[Will Hunt]

Getting married in early October and the plan for part 1 of the honeymoon is to borrow the parent's campervan and have a wee tour of the islands on the west coast of Scotland for 10 days or so. I've been to the Cuillin area of Skye plenty, and been climbing on Arran once, but that is the full extent of my knowledge. Does anybody have any beta on planning a good route?

1. In terms of climbing, the honeymoon is to be strictly civilian. We'll have road bikes and walking boots with us, but won't be shy of hiring some mountain bikes for forest trails or other outdoor shizzle. Anything that we should definitely be doing? Sights we should definitely see?

2. 10 days obviously isn't a vast amount of time considering we'll be driving up from West Yorkshire/Widnes. Probably best not go any further north than Skye? Or is Harris/Lewis/Uist unmissable?

3. At some point we will need to spend a night or two in a nice hotel. Maybe even the kind with a spa and that sort of thing. Because, you know, its a honeymoon innit.


Rough route could look like this. Obviously heavily dependent on ferry times etc. Too ambitious? Worth cutting some stuff out and spending less time on the move?

Day 1: Drive up to Kennacraig and ferry over to Islay.
Day 2: Islay
Day 3: Jura
Day 4: Colonsay
Day 5: Get to Mull via Oban
Day 6: Mull
Day 7: Onto mainland and short drive up to Mallaig to get ferry to Skye
Day 8-9: Skye
Day 10: Drive back.

[tomtom]

Congratulations.

One point - if your honey moon starts the day after the wedding - don't do too much driving on the first day... we went from East Yorkshire to the Dales (2 hours drive) and I had to stop for a 10 min snooze half way - and collapsed once we got to our intermediate B&B (on way to lakes)... The wedding day (which was great) really took it out of me and I was shattered for the next couple of days... 6-8 hour drive from Yorks > Scotchland would be a big ask for the day after IMHO...

[Nutty]

A trip to Staffa from Mull might be worth considering? I don't know how late in the year they do the boat tours, but early October might be ok?

[Will Hunt]

Ta for that Nutty, will look into it.
TT, getting married on the Friday and leaving on Sunday so should be well rested for the drive.

[Fiend]

Mull - stay at Fidden campsite at Fhionnphort, lovely place. Gentle coastal walks, maybe even bring shoes and a chalkbag just in case. Head over to Iona for a bit of religious culture. There's a swank restaurant - obviously signed - just before Fhionn, might need booking in advance.

Skye - stay at least once at Neist, stunning spot even if it can be a bit popular. Whole island is generally good for exploring around. Granary Cafe in Portree was excellent back in 2012.

Other stuff, I'd sack off the wee islands and go for a cruise around Wester Ross / Ullapool area. Fairly civilised and relentlessly stunning scenery.

[andy_e]

Mull - stay at Fidden campsite at Fhionnphort

 

Skye: Go to Elgol for sunsets and sea-otters. There's a cracking fish restaurant in Broadford too, Creelers I think it's called. Wild camp at Camas Malag.

[Monolith]

Congratulations Will!

What a fantastic sounding trip. I know Islay intimately (and Jura to a point) and can happily offer you any beta you might like there.

You'd be a fool not to visit several of the distilleries whilst on Islay. If you're open to the idea and to suggestions of a few nice restaurants there, let me know and I can help you plan a section of your day there. If you both fancy doing some bouldering exploration, I can suggest some points to head for on the North of the island.

Happy planning!

N.B I know climbing might be off the agenda but see what you can wangle ; )

[galpinos]

Will, first of, congratulations!

My island knowledge is all oretty out of date and I'd imagine as a 16yo hitcher wouldn't necessarily be relevant but from my more recent past......

If you're finishing on Skye, my wife and I had a lovely meal at http://www.kinloch-lodge.co.uk/ . My Mum had bought us it, instead of a house warming present. We were in the van and couldn't find any campsites nearby so hid the van on a fireroad in the wood, got dolled up in the back and walked down.

Such a homely welcoming place, fantastic food and after a few whiskies I admitted to the owner what we'd done with the van. His response was that we should drive it down to the loch side in fornt of the hotel so we'd have a nice view in the morning.

Also, a night at Camasumary bothy is a must if you're down that way.

[Footwork]

Getting married in early October and the plan for part 1 of the honeymoon is to  borrow the parent's campervan and have a wee tour of the islands on the west coast of Scotland for 10 days or so. I've been to the Cuillin area of Skye plenty, and been climbing on Arran once, but that is the full extent of my knowledge. Does anybody have any beta on planning a good route?

1. In terms of climbing, the honeymoon is to be strictly civilian. We'll have road bikes and walking boots with us, but won't be shy of hiring some mountain bikes for forest trails or other outdoor shizzle. Anything that we should definitely be doing? Sights we should definitely see?

2. 10 days obviously isn't a vast amount of time considering we'll be driving up from West Yorkshire/Widnes. Probably best not go any further north than Skye? Or is Harris/Lewis/Uist unmissable?

3. At some point we will need to spend a night or two in a nice hotel. Maybe even the kind with a spa and that sort of thing. Because, you know, its a honeymoon innit.


Rough route could look like this. Obviously heavily dependent on ferry times etc. Too ambitious? Worth cutting some stuff out and spending less time on the move?

Day 1: Drive up to Kennacraig and ferry over to Islay.
Day 2: Islay
Day 3: Jura
Day 4: Colonsay
Day 5: Get to Mull via Oban
Day 6: Mull
Day 7: Onto mainland and short drive up to Mallaig to get ferry to Skye
Day 8-9: Skye
Day 10: Drive back.

Fixed that for you

[Johnny Brown]

My advice would maybe to be flexible. October in NW Scotland could be a total washout. We drove a campervan round California for our honeymoon and still had a flaming row at one point. If we'd had to do it in monotonous lashing rain it might have been divorce. So if it looks bad I'd suggest Cornwall/ France wherever looks promising. I'd look at hotel options for a night or two as well, at that time of year you shouldn't need to book ahead.

I think the Outer Hebrides are unmissable with a much wilder feel. Get the ferry to Barra (Castlebay) from Oban then head north, return either from North Uist or Harris to Skye, or Lewis to Ullapool (I think). Get on the Calmac website and look at Island hopscotch tickets.
 
There isn't much I'd bother going to Jura or Colonsay for that you won't see on Mull or Islay (Corryvreckan/ Orwell's hut /Oronsay mesolithic shell middens specifically). Outer islands have the best beaches, vistas and you'll be able to park up in better places.

[tommytwotone]

Not really related to your island plans but me and Fiona did once get a weekend deal thing from Hotel Du Vin in Glasgow, which is conveniently located in the nice west end bit. When we were checking in, and without asking they upgraded us to a suite!

[andy_e]

Stornoway to Ullapool definitely. The arrival into Ullapool is one of the most stunning ferry journeys I've ever been on. The ferry to Castlebay can be a little rough once you get past Mull...

[dave]

On that itinerary you're going to spend a lot of all your time driving or on ferries, as opposed to actually having time to explore and check the places out. I'd be tempted go less ambitious and try and visit half as many places in more detail.

[tomtom]

I like this open source collective honeymoon planning.

Can we do the same for your stag do please?

[Stewart]

Agreed with those that say Lewis & Harris are unmissable. IMO, if you're going to do it, do it proper and get the ferry straight to Barra. A few nights there exploring the island + Vatersay , then up to Uist. S Uist & Benbecula aren't that interesting, drive through them. N Uist has some lovely spots and great surf on the NW but well hidden. Spend the majority of your time on Harris. Loads of great walks, beaches, wildlife, history on Harris - the west coast of Harris in particular is spectacular. If you get the weather window the St Kilda day trip is pricey but absolutely magnificent. Incredible scenery, history and atmosphere - will be the highlight of the trip. Can't recommend it enough
http://www.kildacruises.co.uk/

Then up to the Lewis - Callanish stones are a must visit, more exploring on the west coast and finish up with a night or two here at Uig http://aubergecarnish.co.uk/

Ferry back to Ullapool and if you've still got time take the coast road down to Kyle of Lochalsh via Kinlochewe and Torridon. Even if it's just part of the way home it's an epic drive, if you get time to stop, the munros (and bouldering) are second to none.

Don't listen to Johnny and accept you're probably going to get some rain, it'll still be spectacular and make you want to come back and explore further next summer.

[T_B]

I like this open source collective honeymoon planning.

I'm going to throw my tuppence in....

I can't believe you're planning going to the Scottish Islands in October for your honeymoon!! I'm struggling to think of anywhere more depressing than arriving on Barra in freezing rain. Obviously I don't know your wife, but is she really up for this?! If you are set on going to Scotland, I wouldn't commit to lots of rough ferry crossings and depressing windswept desolate islands, keep it more mainland-style and hunt out some good stuff that you can do in sh*t weather. My expertise north of the border is limited, but I recommend http://www.stravaigin.co.uk/

[GazM]

Agreed with those that say Lewis & Harris are unmissable. IMO, if you're going to do it, do it proper and get the ferry straight to Barra. A few nights there exploring the island + Vatersay , then up to Uist. S Uist & Benbecula aren't that interesting, drive through them. N Uist has some lovely spots and great surf on the NW but well hidden. Spend the majority of your time on Harris. Loads of great walks, beaches, wildlife, history on Harris - the west coast of Harris in particular is spectacular.

Totally agree with this, and with JB re. the inner isles.  While beautiful in their own way, on a limited timetable I'd go to the Western Isles any day of the week, with most time spent on Harris/Lewis.  Oban-Castlebay and then back Stornaway-Ullapool. I'd also echo everyone else - if you get good weather the islands will be amazing, but if not it's a bit bleak up there so I'd recommend flexibility.

If you do decide to stay on the mainland, it's worth knowing that the North West (i.e. north from Applecross) is generally drier than Lochaber (i.e. Glen Coe, Fort William, Kintail), and it's better looking! Fastest to go up the A9 to Inverness and beyond than wind up the slower A82 on the west.

Interestingly, for our honeymoon in September we're hiring a van and spending a week in Devon & Cornwall!

[Fultonius]

Everyone else's tips for where to go and what to see sound spot on so I'll not add to that. However, we've been doing a fair bit of travelling in our van recently (not just climbing trips) and to echo what Dave said - try to leave plenty of time to do things on the way and don't try and cram too much in.

Our first van trip a few years ago was Chamonix - Magic Wood - Innsbruck - Ljubljana - Split (Croatia) and then vaguely back to Cham in 12 days. We kept thinking it was feasible to pack up, drive 4 to 6 hours, do something on the way or when we get there, find a camping spot, cook dinner ... repeat.  It was hectic to say the least, far too much driving and, when driving we were always on a mission - A to B high speed no stopping.

In our last trip we made some rules - no more than 4 hours driving in a day. No driving 2 days in a row (unless it's only an hour or two each day). When driving stop and check out interesting shit (usually better than the well known "attractions" that you plan to see) and never try and find a camping spot in the dark.

Generally this worked much better.

[Will Hunt]

I like this open source collective honeymoon planning.

Can we do the same for your stag do please?

That was easy. Weekend in Eric's Barn 


Thanks for the advice all, Barra to Stornoway looks much more doable in the time we have so we will look more closely at that. The comments about the rain have caused me some concern. Having only really experienced Skye in May I have a somewhat naive picture of weather on the islands. In about 3 separate trips to Skye I've been rained off on maybe 2 or 3 days!
Looking at the figures here it looks like there isn't much difference between each month as to the number of "rainy days" per month. Presumably a day is chalked up as a rainy day if there is any rain whatsoever during the day. The real difference is in the volume of rainfall, with October being the joint wettest month, so I suppose the rain is likely to be much more persistent...

I'm sure I could put up with that but not so sure about my other half and its obviously not optimal. Maybe need to have a rethink and look at going on a tour of Ireland or maybe Cornwall/Devon and do Hebrides in May one year...

[36chambers]

I like this open source collective honeymoon planning.

Can we do the same for your stag do please?

That was easy. Weekend in Eric's Barn 

Is the plan still for you to attempt to onsight Cream wearing just a nappy?   

[SA Chris]

I'd normally agree with Stewart and say you can accept a bit of rain, but this year has been fucking woeful weather wise, so I'd side with JB this time and have a fallback of Brittany or something if the long term weather doesn't look great. And outer Hebs over inners. No contest. And take your own mountain bike if you have room, limited rental options and some amazing trails! Get the Vertebrate Publishing Scotland the Wild Trails Vol 1 & 2 on the wedding list.