Inverness Airport. The Highlands at your door, timed for roads that are slower than they look.
Dalcross puts you in the Highlands in minutes. What follows is the part that catches people out: single carriageway trunk roads, single track estate roads, and distances that look modest until you drive them.
The airport
Inverness at a glance
- CodesINV / EGPEAt Dalcross, about eight miles north east of Inverness on the Moray Firth.
- Main runway05/23, 1,888 metresAsphalt, and comfortable for turboprops and light to super midsize jets.
- Second runway11/29, 701 metresA short strip, for light aircraft rather than business jets.
- OwnerHighlands and Islands AirportsPublicly owned, and the hub for the smaller island airfields further north and west.
- Executive handlingAn FBO on the fieldSignature Aviation, who we work with at several UK airports, operates the executive terminal here.
- RoadsInverness Airport Way to the A96A purpose built link road, opened in 2006, joining the A96 between Inverness and Nairn.
- RailA station since February 2023Inverness Airport station sits on the Aberdeen to Inverness line, with a shuttle bus to the terminal.
- The alternativeAberdeen, about 100 miles eastA longer runway and a much longer drive. See Aberdeen.
Confirm your aircraft type against the runway with your operator before the itinerary is built. Heavier types can be planned around, but it is better known in advance than on the day.
Journey times
From Inverness Airport by road
| To | Quiet roads | Busy periods |
|---|---|---|
| Inverness city centre | 15 to 25 minutes | 25 to 40 minutes |
| Nairn and the Moray Firth coast | 15 to 25 minutes | 20 to 35 minutes |
| Aviemore and the Cairngorms | 50 to 65 minutes | 60 to 85 minutes |
| Royal Dornoch | 50 to 65 minutes | 60 to 80 minutes |
| Speyside, Grantown and Dufftown | 60 to 80 minutes | 75 to 100 minutes |
| Ullapool, for the Stornoway ferry | 80 to 100 minutes | 95 to 120 minutes |
| Kyle of Lochalsh and the Skye bridge | 115 to 140 minutes | 135 to 170 minutes |
| Aberdeen | 130 to 155 minutes | 150 to 185 minutes |
Realistic ranges, not promises. Three things move these numbers: the A9 south is single carriageway for long stretches with average speed cameras, the A82 along Loch Ness carries coaches and camper vans all summer and gives few chances to overtake, and a wet, dark winter afternoon with deer on the verge is not a road to hurry on. We plan to the slower end between November and March.
Why clients choose it
The estate is the easy part. Getting to it is not
Most private arrivals at Inverness are going somewhere the road numbers do not reach: a sporting estate in Sutherland or Ross-shire, a lodge above a river beat, a house on a sea loch, or a distillery visit that takes in three glens in a day. The flying saves the eight hour drive from London. The transfer is where a Highland trip is either comfortable or a long argument with a map, and it is the part people plan least.
The second big use of this field is golf and whisky. Royal Dornoch, Castle Stuart, Nairn and Brora are all within an hour or so, and Speyside is a straightforward run east. Both kinds of trip share the same practical problem: luggage. Rod tubes, cases, boots, dogs and four sets of clubs do not go in a saloon boot with four passengers on top, and a party that pretends otherwise spends the week uncomfortable.
On the day
Where the car waits and how we meet you
Private movements are handled at the executive terminal on the field, with its own approach and parking. We speak to the handling agent for your flight, agree the gate and where the car should stand, and position it before the aircraft is on the ground. Where the airport permits it for that movement, the car can be brought to the aircraft. That permission is the airport's to give, so we confirm what has been approved rather than assume it.
For a scheduled arrival your chauffeur meets you in the terminal with a name board. It is a small building with a short walk out. We track the inbound flight throughout, and on Highland itineraries we go a step further: the estate, the lodge or the ghillie is given a realistic arrival window rather than an optimistic one, so nobody is standing at a gate in the rain.
What we handle
Details that make a Highland week work
Single track roads, sporting luggage, ferries and the dark half of the year.
- Estate and lodge approaches checked in advance, including which gate, which track and whether a low saloon will ground on it
- Single track roads with passing places driven by chauffeurs who know them, not learned on the day
- Sporting and golf luggage planned for properly, with a larger vehicle or a second car rather than a boot that will not close
- Ferry and connection timings for Skye, Harris and Orkney built backwards from the sailing, not forwards from the flight
- Multi day itineraries across the Highlands with the same chauffeur throughout, and winter road conditions watched daily
Coverage
Our cars, and cars we arrange
Odyssey owns its cars and employs its chauffeurs in London and Manchester. In the Highlands we work with operators we know and have used before, to our brief and under our booking, so you keep one contact and one number however far north the car goes. For estate and golf work a V-Class is usually the right vehicle rather than an S-Class, and we will say so when we quote. For the wider picture see the Scottish Highlands and multi day tours. If you need the aircraft as well, we arrange that: see private jet charter.
Onward
Where Inverness passengers go next
Other airports
Aircraft that suit the field
Request a quote
Tell us the itinerary
Flight details, passengers, luggage including rods, gun cases or clubs, and the estate, lodge or hotel with its postcode and, if you have it, a grid reference. If a ferry is involved, give us the sailing. Nothing is booked or charged online.
Prefer to talk? +44 2030 048300 or WhatsApp, at any hour.
Questions people ask
About Inverness transfers
Can the car come to the aircraft?
Where the airport and the handling agent permit it for your movement. Otherwise the car is at the executive terminal door. We confirm before you land.
Inverness or Aberdeen?
Inverness for anything north or west of the Great Glen, for Speyside, Dornoch and the Cairngorms. Aberdeen for the east coast, Royal Deeside and the energy industry. The drive between the two is over two hours, so the choice is worth making properly.
Will a chauffeur driven car get down our estate road?
Often yes, but not always, and we would rather find out beforehand. Send us the approach or the last mile of directions and we will check it and tell you honestly if a different vehicle is needed.
How much extra should we allow in winter?
On the trunk roads, allow towards the upper end of our ranges from November to March, and more after snow. We watch conditions daily and will tell you the day before if a departure needs moving earlier.
Can you arrange the aircraft as well?
Yes. See private jet charter.
