West Highland Way (The North) - 7 Days & 6 Nights

This is a stunning long distance walk, showcasing some of the best scenery that Scotland has to offer. It can be pretty tough going, with some challenging terrain, but what a great walk for boasting about to friends!

Classic Routes | If you’re the active, outdoorsy type, who’s interested in taking on the great routes of the world or looking for a challenge, then our Classic Routes are for you. We’re talking the West Highland Way, Tour Du Mont Blanc and the Passau to Vienna Danube Cycle Path, to name but a few!

Inn to Inn Walking | Walk from place-to-place changing accommodations each night. Generally staying in B&B’s, inns, and guesthouses.

Solo Travellers

The minimum age for this tour is: 12 Years

The West Highland Way can be enjoyed by walkers with various levels of experience. Depending on your levels of physical fitness and personal preference, the route difficulty can vary from “easy to moderate” to “moderate” and “moderate to strenuous”:

• Our best-selling trips are graded as “moderate” walking experiences: the 8-day and 9-day itineraries.
• For a more laid-back experience, we offer “easy to moderate” trips: the 10-day and 11-day itineraries.
• Experienced walkers can undertake our “moderate to strenuous” walking trips: the 7-day, and 6-day itineraries.

Some walking days will be more demanding than others. While the terrain is a combination of good walking trails and some rugged footpaths that may be uneven underfoot, the route does not require any technical skills. There are sections of both ascents and descents, with the Devil’s Staircase being the highest point at 550m above sea level.

This route is suitable for most regular walkers and the higher your level of physical fitness the more you will enjoy the experience. We suggest walking regularly and hitting a few hills before your trip, keeping in mind the daily distances and changes in elevation in your daily itinerary.

Our West Highland Way holidays include overnight accommodation in a mixture of country inns, small hotels, guest houses and B&B’s. We have worked with many of our accommodation partners for over 10 years and have great relationships with them ensuring you receive the best attention from the moment you check in.

We carefully select your accommodation to ensure that you enjoy every minute of your stay and all offer a warm welcome to walkers, traditional hospitality and delicious local food.

We book en suite rooms as standard. If there are no en suite rooms available in an overnight location, we may book a room with shared facilities, but we will always inform you in advance if this was the case.

Accommodation Location

We will always try and accommodate you at the locations detailed in your itinerary. Occasionally, due to limited availability, there may be the possibility that you will be accommodated at an alternative location in order to confirm your booking. If you are staying the night in Inverarnan on your itinerary, you may need to spend 2 nights in either Tyndrum, Crianlarich, or Bridge of Orchy, depending on which itinerary you have chosen. We will include transfers to and from these locations from and to Inverarnan, and they will be included in the cost of your tour (the exception to this is the 6 Days & 5 Nights itinerary where we find a suitable alternative but you will need to pay a supplement). However, there maybe other locations where you may have to stay at an alternative location, which you may have to pay a supplement for, but we will always ask you about this in advance. 

The Kingshouse Hotel

During busy booking times a supplement may have to be paid when staying at the Kingshouse Hotel. Unfortunately, this cannot be avoided due to this hotel increasing their costs on certain dates of the year. If you do not want to stay at the Kingshouse, there would be no supplement to stay in Glencoe or Ballaculish which is our usual alternative.

Single Rooms & Solo Walkers

This holiday is available to solo walkers, although a supplement is payable. If you require single rooms within your party we would be happy to accommodate your request, although it is not generally possible to secure more than three single rooms in a party. A single room supplement is payable.

Meals

Breakfast is included each morning while lunch and dinner are not included so you are free to choose from the available options. Your accommodation may be able to provide a packed lunch on request and this can be booked and paid for on arrival. Alternatively, the Macs Adventure App will point out any recommended lunch spots along the way. Dinner is available either at your accommodation or at nearby pubs and restaurants.

Additional Nights

You may wish to take some extra nights along the route, either to rest or for those with plenty of energy to explore some of the other walking opportunities nearby. We recommend extra nights at:

• Rowardennan - for climbing Ben Lomond, a Munro with commanding views over Loch Lomond.

• Crianlarich - a halfway stop with options for visiting the seaside town of Oban, complete with whisky distillery, via the local train service (1hr 15 mins each way).

• Fort William - for climbing Ben Nevis (the UK's highest mountain).

The route is well-waymarked throughout and easy to follow. Navigation is straightforward as you can use the Macs Adventure Smartphone App which has maps, GPS tracks, and daily route information. Simply download the GPS tracks for offline use and follow the route on your phone with the assurance that navigation will be simple, and you can’t get lost. You will find more information on downloading the app in your Macs Adventure Account.

Recommended Reading

Although not essential, if you would like more information on the route please see our recommendation below:

• West Highland Way: Milngavie to Fort William (British Walking Guide). Trailblazers

This trip is available to book from the end of March to mid-October. At certain times of the year it does get very busy, but we will always try our best to get you confirmed on the date you wish to travel, although you may have to be flexible. 

Busy times in Kinlochleven are end of April, beginning of May. This is because the Pre-65 Scottish Motorbike Trials are held here during that time. There is also a busy time in Fort William at the end of April for a week until May 6th because of the Scottish 6-Days Trial Event. We have blocked start dates accordingly due to these events if availability it not possible during these times and on any particular dates. Please try to avoid booking around this time to avoid disappointment.

Also during busy booking times a supplement may have to be paid when staying at the Kingshouse Hotel. Unfortunately, this cannot be avoided due to this hotel increasing their costs on certain dates of the year. If you do not want to stay at the Kingshouse, there would be no supplement to stay in Glencoe or Ballaculish which is our usual alternative.

Scotland's climate is notoriously changeable! Expect some amounts of both sunshine and rain regardless of the time of year, so always pack both waterproofs and sunscreen. July and August are usually warmest with average temperatures around 14 degrees centigrate, and highs of up to mid-twenties. Some snow may remain or even fall on the higher parts of the route in March & April, and even beyond. May has the least rainfall on average, but you would still expect some wetter days, and each year can vary greatly.

Details of how to get to Glasgow, the closest city with a large transport hub to Inverarnan located approximately half way along the West Highland Way are listed below. If arriving from Glasgow the easiest ways to get to Inverarnan are via rail - hop off the train at the Ardlui Station on the Fort William train which leaves from Glasgow Queen Street Station. From here it's a 5 minute taxi to Inverarnan - we recommend pre-booking a taxi as there's no taxi rank at the station. Alternatively, you can take a Citylink bus from Glasgow city centre's Buchanan Bus Station north to Inverarnan.

By Air

Glasgow International Airport: Located 8 miles west of the city of Glasgow, the airport is served by numerous domestic and international routes. A regular shuttle bus service runs to Glasgow city centre, and there is also a service to/from Fort William.

Prestwick International Airport: Located 30 miles south of Glasgow, Prestwick Airport is served primarily by Ryanair. A train service runs from Prestwick to Glasgow city centre and takes approx. 50 mins. 

Edinburgh International Airport: Located 45 miles east of Glasgow, Edinburgh Airport is served by numerous domestic and international routes. A regular bus service runs to Glasgow city centre and takes approx. 60 mins.

By Rail

Glasgow is well-served by rail from across the UK. Booking in advance secures the best fares. For information on all routes contact National Rail Enquiries.

By Bus

Services from UK destinations are operated by National Express.
Services from Scottish destinations are operated by Scottish Citylink.

By Rail: Onward travel to Inverness or Mallaig (then onto Skye by ferry) is possible by Scotrail train. Alternatively, return to Glasgow on the West Highland Line railway line (approx. 4 hours) - one of the UK's most scenic rail journeys. 

By Bus: Onward travel directly to Skye is possible with the Citylink bus service. From Fort William you can take direct Citylink buses directly to Glasgow (3 hours 15 mins), Edinbugh city centre (5 hours 20 mins) or to Edinburgh airport (5 hours). 

Taxi Tranfers: On request we can arrange private taxi transfers from Fort William, please contact your destination specialist for details.  

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 20kg per person.

At Macs Adventure, we work in partnership with many luggage transfer providers who set a limit on how many bags/suitcases they will transfer per person, and also the weight of the bag/suitcase.  Your booking includes transfer of 1 bag per person.  It is very important that you read the luggage information specific to your tour before departure. If you do not adhere to these limits, there is a great possibility that you will be charged locally both for extra bags or if they are too heavy. This limitation can be a challenge, especially as airlines generally have limits that are higher. However, our luggage providers have reasons for these limits (usually due to the Health and Safety of their employees), which we must respect.