There are loads of things to do in the area by car, motorcycle, train or on foot. Here are a few ideas and recommendations from ourselves and our guests.
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Oban
Oban (meaning The Little Bay) is a small town in the beautiful Firth of Lorn. It is 36 miles from Glengarry which will take about 50 mins to an hour by car. If you fancy a scenic train journey you can get on at Tyndrum Lower station and be dropped off in the centre of Oban.
Attractions in Oban include the Waterfront Centre, the Cathedral of St Columba, the Oban Distillery, Dunollie Castle, Dunstaffnage Castle and McCaig’s Tower, which dominates the town’s skyline. Oban is also an excellent base from which to explore the sights of Kilmartin Glen.
Ben Cruachan, Hollow Mountain – deep inside Ben Cruachan on the shores of Loch Awe is Cruachan Power Station. It is an amazing engineering achievement buried 1km under ground. At its centre is a massive cavern, high enough to house the Tower of London. Enormous turbines convert the power of water into electricity – great visit for adults and kids alike. If you don’t have time for the tour, the Hollow Mountain Café is good for a coffee and cake on your way back from Oban.
St Conans Kirk – On Loch Awe. The Church was begun in 1881 and substantially altered and added to until 1930. Walter Campbell, a local landowner, and his sister Helen, included on the exterior almost every style of church architecture and embellishment, such as flying buttresses, towers, cloisters and stained glass windows. Definitely worth a look , even if you are popping in on your way past.
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Scottish Sea Life Sactuary
10 miles outside of Oban – a place where you can see rescued seals, octopus and even sharks. You may even see some of our old towels being used on the baby seals!
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Ardchattan Priory
The monastery was built on a sheltered spot on the shore of Loch Etive, almost overshadowed by Ben Cruachan. An Argyllshire house, one of the three in Scotland belonging to the Order of Vallis Caulium (the Valley of Cabbages), founded by Duncan Mackoul about A.D. 1230 and dedicated to the Blessed Virgin Mary and St. John Baptist. The local tradition is that there was a chapel on this spot in the earliest ages of Scottish Christianity, centuries before the monks of Vallis Caulium erected their priory and church. Parts of the church, and also of the domestic buildings of the priory, still remain and are actually utilized at this day—the only example of this in Scotland—as the mansion-house of the present proprietor.
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Inveraray
Inveraray is a town and former Royal Burgh in Argyll and Bute, located on the western shore of Loch Fyne. It is the ancestral home to the Duke of Argyll, who founded the town in 1745, alongside his new dwelling, Inveraray Castle.
Inveraray Castle – the seat of the Chief of Clan Campbell, the Duke of Argyll. It is currently occupied by the 13th Duke of Argyll but is open to the public at certain times of the year.
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Inveraray Jail
Inveraray is a living 19th century jail and museum. It was the original 19th century jail for the Argyll area.
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Argyll Adventure
Located on the shores of Loch Fyne beside Inveraray it offers a quiet day out on horse back to the very latest adrenaline charged activities including laser clay pigeon shooting, vertical wall climbing, bungee trampoline jumping and Laser Blast Arena. Open daily from Easter till end of October
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Glasgow
take a trip down by Loch Lomond or better still jump on the train at either Tyndrum Upper or Lower station and arrive in Glasgow city centre ready to shop. Glasgow is bursting with museums, art galleries, fantastic shopping and restaurants and all for a day return from Tyndrum!
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Loch Lomond Cruises
Daily cruises for groups and individuals take in the northern, more scenic fjord-like end of Loch Lomond. Sail past the lands of Colquhouns and McGregors, as well as the ruined strongholds of the McFarlanes.
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Perth
The city is a bustling market town with shops, galleries and a theatre in the town centre. Nearby is historic Scone Palace and Perth Racecourse. It takes about an hour and a half by car but there are plenty of places to stop off on the way… Comrie, Crieff and St Fillans to name a few.
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Lochearnhead.
Loch Earn, and Lochearnhead village in particular, is a centre for both fishing and water sports: water skiing, canoeing and sailing. Just east of the village on the south side of Loch Earn is Edinample Castle built by ‘Black’ Duncan Campbell of Glenorchy in the 17thC.
Above is Ben Vorlich (985m) a steep sided pyramid shaped peak. This is a popular climb and the views from the top are spectacular.
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Stirling
Stirling is only just over an hour away by car, passing through Lochearnhead and Callander en route. The city is great for either sight seeing or shopping or a bit of both. Stirling Castle, Wallace Monument, Stirling Jail and Cambuskenneth Abbey are favourites.
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Callander
lies by the River Teith and is gateway to Balquhidder and Rob Roy country and was a Victorian spa town. The visitor centre contains a presentation on Rob Roy MacGregor in addition to local tourist information.
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Kilmahog
just North of Callander, used to be the site of St. Chug’s chapel, after which it is named. All that remains of the chapel now is a small burial ground with stones dating back to the late 1600’s. The village today consists of a few houses and two Woollen Mill retail facilities (the Trossachs Woollen Mill and the Kilmahog Woollen Mill), with farm land to the North and forestry to the South. You can visit ‘Hamish’ the highland cow – a celebrity in his own right! There is a local pub, near the site of the old chapel, called The Lade Inn, and the Scottish Real Ale shop, aiming to stock all bottled Scottish ales. The village sits at the Northern point of a loop known as the Trossachs Bird of Prey Trail
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Killin
lies below the Tarmachan and Ben Lawers range of mountains at the head of Loch Tay. The spectacular Falls of Dochart run right through the centre of the village.
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Ben Lawers
To the north of Loch Tay, Ben Lawers is the highest peak in the southern Highlands (1214m or 3984 ft). On its summit stands the remains of a 7m (23 feet) high cairn built in 1878 in an attempt to raise the mountain to a height in excess of 1219m (4000 feet). On a clear day it offers fantastic views west to the Atlantic and east to the North Sea.
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Aberfeldy
Aberfeldy is a lovely little town to stop off for a wander round and a coffee, you can visit the Aberfeldy Water Mill which produces stone ground oatmeal or Dewar’s World of Whisky at Aberfeldy Distillery (built in 1896).
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Others:
The Falls of Moness and the Birks of Aberfeldy (made famous by Robert Burns) are worth a visit too.
Kenmore – on Loch Tay offers many watersports and the Courtyard, a lovely Brasserie and bar with a shop and deli
The Crannog Centre – a reconstruction of an Iron Age (2500 year old) dwelling built on timber stilts on the Loch.
Glencoe – 20mins away. Travelling North you pass through Rannoch Moor and Glencoe on the A82 towards Fort William.
The Glencoe and Loch Leven area is a very beautiful part of Lochaber with wild, open and uninhabited moorland, high, rugged mountains, a deep sea loch and fresh water lochs and rivers. It is always breathtaking, whatever the weather.
The main villages are Glencoe village which sits at the northern entrance to Glen Coe, Kinlochleven, at the head of the sea loch, Ballachullish, lying alongside Loch Leven and Onich, a pleasant village spread along the main A82 to Fort William and with superb views across the Atlantic Ocean to the south and west. On the journey south west to Oban is Kentallen, a beautiful bay area
Glencoe and Loch Leven have great outdoor activities including skiing, summer and winter climbing, walking and cycling. The mountain centre at the top of Glencoe has been upgraded in the last few years and goes from strength to strength www.glencoemountain.com
Fort William – Fort William derives its name from the military fort built by William of Orange to station English Redcoat soldiers. They were garrisoned here to control the Jacobite Highlanders in the 1700s. The town is at the foot of Ben Nevis by the shore of Loch Linnhe (deep sea loch). Fort William is also the home of the fantastic Nevis Ski and Mountain Bike area www.nevisrange.co.uk