West Highland Line: Rail & Hike

This route is suitable for regular hikers and fit first-timers.

Before your tour, we recommend walking regularly and incorporating some hilly terrain into your routine. Be sure to check the daily distances and elevation changes outlined in your itinerary.

For the most part, the route is low-level and follows trails in good condition with no real technical challenges. If choosing to summit Ben Nevis on your day in Fort Willian, you should expect mountainous terrain that is rugged and challenging throughout.

This tour is graded Easy to Moderate. Within the tour, individual days may vary in difficulty - some might be a bit tougher or easier than the overall rating suggests.

Accommodation is a mix of 2 to 4-star country inns, hotels, guesthouses and B&Bs, carefully chosen for a warm welcome, traditional hospitality and good local food. En-suite rooms are booked as standard, though if none are available at a particular stop we may book a room with shared facilities, letting you know in advance if so. In Fort William, Spean Bridge and Mallaig, you can upgrade to a selection of country hotels and higher-end B&Bs if you'd like a touch of extra luxury. We'll always try to accommodate you at the locations in your itinerary, and if we ever need to use an alternative, we'll let you know before confirming your booking and cover the cost of transfers to and from it.

Yes, solo travelers are very welcome. There will be a supplement because some costs, like transfers, aren't shared. Or if you'd like to book a single room, just ask. These are available for a supplement.

Please note that it's not generally possible to secure more than three single rooms within one party.

Breakfast is included each morning. Lunch and dinner aren't included, so you're free to choose from the options along the way. Your accommodation can often provide a packed lunch on request, and the app will also point you toward recommended lunch spots en route. Dinner is available at your accommodation or at nearby pubs and restaurants.

You can start this tour on any day of the week throughout the season, which runs from April to October. Scotland's weather is notoriously changeable, so expect a mix of sunshine and rain whatever time of year you travel, and pack both waterproofs and sunscreen. July and August tend to be the warmest months, with highs reaching into the mid-twenties Celsius, while May usually has the least rainfall, though some wetter days are still likely. Snow can linger, or occasionally fall, on the higher sections of the route in March and April, and sometimes beyond.

Your bags will be collected from your accommodation each day and moved onto your overnight accommodation. We ask you to limit your luggage to one bag of up to 18kg/40lbs per person.

On rail days, you'll need to take all of your luggage with you onto the train rather than having it transferred ahead.

The route is generally well waymarked and easy to follow.

Navigation is straightforward using our app which has maps, tracks and daily route info. Simply download the information and tracks for offline use and follow the route on your phone. Once on the trail you do not need signal for the app to work and follow your progress.

Recommended Reading
Although not essential, if you'd like more information on the route, we recommend:
West Highland Way: Milngavie to Fort William (British Walking Guide), Trailblazers

Glasgow International Airport, located 8 miles west of Glasgow, is served by routes from around Britain and the world, with a regular shuttle bus to the city centre. Glasgow also has excellent rail links from within the UK (book ahead for the best fares, and check National Rail Enquiries for routes), bus services from UK destinations with National Express and from Scottish destinations with Scottish Citylink, and good motorway connections by car, with long-term parking generally available in the city centre.

Getting from the end, following your tour you may wish to return toward Glasgow via the West Highland Line, a journey of approximately 5 hours 30 minutes (check National Rail Enquiries for routes). For onward travel to Skye, you can take the Caledonian MacBrayne ferry to Armadale, a crossing of around 30 minutes (check Caledonian MacBrayne or Traveline Scotland for detailed public transport information).

We're unable to book the Jacobite Steam Train, which runs between Fort William and Mallaig, so you'll instead be booked onto a Scotrail service that runs on the same line over the iconic Glenfinnan Viaduct. If you'd like to travel on the Jacobite Train itself, you can book this directly with West Coast Railways.

You'll need good hiking shoes or boots, comfortable hiking clothes, waterproofs, a daypack, and we recommend hiking poles. A portable charger for your cell phone is essential. On booking, our Tour Info will give you a complete packing list.

On certain days you can shorten the route or skip it entirely by using a taxi or public transport.

Scotland's midges (small biting insects, similar to gnats) are most active in the summer months, especially on still, overcast days. They won't bother you while you're moving, when it's windy, sunny or raining, or once you're indoors, so it's worth packing some insect repellent just in case, though for most of your tour they won't be an issue.

We highly recommend that you have travel insurance when you book with Macs Adventure. Your policy should cover medical treatment (including repatriation and emergency evacuation by air ambulance or helicopter), injury, death, third-party liability, and trip cancellation