10 Outlander Locations You Can Visit In Real Life

Warning: This article contains mentions of sexual assault



Outlander is brimming with gorgeous cinematography showcasing the rugged beauty of the Scottish Highlands. From the cobblestone streets of Edinburgh to the bucolic setting of Lallybroch, Outlander depicts Scotland through many pivotal moments throughout history. Outlander, soon to release part 2 of season 7, is shot entirely on location in Scotland, and many of the filming locations were sites of historical events. Several of these spots offer guided tours or are open to the public.


Scotland has a proud history that the country works to maintain through preservation efforts (via Historic Environment Scotland). Many of the show’s castles and Highland estates date back to the 15th century, with other stately homes actually built in the mid-18th century, in which much of the show is set. Even Outlander‘s Fraser’s Ridge, the North Carolina estate of Jamie and Claire Fraser (Caitríona Balfe and Sam Heughan), is located in Scotland.



10 Kinloch Rannoch

Craigh Na Dun

Craigh na Dun is where all the drama of Outlander starts. Claire unwittingly travels through time after feeling called to the stone circle, which brings her to 1745, and the love of her life, Jamie Fraser. In the show, the stones are located a short drive away from Inverness. Unfortunately, Outlander‘s Craigh na Duhn is not real, but the man-made stones were placed at Kinloch Rannoch, a picturesque village in Perth and Kinross, Scotland, near the freshwater Loch Rannoch.


Stone circles do exist across Scotland, and local folklore historically associates the stones with the fae. One stone circle in particular, the Callanish Stones, are believed to have been created by fairies who tossed pebbles into a meadow (via Argyll Cruising). Historians estimate that some stone circles could have been created to track the lunar cycles in early civilizations before the invention of the Gregorian calendar, or were used for Celtic pagan celebrations (via Visit Scotland).

9 Falkland

Inverness, 1946


The charming village of Falkland stood in for Inverness, Scotland, circa 1946. Since the real Inverness is now a booming city with modern technology overlapping with its historic structures, the largely untouched Falkland, just an hour away from Edinburgh, stood for the city at the start of Outlander. The inn in which Claire and her first husband, Frank Randall (Tobias Menzes), stay after World War II is also a real place called the Covenanter Hotel.

The fountain at which a bewildered Frank wanders out and sees Jamie’s ghost is Bruce Fountain, and it is located at the center of the village square. The humble village boasts a variety of authentic local Scottish businesses and is best known for Falkland Castle, built between 1501 and 1541 by Kings James IV and James V. The palace includes two 16th-century tennis courts, some of the earliest built in all of Britain (via Visit Scotland).

8 Doune Castle

Castle Leoch


Doune Castle, located 33 miles northeast of Glasgow, Scotland, is the site of numerous pivotal moments in Outlander. The 14th-century castle stands as the fictional Castle Leoch, the home of Jamie’s uncle Colum MacKenzie and the rest of the clan MacKenzie-Fraser. When Claire finds herself having traveled through time to the 1740s from the 1940s, she is rescued by Jamie after being attacked by Black Jack Randall (Tobias Menzes). Castle Leoch soon becomes the beginning of the couple’s epic love story across time.


Jamie and his fellow highlanders bring Claire to Castle Leoch for shelter, where she tells them that she is a widow after realizing she may never make it back in time to Frank. As the story goes, the outspoken Claire uses her knowledge of modern medicine from her time as a World War II nurse to work as a healer, landing herself in so many predicaments that an arranged marriage with Jamie becomes the answer to both of their political problems. The rest, as viewers know, is history.

7 Culross

Crainesmuir

The village of Culross served as Cranesmuir, the site of the witch trials of Claire and Geilis Duncan (Lotte Verbeek). When the jealous Laoghaire MacKenzie (Nell Hudson) attempts to get Jamie back for herself (the pair are seen kissing prior to Jamie’s relationship with Claire, but viewers learn later that it was never a serious commitment for Jamie), she accuses Claire of witchcraft by planting materials associated with rituals under Claire’s bed.


This leads to Claire’s arrest, alongside Geilis, who also appears to have knowledge of modern medicine and a knack for paganism. Jamie is able to convince the local priest to free Claire, but Geilis (later revealed to be a fellow traveler) is convicted of witchcraft. Pregnant with Dougal MacKenzie’s (Graham McTavish) child, viewers later learn she was spared until she gave birth, and was then able to escape her execution. Instead of a brutal prison for witches, the village of Culross is a charming place that offers walking tours for visitors (via Town & Country).

6 Hopetoun House

The Duke of Sandringham’s House


The Red Drawing Room at Hopetoun House, located on the outskirts of Edinburgh, served as the calculating Duke of Sandringham’s (Simon Callow) house in Outlander. The estate currently still houses the noble Hopetoun family, and is currently inhabited by the current Earl of Hopetoun, Andrew Victor Arthur Charles Hope. The estate and grounds are open to the public from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. from Good Friday to the last Sunday of September (via Hopetoun).

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Sandringham is the English nobleman responsible for Jamie’s status as a wanted man throughout season 1, after Jamie attempted to fight back when Black Jack Randall threatened to rape his sister. This resulted in Jamie’s brutal public flogging, which led to the notorious scars on his back. The Frasers’ relationship with Sandringham is often a strategic point when navigating the Jacobite rebellion, a Scottish effort that sought to return the House of Stuart, a Catholic bloodline, to the throne of Britain (via National Army Museum). Sandringham fittingly, is a self-serving character willing to stab people in the back to gain power.

5 Midhope Castle

Lallybroch

Midhope Castle was used as Jamie’s ancestral land, his estate at Lallybroch. The charming rural stone castle dates back to the 15th century, and is also referred to as Broch Tuarach in Outlander. While the castle’s exterior is intact, its interiors are in ruins, and the indoor shots of the home from Outlander were shot on a sound stage. Special permits are needed from the Hopetoun Estate to tour the grounds (via Hopetoun).


While Jamie is the heir to Lallybroch, he finds himself disinherited numerous times, first by the redcoats and later again during the Battle of Culloden, when he transfers ownership of the estate to his young nephew in order to keep it in the family in case he died. Jamie’s sister Jenny Fraser-Murray (Laura Donnelly) lives on the estate with her husband Ian Murray (Steven Cree) with their several children. Jamie returns to Lallybroch and goes into hiding in a nearby cave after surviving Culloden.

4 Linlithgow Palace

Wentworth Prison


The real Wentworth Prison, shot at Linlithgow Palace, has a far less brutal history. The 15th century Palace was the birthplace of Mary, Queen of Scots (via Royal UK). The palace is open to the public for walking tours, with the interior still largely intact. The palace once housed the Royal Stuart dynasty, the catalysts of the Jacobite Rebellion movement. The stone palace boasts beautiful architecture and surrounding scenery.

At the conclusion of Outlander season 1, Jamie is imprisoned at Wentworth Prison for his involvement with the Jacobites, and also his personal feud with Black Jack Randall. In the first Outlander season finale, Jamie is brutally assaulted and raped in prison, while awaiting execution by hanging, making it one of the sites of what is widely regarded as the show’s most graphic episode to date. Jamie eventually escapes Wentworth with the help of Claire, his godfather Murtagh Fitzgibbons (Duncan Lacroix), and some highland cows.


3 Drummond Castle Gardens

Versailles

Drummond Castle’s gardens stood in for the storied gardens of Versailles in Paris, France in Outlander. While Drummond Castle itself is not open to the public, the gardens are, and the landscape is strikingly reminiscent of the famous French floral display. Season 2 of Outlander primarily sees Jamie and Claire journeying through Paris, France, while working for Jamie’s cousin Jared’s winery. It is here that the pair also encounter a young boy named Claudel, who Jamie adopts as his own and nicknames Fergus (Romann Berrux).

The pair go to Paris in a vain attempt to thwart the final Jacobite Rebellion of 1746, in which thousands of men die. At this point, Claire has revealed to Jamie that she is a time traveler, and they work together as a couple with Claire’s knowledge of the future in an attempt to change the course of history. While their attempt does not work, it allows Outlander to reference real French historical figures, including the Comte St. Germain.


2 Abercairny Estates

River Run

Abercairny Estates in Creiff, Scotland stood in for Aunt Jocasta’s (Maria Doyle Kennedy) North Carolina plantation in Outlander. In the show, the estate is said to be located on the Cape Fear River near Cross Creek. This much is based on the true history of the area, as Cross Creek was once home to a large population of Scottish settlers in early Colonial America. The Frasers’ stay at River Run is short-lived due to their abolitionist views, as Jocasta owned slaves. This is the catalyst for the couple instead opting to build Fraser’s Ridge.

Making Scotland look like the mountains of North Carolina is helped by the fact the mountains of the Scottish Highlands and the Appalachian Mountains all used to be part of the same ancient mountain range, so the terrain looks very similar in certain areas.


The show opted to keep production in Scotland instead of flying to North Carolina, and managed to add southern design touches to the Abercairny Estates. The property is located approximately an hour and a half outside of Edinburgh, and offers tours of the grounds, private events, and wedding venue spaces. The grounds boast examples of several eras of architecture, making it a fascinating place to visit.

1 Faskally Forest

Fraser’s Ridge And The Mohawk Village

When Jamie and Claire migrate to the Blue Ridge Mountains area of North Carolina’s backcountry, they struggle to adapt to life in the wilderness. A keen eye can notice that the flora and fauna do not quite look like those of the Tar Heel State. This is because, yet again, production opted to keep Outlander in Scotland. The real forest boasts 23 different types of trees and varied terrain (via The Enchanted Forest UK).


Scenes from around Fraser’s Ridge, Jamie’s settlement, and the Mohawk village that Young Ian Murray (John Bell) lives in, were shot in the Faksally Forest in Scotland. The forest is known for its gorgeous foliage, and tourists are encouraged to walk the scenic trails. Located just 30 minutes from Kinloch Rannoch, it is a great stop for Outlander fans touring their favorite on-screen filming locations. As season 7, part 2 approaches, with Outlander season 8 dropping next year, the show appears to have its work cut out for it in fictional North Carolina.

Sources: Historic Environment Scotland, Town & Country, Argyll Cruising, Visit Scotland, Hopetoun, National Army Museum, Royal UK, The Enchanted Forest UK


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