Sandy Dear

A true Highland gentleman, with bags of charm and seemingly inexhaustible treasure trove of great stories, Sandy is the guy who will take you to those out of the way, secret places that other tour guides don’t even know exist. If we could persuade the Roslin Institute in Edinburgh to clone Sandy, Inverness Custom Tours would be on course for total domination of the Scottish tour sector overnight.

​With 25 years experience in Scottish tourism, and a lifelong passion for exploring every corner of this land, we know that he has the all key ingredients to make sure you have an unforgettable trip. Describing himself as the ‘hardest working tour guide this side of Skye’, Sandy says the one thing that makes him smile (other than a wee dram of Talisker at the end of a long day) is dropping guests off at their accommodation knowing they’ve enjoyed the best day of their trip to Scotland. 

 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 Posted on Tripadvisor  
 
  
 
 
 Curiouscalliope 
 
16 June 2024
 
 
 Verified 
Amazing Private Clan MacKenzie Tour Thanks to the comprehensive website and helpful staff, I booked a tour for myself and my husband of the MacKenzie clan lands online. We spent the day in the delightful care of guide and storyteller, Sandy Dear. It is impossible to imagine a better experience. In advance of our trip Sandy found by coincidence that Castle Leod was to be open to the public on our scheduled tour date. We were quite excited to be offered that opportunity when he contacted us to see if we would like to work that extra stop into our itinerary. Sandy picked us up at our Airbnb precisely on time and chauffeured us along Loch Ness, to Eilean Donan Castle, the Gairloch Museum, Loch Maree and Castle Leod, all the while taking care to squeeze in rest stops and photo ops along the way. Somehow, without rushing us, we were still allowed the opportunity to see so much more than we had expected. Sandy was informed and thorough, not only with stories mapped to the tour, but also in answers to our every question. It was obvious, along the way, that Sandy was also exploring and taking notes for future tours, too. The photos and memories we brought back from this day far exceeded any day we could have planned for ourselves. We give the tour our highest recommendation!!!