Two American hunters in Scotland discover a mystical village that only materializes once every century.

In the misty Highlands of Scotland, New Yorkers Tommy Albright and Jeff Douglas get lost on the first day of their grouse hunting trip, just as the inhabitants of the tiny village of Brigadoon awaken with the dawn and gather in the square for a lively fair. When the mist clears, the friends notice the village, which is not on their map, and head toward it in search of food. Tommy and Jeff approach Brigadoon and encounter Fiona Campbell, who is preparing for her younger sister Jean's wedding to Charlie Chisholm Dalrymple. Tommy is instantly spellbound by the lovely Fiona, who directs them to the village square. The villagers freeze in apprehension at the sight of the strangers, and when Tommy attempts to buy some milk, the vendor rejects his shilling after marveling at the date on it. However, Charlie is in a bountiful mood and buys them breakfast, and Tommy and Jeff join the villagers as they toast the end of Charlie's bachelor days. Fiona comes to the fair, and Tommy tags along as she completes her errands. Meanwhile, Harry Beaton, Jean's rejected suitor, bitterly tells her father Andrew that his life means less than nothing to him now, adding that he hates everything and everybody in the "cursed town." Tommy and Fiona go to the far hills to pick heather for the wedding, but when they approach a bridge at the edge of Brigadoon's boundaries, Fiona panics and runs away. Tommy, now giddy with love, encounters Jeff on the road and insists that they stay around for the wedding. On the window ledge outside the Campbell home, they find the family Bible that Charlie had signed earlier, and Tommy is bewildered when he looks at the entries and sees that Fiona was born in 1732, and that Charlie has entered the date of his wedding to Jean as 1754. Jeff is unimpressed, but the perplexed Tommy confronts Fiona and asks for an explanation. Fiona reluctantly agrees to take them to see the schoolmaster, Mr. Lundie, who tells them of the "miracle" that happened in Brigadoon: Two hundred years ago, the Highlands were plagued with sorcerers who were turning people away from God's teaching. To protect the people from outside influences, the village minister asked God to make Brigadoon and its inhabitants vanish into the Highland mist and awaken for one day every one hundred years. Lundie adds that as part of the minister's contract with God, if anyone from the village leaves, the enchantment will be broken for all, and Brigadoon will disappear forever. Tommy asks if it is possible for an outsider to stay, and Lundie replies that it is, provided he loves someone in Brigadoon deeply enough. Later, everyone in Brigadoon gathers for the wedding, but the festivities take an ugly turn when Harry tries to kiss Jean, then pulls a knife on Charlie. Harry is quickly subdued, but announces that he is leaving Brigadoon and flees. The men from the village quickly form search parties to go after him, and Tommy joins in the effort. Harry fights off his pursuers, but while hiding in a tree, is accidentally shot to death by Jeff, who is aiming at a grouse. The men assume that Harry fell and hit his head, and agree to keep his death a secret until morning, to avoid casting a pall on the wedding celebration. Tommy passionately tells Fiona he cannot leave her, then informs the drunken Jeff that he plans to stay in Brigadoon with Fiona. Jeff admits that he killed Harry and angrily tells Tommy he does not really belong in Brigadoon. Fiona arrives with Lundie, and Tommy, shaken by Jeff's words, apologetically changes his mind. With the day almost at an end, Tommy and Fiona say goodbye, and as he walks away in anguish, a cloud of mist envelops Brigadoon. Four months later, in a crowded, noisy New York bar, Tommy tells Jeff, who has been drinking heavily since returning from Scotland, that he is still in love with Fiona and has been avoiding his fiancée, Jane Ashton. At dinner that evening, Tommy, consumed with thoughts of Brigadoon, abruptly breaks the engagement and calls Jeff, instructing him to make plane reservations for Scotland right away. In Scotland, Tommy and Jeff return to the place where Brigadoon once stood. As Tommy mourns his lost love, the village suddenly emerges from the mist. Lundie beckons Tommy, reminding him that if you love someone deeply enough, anything is possible--even miracles.