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Cardhu Distillery

Cardhu Distillery

Cardhu Distillery
4.5
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Monday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Tuesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Wednesday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Thursday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Friday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Saturday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
Sunday
10:00 AM - 5:00 PM
About
Share with us the story of the only malt distillery pioneered by a woman. The malt whisky produced here has a warmth and cleanliness of taste which experts describe as "silky" and is used in some of the award winning Johnnie Walker blends.
Duration: 1-2 hours
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What is Travelers’ Choice?
Tripadvisor gives a Travelers’ Choice award to accommodations, attractions and restaurants that consistently earn great reviews from travelers and are ranked within the top 10% of properties on Tripadvisor.

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See what travelers are saying

  • Andrew M
    8 contributions
    4.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great tasting experience
    Really good experience and tour. Kaelyn was a wonderful host who really made us feel welcome and her personality shone through unlike some slightly scripted tour guides. Slight awkwardness over an additional dramtakes a star off but we'd happily go back and recommend her / the visit.
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written October 15, 2023
  • Tania J
    127 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A five star distillery experience.
    We were so lucky to experience the Cardhu Distillery tour with Heather. She is knowledgeable, enthusiastic, and authentic and she made our visit very memorable. Cardhu put together a great process for introducing people to the brand and Heather made us feel right at home during the tour and the tasting. If you are anywhere near the distillery, stop by for a tasting and the tour.
    Visited October 2023
    Traveled as a couple
    Written October 20, 2023
  • Naina K
    1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    A wonderful tour with Alison and what a way to celebrate our friends birthday!
    Definitely suggest this tour to anyone visiting Speyside. I had a fantastic experience at the Cardhu Distillery tour with Alison. She was incredibly involved and made the tour educational and enjoyable. She provided us with fascinating insights into the history of Cardhu. First Distillery started by a women( Helen) and learning about its rich heritage and the role it played in the whisky industry added depth to our experience, making it even more memorable. It was evident that she was passionate about what she does. It was also my friend's birthday, and the staff treated us exceptionally well. I'll definitely be coming back for another visit.
    Visited November 2023
    Traveled with friends
    Written November 5, 2023
  • Henrik C
    Uppsala, Sweden29 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great whisky experience with professional tour guides
    Had a great experience at the distillery. Our guide tour was Kaelyn and she was very professional, nice and always with a smile on her face. I learned a lot about the distillation process and how the various ingredients/transient products smells like, which was very interesting. Our visit ended with a nice tasting of 3 different drams from Cardhu and one cocktail. I will definitely return when I have the chance.
    Visited November 2023
    Traveled solo
    Written November 6, 2023
  • Brenda G
    2 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Cardhu Distillery tour
    We had a great vist/tour with Ben, he was very informative and a good guide, we saw around the distillery and did not feel rushed. The tasting session was great and had a great cocktail as well with Cardhu whisky. Very clean buildings and scenery is stunning, we had a great time, kids enjoyed it as well. Would go back again.
    Visited November 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written November 18, 2023
  • henry7755
    Leeds, United Kingdom27 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Great overall experience
    My son and I recently visited Cardhu and booked the collection tour experience. The recent Changes to the shop were excellent and the film was truly interesting. I would love to somehow get a copy of that if it was at all possible. We had a guided tour of the distillery, and all of this was done by Jessica who was very thorough and made tour extremely interesting answering all our questions and with her the overall product knowledge. Tasting a wide range of there whiskies at the end of the tour made it easy for us to decide which whiskies to purchase. I would thoroughly recommend including a visit to Cardhu to anyone visiting the Speyside region.
    Visited November 2023
    Traveled with family
    Written November 26, 2023
  • Jenny
    Los Angeles, California50 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Wonderful Whisky and Spectacular Place to Visit
    This place is very special! We absolutely loved our visit here. We did the "Cask Experience" for our honeymoon & it was spectacular. Our guide was very kind, friendly, & knowledgeable. The history of the distillery was very cool & the whisky tasting itself was definitely a 10/10. The whole experience from start to finish was so much fun. We had the best time at Cardhu & would absolutely recommend it. It's very much a must-see if you're visiting Speyside. Don't miss out on this place. It's wonderful!
    Visited January 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 6, 2024
  • Vivian
    11 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Cardhu offers the best whisky experience in Speyside!
    The rich history of this distillery is reason enough reason to visit Cardhu. But even if you’re not already encapsulated by the fascinating story of how women paved the way for whisky through the illicit stills era - the tour of the facility itself is incredible. The sights, smells, and information provided is fully comprehensive. Our guide, Alison, was knowledgeable, warm, and attentive. With a fantastic dram tasting at the end with a whisky cocktail included, the cherry on top was that staff remembered it was my husband’s birthday and had prepared a personalised birthday card for him along with an extra drink. I can’t say enough good things about our experience at Cardhu thanks to Alison and the team.
    Visited March 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 11, 2024
  • Shells - For Fun Sake Travel
    Sydney, Australia350 contributions
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    Exactly what we hoped for at this iconic Scottish whisky maker!
    Fabulous experience. Booked directly, had the wonderful Alison as our tour guide. Alison was extremely knowledgable and had the most beautiful warm Scottish personality with a deep personal affinity having grown up in the area that shone through the whole experience. Very generous 6 drams ended our flavour journey tour. All in all exactly the kind of whisky experience we hoped for in Speyside at this iconic whisky institution!
    Visited March 2024
    Traveled as a couple
    Written March 12, 2024
  • David C
    1 contribution
    5.0 of 5 bubbles
    What a Wonderful Tour!
    On a distillery tour with friends and this was our second stop. The polish really shows at this place, but doesn’t over power. Alison was an excellent tour guide and answered all our questions while presenting both the history and distillation process in compelling but easy to under terms. While the brand may be owned by a bigger company it feels small and authentic
    Visited March 2024
    Traveled with friends
    Written March 22, 2024
These reviews are the subjective opinion of Tripadvisor members and not of TripAdvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews.

Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.

Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.

Popular mentions

4.5
4.5 of 5 bubbles931 reviews
Excellent
760
Very good
126
Average
30
Poor
8
Terrible
7

Gurpreat Singh
Bolton, UK1 contribution
2.0 of 5 bubbles
Feb 2020 • Friends
After over 7 hours travel and plenty of expenditure from Manchester to Cardhu we (3 adults) where expecting a fantastic tour of Cardhu after purchasing the ÂŁ22 tour experience, unfortunately for us we was not advised that 2 areas of the distillery where inaccessible (please note we booked our tour over the phone on the day of arrival 27/02/2020) and the tour was lacking a lot of information in comparison to other distilleries visited during our stay in Dufftown (stated duration 1hr actual tour duration 20mins). This experience was quite frustrating and of putting.
The Cardhu whisky has no fault but again during the tasting experience of 6 whiskies the dram provided was a disgrace in comparison to other distilleries who are less commercialised and who produce less whisky with lower profit margins, hence adding to our frustration during our tour.
Tour conducted by Isla (stated first tour guide) the assistant didn't support or encourage any further information to be given.
I don't believe this is common for Cardhu but our experience was very frustrating and I personally would not recommend a visit to Cardhu, this was also one of the more expensive tours we did during our visit and resulted in wasting our money.

Date of Visit: 27/02/2020
Time: Approx 15:00

Regards
Gurpreat Singh
Written March 3, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

lmclight
Salisbury, UK76 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021
This is an excellent tour at the recently renovated Cardhu Distillery. The visitor experience has been carefully thought out to provide an informative and interactive experience for guests. We saw the actual whiskey in production and discussed the whole process from start to finish. The tasting room is a gorgeous kitchen and we treated to four samples plus a cocktail. Drivers are provided with bottles to take their samples home. Whole tour plus tasting takes about 2 hours. We stayed a little longer though, to chat to the other family in our group and staff were happy for us to stay as long as we liked. Wonderful experience!
Written August 9, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Wing-Commander S
5 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Aug 2021 • Couples

A visit as part of a series of tours for our honeymoon....seriously classy and well created visitors centre, description of the whiskey process and good interactive explanation for the smell and tasting relationship before trying the whiskey. Our guide was clear, knowledgable and dedicated to giving a bespoke experience. Superb artistic history video as part of the tour.
Written August 13, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Daniel W
1 contribution
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020
We visit Cardhu yesterday for a tour and whiskey tasting session. Lorraine was our guide and she was fanstastic, her knowledge was excellent and she was extremely accomadating, as two of our members couldn't make it, she bottled the whiskey so they didn't miss out. The experience was fantastic and I would definatly recommend the tour to anyone. Lorraine told us she was retiring in the coming weeks, we wish her a very happy retirement.
Written March 8, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

irmentrautE
Dortmund, Germany8 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2022 • Couples
Thank you very much for the interesting and adorable look into the history of Cardhu . We have had a very friendly and beautiful tour through the halls . Our competent guide Ailsa knew everything about the process and the amazing development of this distillery. The tasting afterwards was both thrilling and relaxing . We enjoyed this tour very much. We really appreciated the way Ailsa introduced the different tastes of whisky . Thank you 🤗🤗🤗
Written April 9, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Clive Watson
7 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Mar 2020 • Friends
We arranged a visit to this small distillery for some friends who were visiting us for the weekend. Having been here before I knew roughly what to expect and was not disappointed. Natasha dealt very well with the mixed nationalities present and cooed very well with the late Joiners to our tour. Professional throughout, the tour was presented by Natasha in a pleasant informal manner giving us all the information about the history and operation of the distillery. Unfortunately due to renovations we weren't able to see inside the warehouse but were able
To go to the tasting. This was great fun and the whisky is one of the best of the speyside malls available in my opinion. A visit here is really a must for the individuality that is not found at the larger distilleries it is well worth a visit. Highly recommended.
Written March 6, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

4interestigo
Davis, CA4 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Apr 2022 • Couples
We were greeted by Ailsa, a friendly and informative guide. She conducted an interesting and expertly presented walk through the different stages of making whisky. Ailsa stimulated our group with fun questions and lots of enlightening details of the distillation processes. We had a delicious tasting and lovely memories of Cardhu Distillery
Written April 10, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Guy_6754
4 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2024 • Friends
Having visited several distilleries this one stands out as one of the best. The guide Kirsten was exceptional, giving us lots of helpful information and using displays along the way to make the process of whisky production easy to understand.

I especially liked the animation explaining the unique history of the distillery.

Three drams are given at the end which you can take home if driving, and also a whisky cocktail which you can choose as a non-alcoholic version.

Overall I was very impressed with this distillery and can highly recommend it.
Written September 17, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Gurleygirl00
Nairn, UK13 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Dec 2021
We enjoyed a fantastic tasting tour, all our questions were answered and the story of the distillery was fascinating. The beautiful building was spotlessly clean and well presented and the art work was mesmerising, as well as the easy to understand descriptions on the wall of the history.

Our tour guide Claire was fantastic! She really helped to make this a most memorable occasion. We would recommend a visit to this distillery without hesitation. Well done everyone!
Written January 4, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

Hazel
Horsham, UK45 contributions
5.0 of 5 bubbles
Sep 2021 • Couples
Our guide Dan was informative and entertaining. What a wonderful story it is started so long ago by two innovative women. Wonderful to view the original building where the casks were stored
The tour concluded with a wonderful selection of whiskies. Can thoroughly recommend a tour here
Written September 19, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.

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Cardhu Distillery - All You Need to Know BEFORE You Go (2024)

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