Outdoor activities in Argyll & The Isles
Quick Finder
Search Accommodation
Search What's On
Search things to do
Search Food & Drink
Advertisement
-
Ben Cruachan
-
Passing Castle Stalker at Appin, en-route to Oban and Fort William.
-
Fingal's cave on island of Staffa near Iona, Inner Hebrides
-
Surfers at the Tiree Wind Classic windsurfing competition
If you want to get active in Scotland, this stunning land of dramatic contrasts is the perfect place to do it.
Walkers will love exploring the region’s many waymarked routes. Gentle, shorter walks can be found just outside pretty towns such as Oban, Lochgilphead and Campbeltown.
A short ferry trip from Tayinloan brings you to the beautiful Isle of Gigha where you can enjoy a relaxing 3 km stroll around the tiny island, taking in wide sandy beaches, great wildlife and the blazes of colour at Achamore Gardens.
Argyll Forest Park offers a variety of paths, perfect for walking, running, cycling and horse riding. The Isle of Bute is another excellent option where the West Island Way traverses 30 miles from north to south.
If you’re looking for a more challenging hike, scramble your way across the hills and Munros that rise up out of the islands and the mainland. Keen climbers will relish the rugged Munros of Ben Starav and Ben Cruachan, the highest peak in the region.
Surfers love the wind-swept landscapes of Tiree with its challenging waves and waters warmed by the Gulf Stream.
The exciting Tiree Wave Classic takes place every year on one of the sunniest isles in Britain. World-class windsurfers come to brave the North Atlantic swell and compete in freestyle, wave jumping and supercross, whilst children also love the natural tidal paddling pools. The low-lying white sandy beaches here and on Coll are unmissibale.
Staffa is famed for its spectacular sea cave - Fingal’s Cave. Formed by the battering of the island’s cliffs by the Atlantic Ocean, Fingal’s Cave (known as Uamh-Binn, the ‘cave of melody’, in Gaelic) has inspired many famous artists and writers such as JMW Turner, Wordsworth and Mendelssohn who composed the Hebrides Overture after visiting the island.
In the region you can also visit the world's third largest whirlpool, the Corryvreckan Whirlpool. Lying between the islands of Jura and Scarba, you can reach it on a boat ride from Ardfern, Oban or Seil, all of which offer wildlife-spotting opportunities as you’ll pass a seal colony and may even see some majestic sea eagles. Or for an even more exhilarating experience, you can look down on the whirlpool from a Loch Lomond Seaplane.
