HopeB

We are a family of four, with two boys ages 12 and 10, traveling from Edinburgh to Skye in September. We will be in Edinburgh three nights, then have four nights to explore the Highlands and the Isle of Skye before taking the train back to London. We plan to spend two nights on Skye, staying at the Sligachan Hotel. We are going from Edinburgh by train to Fort William and staying two nights there on our way to Skye.
I know many on this forum aren't keen on Fort William, but I wanted to see if it makes sense to stay there to explore the surrounding countryside? My husband says it is known as a terrific mountain biking destination.
We are hoping to spend a day renting bikes to ride some trails around there, or if that doesn't work out (since we'd need a small bike for our 10 year old, not sure if that is available to rent), we may hike on Ben Nevis. Then leave the following morning taking the train to Mallaig and on to Skye. If that is our main objective, is Fort William a sensible place to stay?

historytraveler

I think you're short-changing Skye for Fort William. There are a number of good mountain biking opportunities on Skye, so why spend time in Fort William? You mention taking the train from Edinburgh to Fort William and again to Mallaig for the ferry. Do you plan to rent a car while on Skye? If you don't have a car in Fort William, not sure how you plan to get to trails or to Ben Nevis. Same problem of transportation on Skye...very difficult without a car.

janisj

IMHO Ft William doesn't make any sense w/o a car. And for 2 nights / Absolutely not.

Look at this Ft William site http://www.ridefortwilliam.com/index.asp It describes <u>lots</u> of biking trails . . . but only 2 start in Ft William. All the others are miles away - some are 1.5 to 2 hours away and not really accessible easily by public transport.

And a family w/ young children w/o a car will also be VERY limited on Skye. Any reason you aren't driving? Why not drive over from Edinburgh and actually be able to see things enroute? The train trip is very nice, but w/o a car you aren't going to be able to >><i>explore the Highlands and the Isle of Skye</i><<

Is this a trip to explore the highlands/Skye and see sites? Or is it a two-base (Ft William/Sligachan) trip to JUST ride bikes and walk in the immediate areas? That will determine what you want to do.

janisj

was posting the same time as historytraveler . . .

Ackislander

Disagree somewhat. The train ride to Ft William and on to Mallaig is one of the great train rides in the world (comparable to crossing the Rockies) and is a reason to go to the Highlands in its own right.

However, I agree about Ft William unless you are serious climbers, where you can hire a guide to get you around. Take the train on to Mallaig and spend the night. It will be of great interest as a busy fishing port.

Take the first ferry next day to Skye, and you can get a bus to Portree or perhaps rent a car locally. Spend three nights there.

To get back to London, you can take a train from Kyle of Lochalsh to Inverness and get a direct train to London from there. This is another gorgeous train ride along Loch Ness and then the entire west coast of Scotland and England. It is a long, long day, but the scenery, especially from Edinburgh to York is great (sit on the left side of the train) and you can sleep the rest of the way.

janisj

"<i>It will be of great interest as a busy fishing port.</i>"

hardly -- it is a tiny place w/very little 'there' there. Staying over night in Mallaig isn't necessary at all. You can 'see' the whole place while waiting for the ferry.

I agree the train trip is great -- but the road parallels the tracks so driving takes one through almost the identical scenery. Plus one can stop along the way - like at Glenfinnan. Now, the train between Edinburgh and Ft William does take one where cars can't (across the Moor). I have taken all or parts of the Glasgow/Edinburgh to Mallaig train trip several times - but I wouldn't IF exploring Skye was my purpose. Public transport on the island is very limited/limiting.

LOTS of folks manage Skye w/o a car. But most are serious hikers/backpackers. I assume a family w/ a child too young/small to ride a normal mountain bike isn't in that category.

historytraveler

Janisj is absolutely right. The only circumstances in which I would recommend using the bus system on Skye is if you're traveling solo and have plenty of time.It is not tourist friendly.

I have no idea what train route Ackislander is talking about that runs along the west coast of Scotland. The train from Kyle of Lochalsh to Inverness is <I> verra</I> nice as is the West Highland route but you need to decide which is more important, taking the train or having access to various activities. The only compromise would be the train to Mallaig and picking up a rental car when ferry docks at Armadale. You can drop the car off in Kyle of Lochalsh and catch the train to Inverness and on to Edinburgh...a long day but doable.

You don't need a guide to do Ben Nevis, but you do need transport to get there.

Mallaig is okay if there's absolutely no other place to stay but the crossing to Armadale only takes about 30 minutes so why spend the night? If you want to stop enroute then Glenfinnan, as janisj suggested, is your best option.

Ackislander

Sorry, East Coast of UK for scenic views, roughly Firth of Forth to York. Tedious thereafter, mostly.

Renting a car in Armadale is a fine idea, but some of us like means of transportation that are not tourist friendly.

And as for Mallaig, the same applies. A working port, especially a working port where one can see deer looking down from the hills in twilight, is a much more interesting place to me than someplace that is deliberately picturesque. Rockport, MA, is more picturesque than Gloucester,MA, but Gloucester is infinitely more interesting.

But Your Mileage May Vary, one of the Joys of Democracy!

indy_dad

Some photos and comments from our recent trip:

http://ukfrey.blogspot.co.uk/2012/06...highlands.html

(we had a car and would agree that would make things easier outside of Edinburgh) Stopping in Glencoe and Glenfinnan were some of the highlights of our trip. I hope you have a car for Skye at least, especially at the remote Sligachan Hotel (though I'm admittedly not familiar with the public transportation options)

No mountain biking here, but an excellent walking site:

http://www.walkhighlands.co.uk/

HopeB

Thanks, everyone, for the helpful replies. We are planning to rent a car at Armadale and return it at Kyle of Lochalsh to get around Skye. But we are excited about the train journeys - not something we get to do here at home in North Carolina, and kind of a thrill for the kids. I am thinking maybe we should do three nights on Skye and concentrate our hiking and biking time there; it sounds like without a car in Fort William we may be very limited. We did think of staying in Mallaig, but since we will be leaving from Edinburgh on a Monday morning, I think we need to stop somewhere along the way to Skye to break up the journey and also so we will have daylight all the way to see the sights. Maybe we can make it all the way to Mallaig in the daylight.

janisj

"<i> I am thinking maybe we should do three nights on Skye and concentrate our hiking and biking time there</i>"

Great idea!

"<i>but since we will be leaving from Edinburgh on a Monday morning, I think we need to stop somewhere along the way to Skye to break up the journey and also so we will have daylight all the way to see the sights. Maybe we can make it all the way to Mallaig in the daylight.</i>"

There is no reason to break the train journey really. And especially not in Ft William. I'm not sure when you'll be there in Sept. - but early in the month the sun won't set until after 8PM and it will be light well after you arrive on Skye. (even at the very end of the month, sunset is about 7PM). Don't stay in Mallaig - <u>really</u>. Unless, you decide to take alter train and miss the last ferry. IMO it is much better to maximize your time on Skye.

If you were driving over from Edinburgh - it would be different. You could make a 2 or 3 days drive out of it.

janisj

oops - that should be >>decide to take a later train<<

historytraveler

I think it's a much better plan to spend three nights on Skye. There are a couple of choices for places to overnight enroute to Mallaig. I'm a great fan of Rannoch Moor Station and the Moor of Rannoch Hotel. However there's not much in the way of activities except for walking. There are some good trails.

The train from Glasgow Queen Street gets to Rannoch Moor Station about 3:00, so you would have time for a bit of a walk. The next morning the train departs Rannoch about 11:00 ish and gets into Mallaig about 2 1/2 hours later. I don't remember if there is an earlier departure from Rannoch to Mallaig. You could also stop over at Glenfinnan or even Arisaig. Both better options IMO than Mallaig. The train gets into Glenfinnan about 5:00pm and Arisaig a few minutes later. The next morning you can get a fairly early start to Mallaig and on to Armadale.

I think the last ferry from Mallaig to Armadale departs about 6:00pm ( it should still be light)and if you do the trip from Edinburgh to Mallaig, the train arrives about 5:45 or so, If all goes well you could make it to the ferry on time as it's just a short walk. I agree that it'd be a long day for young boys.

Most of the stops from Edinburgh/Glasgow to Mallaig are small places/villages with the exception of Fort William. Personally one of these would be my choice rather than in Fort William, but your family may feel differently.

HopeB

Thank you for the suggestions. I have changed our reservation to three nights on Skye. I still have a one night reservation in Fort William, as it was inexpensive and a hotel within walking distance of the train station. It does look like there are some pretty walks leaving from Fort William that we could do in the afternoon, particularly along the Caledonian Canal. Still, I will look to see if there are better options maybe in Glinfinnan, close to the railway station since we won't have a car until we arrive on Skye. I did look at the Rannoch Moor Hotel, but I'm not sure it is a good option for us with the two boys.

Ackislander

You might look out for a boat excursion to Seal Island to see the eponymous seals. We enjoyed it when our kids were about your kids ages. Tourist authority can tell you the options, since the name is lost in the sands of time.

RM67

There are pics of the boat trip to Seal Island in our recent trip report - click on my ID to see it.

janisj

here's the link w/o having to search it out . . . http://www.fodors.com/community/euro...-july-2012.cfm

sfmaster

This post came up in my research on seeing train for some serious HP fans, I think the definitely want the train and not driving along side. Any tips if this is main goal?

janisj

<B>sfmaster:</B> It would be much better if you started a new thread with your specific questions rather than tacking on to an old thread.