of Cawdor". However, the story is highly fictionalised, and the castle itself, which is never directly referred to in Macbeth, was built many years after the life of the 11th-century King Macbeth.

Dunrobin Castle is a stately home in Sutherland, and the family seat of the Earl of Sutherland and the Clan Sutherland. Dunrobin's origins lie in the Middle Ages, but most of the present building and the gardens were added by Sir Charles Barry between 1835 and 1850. Some of the original building is visible in the interior courtyard, despite a number of expansions and alterations that made it the largest house in the north of Scotland. After being used as a boarding school for seven years, it is

The Ness Islands are situated on the River Ness, connected by suspension briges. The islands are a walking spot for tourists and locals and are home to a number of imported species of trees.