7 Isle of Skye Castles To Explore

What do you get when you combine Scotland’s most popular location with one of its most interesting features? There are a total of 7 Isle of Skye castles for you to work your way around, ranging from rocky ruins to inhabited homes. Many have stories as dramatic as their locations and that’s exactly what makes them worth visiting!

There are so many other things to do on the Isle of Skye that I doubt you’ll find the time to visit all of these, but that’s down to you. At least with this guide, you’ll know enough about all of the castles on the Isle of Skye to decide. Prepare yourself for clan battles, fairy princesses, legendary warriors and drunken ghosts!

Isle of Skye Castles Map

To make things easy for you planning your trip, here’s a map of the Isle of Skye castles! As you can see, they’re really spread around the island and all on the coast. There are several clans throughout history who have called this island home but most castles on the Isle of Skye come under two categories. Either they belonged to Clan MacLeod or to Clan MacDonald.

Dunvegan Castle

Dunvegan Castle is the seat of Clan MacLeod and has been their home for over 800 years. As the only place still inhabited on this list of Isle of Skye castles, it deserves its spot at the top. However, Dunvegan Castle is famous for something much more important – The Fairy Flag.

It might look like a faded, torn bit of cloth, but the fairy flag is one of the best stories from any Skye castle. One legend tells of a young chieftain who should have been be settling down. Instead, he turned his nose up at every girl he saw until meeting the most incredible woman.

The girl revealed that she was a fairy princess and her father refused permission to marry. The Fairy King knew that if his immortal daughter spent a human lifetime with MacLeod, she would be heartbroken when he died. He granted the couple just one year and one day together. After that he would arrive at the bridge by Dunvegan Castle to claim her back.

By the time the year was up, a son had been born and as the princess went to leave she made Macleod promise to never leave the child to cry. MacLeod grieved badly and his clan decided to throw a party to cheer him up. The subsequent ceilidh worked, but it also drew the attention of the baby’s nursemaid.

As she watched the party, MacLeod’s son awoke and started to cry. The nursemaid didn’t hear him, but the fairy princess couldn’t ignore it. In the morning, the baby was found swaddled in a strange shawl and that was what became the fairy flag!

Duntulm Castle

The most northerly of the Isle of Skye castles, Duntulm had a reputation for being a formidable clifftop fortress as well as being a home for ghosts. A LOT of ghosts.

The castle started life as an Iron Age broch before Norse Vikings took over for a while. Later Clan MacLeod gained possession and finally it passed unwillingly to the MacDonalds until being abandoned around 1730. So as you can see, this is one Skye castle that’s been about block a few times.

The first ghost amongst this windswept rubble is Hugh MacDonald, a man who decided he should be leading the MacDonalds of Sleat. He tried and failed to seize control from his cousin and was imprisoned in a dungeon at Duntulm Castle. To speed up his death, Hugh was given only salted beef to eat without anything to drank. The rasping groans of his thirsty spirit are still heard among the ruins.

Next, Margaret MacLeod has been seen weeping from her single eye around Duntulm. It was her mistreatment at the hands of the MacDonalds that started the War of the One Eyed Woman. Clearly her spirit is drawn back to the most miserable year of her unfortunate life.

Donald Gorm the 8th Chief is a much happier, although more aggressive ghost. Donald was a famous warrior who liked to pick fights for fun with his own clansmen. He stomps around Duntulm Castle in a drunken manner trying to brawl with other spirits.

The last story is a particularly upsetting one, proving how dangerous a visit to this Skye castle really is. A careless nursemaid once dropped the baby of a MacDonald clan chief from a window ledge and was killed for her mistake. Her ghost is still desperately trying to find the child.

Armadale Castle

Much less distressing is the gothic ruin of Armadale Castle. This was another home of the MacDonalds of Sleat, fairly different to the rest of the Isle of Skye castles. Today we have a mix of 18th and 19th century buildings, further inland once stood the older Armadale Beag.

The MacDonalds of Sleat were deeply involved in the very first Jacobite rising of 1689 and the famous Battle of Killiecrankie. In July 1690, the Government sent two ships towards Skye to dish out vengeance on the rebels. However there are two conflicting stories about what happened next.

Captain Pottinger of HMS Dartmouth wrote in his report that he sent a letter to Donald MacDonald of Sleat asking him to submit. In answer Donald was “belching out defiances to authority and power.” Pottinger proceeded to fire 30-40 shots at the castle, sending the clansmen running off into the hills.

He destroyed MacDonald boats, before landing soldiers and burning Armadale Castle down. All in plain view of the MacDonalds who could only watch in horror.

The MacDonalds told a different story, with Donald refusing to communicate with the Captain. After they saw flames at Armadale, they rushed in to attack! The soldiers split into two groups to escape, both being soundly beaten by the clansmen. I’ll let you decide who to believe.

Today Armadale is a paid attraction where you can wander around the beautiful grounds and visit the Museum of the Isles! It’s a fantastic resource that tells the story of Clan Donald and the Lords of the Isles. You’ll likely leave here with a better understanding of all the Isle of Skye castles, not just Armadale.

Caisteal Maol

The ruins of Casteal Maol take a bit of getting to but are home to one of the most ridiculous stories from any of the Isle of Skye castles. A much earlier 10th century castle on the same site, was said to be home to a Norwegian Princess known as Saucy Mary.

Any ship that wanted to sail past the castle, through the narrow straight of Kyleakin had to pay a toll. It was a small price to pay to avoid sailing all the way around Skye through treacherous waters. Mary was in charge of the straight and to make sure no ships tried to avoid paying their due, she stretched a huge chain across to the mainland.

The story goes that Saucy Mary got her nickname after giving the ship’s captains a treat after paying their way. As the boat passed Caisteal Maol, she would pull her dress down to her waist and bare all for the astonished sailors. Just a small thank you for not causing any trouble.

She married the Chief of Clan Mackinnon, but was still a proud Norwegian so often let their ships pass without a fee. We don’t know if they still got the saucy surprise. When Saucy Mary died, she was buried atop Beinn na Caillich one of the Red Cuillin hills facing towards Norway. No doubt the Scottish sailors mourned her passing!

Dunscaith Castle

The evocative ruins of Dunscaith translates from Gaelic as the Fortress of Shadows – what a name! This is said to have been the home of the legendary warrior woman Scáthach and that makes it one of the oldest castles on Skye. Dunscaith Castle was where Scáthach met hero’s who wished either to challenge or be trained by her.

One such challenger was Cú Chulainn, a mythical Irish hero who battled at Dunscaith for days. Eventually, when it looked like Scáthach might lose, her daughter Uathach travels to the River Sligachan for help from the fairies. The knowledge she gained helped her to end the fight and save her mother, all by having a great feast in the halls of Dunscaith Castle!

Long after the legendary warrior was gone, Dunscaith became of of the many fortresses owned by Clan MacLeod. Like Duntulm in the north, it was fought over between the MacLeods and the MacDonalds, passing back and forth between them. It’s a short walk to the ruins and has to be one of the most dramatic yet rarely visited locations on Skye!

Caisteal Uisdean

Caisteal Uisdean or Hugh’s Castle, was built in the 16th century by the same Hugh that ended up imprisoned in Duntulm. Seems like all of the Isle of Skye castles are connected in some way!

After his father died in mysterious circumstances and his uncle took over as chief of the Macdonalds, Hugh wasn’t best pleased. While plotting his revenge, he made a name for himself as a cattle rustler and pirate. Eventually outlawed, Hugh realised that he was never going to win the chiefdom back for himself that way.

He gained a pardon, lordship over this area of Trotternish and started building himself Caisteal Uisdean. If you can’t get possession of your family fortress, why not just build your own castle? We know that Hugh was eventually captured while trying to seize control of the MacDonalds of Sleat, ending his days a very thirsty man. Apparently, he sent a letter containing his devious plan to the wrong person!

What we don’t know is if he ever actually finished his castle. Today it’s just a square stump with the first floor entrance barely visible. There’s not a huge amount to see here but like most of Skye the views are spectacular and worth the hour walk each way.

Caisteal Chamuis (Knock Castle)

Caisteal Chamuis, often called simply Knock Castle, is one of the most precarious castles on Skye. If you do decide to walk down there then please be incredibly careful! There’s no car park so you’re in for a bit of a trek from wherever safe place you find to park.

It sits not far from Armadale Castle, just behind Torabhaig Distillery and you can spot it from their windows. Caisteal Chamuis was another castle built on top of a former Iron Age fort, eventually being transformed by Clan MacLeod. True to form, it was assailed by the MacDonalds and we know it was abandoned by 1690 since some of the soldiers attacking Armadale hid inside!

These ruins aren’t home to clansmen or ghosts though, Caisteal Chamuis is said to contain a glaistig. This creature from Scottish folklore is a peculiar female, water spirit who often attached themselves to an important family. There are dozens of glaistig stories around, all following a similar pattern.

Like many other glaistigs, this particular creature was known to take care of any cattle around the castle. She was also known for her prophetic actions, appearing physically to the family if good fortune was coming. If a tragedy was on the way, they would only hear her quietly weeping…

Eilean Donan Castle (Bonus)

Ok, you caught me, Eilean Donan isn’t actually an Isle of Skye castle. However, so many people combine it with their visit to the island that I had to include it. The castle has some incredible legends, which make it more than worth visiting. From a boy with the power to speak to birds to a Spanish ghost, this isn’t just a pretty picture.

Rebuilt from a shell in the early 20th century, Eilean Donan Castle has become one of Scotland’s most popular attractions. Many people just park up, take some pictures and leave, but I’d strongly advise you to go inside. For one thing, it’s a beautiful restoration and the views from the wee island are incredible. Aside from that, since most of the castles on Skye are free to visit, it’s worth spending something!

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