Mull -- Pubs and Transportation (drinking and driving! Ha!)
 

A friend and I are planning a trip to London and Scotland for September. We will be staying on Mull for two days of our trip.

We are eyeing the Seaview B&B in Fionnphort on Mull (which seems to get rave reviews here) for two nights. I was wondering if there are any cozy, local pubs in the area -- maybe someplace with live music?

Also, would it be advisable to rent a car in Edinburgh to drive to Oban (and ferry to Mull)? I've been to the UK many times, and though I've never driven there, I think I'd feel fairly comfortable with it. We were thinking of taking the train from Edinburgh to Oban, and then the ferry to Mull, and I suppose a taxi out to Fionnphort. I get the impression that Mull doesn't have public transportation, but I could definitely be wrong about that!

I'd like to rent a bike for a little sight-seeing, anyway, but would you guys suggest renting a car in Edinburgh (or even in Oban or Mull, if they're available) for this leg, just for convenience's sake?

Thanks, all!

There is a restaurant and pub right next door to the Seaview. No need to drive anywhere in the dark or after drinking.

The pub is very friendly and the restaurant side has terrific food.

Fionnphort is about as far away from anywhere else on Mull as you can get without getting your feet wet.

You will certainly get a bus from the ferry terminal at Craignure to Fionnphort, but you might find it hard to nip across to Tobermory for a half pound of sugar after that.

You probably know that the Seaview hires bikes? So, whilst I reckon there are many circumstances where car hire is a useful plus in rural Scotland, I think you can do this one without.

I assume you're going to Iona? If not, change your plans and go!

Oh - just realized I forgot to comment re your driving questions.

Is your visit 2 days/1 night - or two full days/two nights?

If it is just the one overnight - then you actually don't need a car. One day could be filled w/ Iona and a boat trip to Staffa. The docks for both trips are a short walk from the B&B. The other day you'd be heading back towards Craignure for the ferry back to Oban. You could visit Duart castle, etc.

But - if your stay on Mull is 2 full days/2 nights - then I'd definitely have a car. Mull is an easy island to drive around but a difficult one to get around otherwise. There is a lot of single tracked road - in fact most of the roads are single track. But there is so little traffic they are a snap. The one difficult road is from Craignure to fionnphort. It is very busy w/ tour buses taking day trippers out to Iona. The coaches will be running out toward Fionnphortmid morning and back towards the Craignure ferry termnal around 4 p.m.

So definitely try to avoid that road between 9:30 and 10:30 a.m. and 3:30 and 5-ish p.m.

There are three or four buses a day from Craignure to Fionnphort, connecting with the ferry from Oban (though there's only one bus on Sundays). The schedule is on www.bowmanstours.co.uk.
The ferries from Oban and to Iona are run by Caledonian MacBrayne (www.calmac.co.uk), and boats to Staffa are run by Gordon Grant (www.staffatours.com).

Great tips, guys! Thanks! We'll be sure to check all that out.

Looks like we're staying on Mull a bit longer -- more like 3 or 4 days. I can't wait...it looks lovely!

At 3 or 4 days, get a car. 2 is marginal; 3's a necessity