Something that I have enjoyed doing while traveling has been seeing locations from my favorite shows and films in person (like this post from Salzburg). When we planned our trip to Scotland, I knew I wanted to see if there were any spots from one of my favorite shows, Outlander, that we could see. (I also looked for Harry Potter & Reign locations but all of the HP locations in Edinburgh are basically just the pubs where JK wrote the books.) Turns out, they film Outlander all over the United Kingdom and none of the locations are particularly close to the other ones. A lot of them also tend to be nature spots and trails, so while beautiful, they are not easily identifiable. Luckily, when I mapped out our travel plans there was one key location essentially on our path — Midhope House… aka… Lallybroch!! (If you don’t watch the show, it is essentially the home of the main character, even though he doesn’t seem to live there much.) I was thrilled that of all the locations, we would be able to see this one because it is one of the more iconic and easily recognizable spots.
When we arrived at the house, it was interesting to find that they have essentially half-assed turned it into a tourist spot. It is down a small windy unpaved road next to a forrestry company. You only have to pay 5 pounds for the parking and then you walk up to the house. Walking up the path to Lallybroch felt just like how they film some episodes as Claire and Jamie ride their horses up the path.
The house itself is actually completely locked up due to the essentially decayed/unsafe insides. The show only uses the outside of the home for filming and then uses another site for the inside. It was a bit anti-climatic not being able to go inside but I was still pretty excited to be standing at the same spot where so many scenes have been filmed and it was cool that no one else was on the property.
The parking lot guard also pointed us down to a wooded area and creek where cave scenes in season 3 were filmed, and even explained how there aren’t actually any caves!
I love that now every time I watch the show I will feel like I have a little bit more of a connection to it after having seen it in real life!
Do you watch Outlander? Are there any show locations you would want to see in person? Comment below!
Xx
Kali