The Kintyre Peninsula

The Kintyre Peninsula is a long and narrow peninsula, located in western Scotland. It’s about a 160 kilometre drive from Glasgow. The Peninsula offers walkers a surprising amount of varied terrain and, especially down south, has a remote, island feel. There are coastal views aplenty with the Atlantic Sea on the west side (with views of the Irish coast) and the Kilbrannan Sound on the east side (with views of Arran Island).

The central spine of the Peninsula is mostly hilly moorland. On either side of the spine, the countryside features woodland and farmland. There are many attractive lochs and most of them are home to an abundance of birdlife and trout.

The Peninsula boasts numerous interesting towns and villages. Carradale is a lively fishing village on the east side, featuring an active harbour and an expansive sandy beach. Tarbert is another bustling harbour town on the east side and was historically a strategic access point as evidenced by the thirteenth century ruins of Tarbert Castle.

There are also several prehistoric sites on the Peninsula including the standing stones at Avinagillan, Ballochroy and Beacharr.

The Kintyre Peninsula offers a number of day and multi-day walks and there are several tour operators offering a variety of walking trips.

The most well-known multi-day walk on the Kintyre Peninsula is the Kintyre Way, a “Scottish Great Trail” that covers 161 kilometres. This walk has a lot to offer - wonderful coastal views, plenty of signs of a fascinating history, welcoming villages and several well-known whisky distilleries.

However, there are other multi-day walks on the Kintyre Peninsula, including some considerably shorter than the Kintyre Way. And the walking tour operators have developed walking itineraries suited for all. We can help you choose a walk and an operator that best suits your needs.

The Kintyre Way is just one of many walks on the Kintyre Peninsula we can tell you about, and help you to plan and complete.