FREE THE EXTRA MILE SCOTLAND’S ADVENTURE COAST Special Edition - A feature on Argyll & The Isles Post-Lockdown 2020 TAKE IT & KEEP IT Share the trips, not this mag [email protected] Relax | explore | celebrate portavadie.com SPECIAL 14 4 Welcome EDITION OBAN & LORN 5 Argyll & The Isles Map 6 Going The Extra Mile For Our Visitors GOING THE 18 8 About AITC EXTRA MILE INVERARAY, KNAPDALE, KILMARTIN & CRINAN 12 Great Days Out Welcome to this one-off 27 Going The Extra Mile With Our Communities publication celebrating places 22 32 The Argyll Trilogies to go, things to see and all KINTYRE & GIGHA the natural beauty that Argyll 42 Chatting With Our Visitors and the Isles has to offer. 46 Going The Extra Mile With Our Businesses Sit back, relax and get ready 24 48 Taste Of Place Trails to be inspired of where to go COWAL for day trips, short breaks 50 Going The Extra Mile With Events and longer staycations, 28 52 Responsible Tourism all here on your doorstep. BUTE 53 Shop To Sail 54 Agritourism 30 STAYCATION 56 Bike Packing Trail {A vacation spent close to home, LOCH LOMOND & involving day trips and breaks away.} CLYDE SEA LOCHS 58 Nature's Paradise The Great Outdoors STAYARGYLL 62 Long Distance Trails {A vacation spent close to home, 36 64 Castles & Monuments involving day trips and breaks away ISLAY, JURA & surrounded by water, natural beauty, 68 On Our Doorstep wildlife, heritage, fresh produce and COLONSAY friendly banter. In the format of vast mainland landscapes to islands of all shapes and sizes.} 38 MULL & IONA 40 COLL & TIREE Mark Beaumont pictured at the peak of the Cobbler in the Arrochar Alps as part of our 2016/17 Wild About Argyll campaign. Image taken 4 years ago, and rock face - 4 and 5 star Accommodation ready for your pic today. Have you been Set in a beautiful part of Argyll, less brave enough to thread the needle? than 60 miles from Glasgow, this striking – Restaurants and Bars – World Class Marina destination has so much to offer. With – Meetings and Events something for everyone, from wellbeing – Weddings treatments to mountain biking, a visit to – Retail Therapy Portavadie is the perfect break. – Bike Hire - New for 2020: Motorhome/RV – New for 2020: Camping For seasonal short break packages – Children’s Play Area and offers visit www.portavadie.com - Award winning Leisure & Spa Experience Oban near Coasteering #immerseyoursenses #westcoastwaters Going the extra mile | wildaboutargyll.co.uk 3 GET ACTIVE WITH YOUR TRAVEL Day trips, short breaks and longer holidays all start with ARGYLL & THE ISLES the journey. The joy of Argyll and the Isles is that all routes to and from all areas enjoy beautiful scenery, stop off places, and points of interest. The hardest challenge SCOTLAND’S is doing a straight trip without stopping off, there’s just COLL Tobermory so much to see, so how will you choose to travel? ADVENTURE Arinagour Calgary GOING THE Embrace the journey on your way, when travelling between locations, or even on your way home to COAST Scarinish Achnacroish EXTRA MILE FOR create a memorable experience. TIREE Craignure Tyndrum MULL Connel of coastline Crianlarich A85 3723km Dalmally OUR VISITORS, OBAN Pack up the car and bring all abundance of walk trails Baile Mor Fionnphort your gear with you, ready to to discover, inland or via 1555km of hiking, biking & kayaking trails IONA COMMUNITIES & explore by land or sea with the coastline. To get those A819 Kilmelford Cairndow a ferry crossing. Plan your legs moving check out 61 medieval castles A816 INVERARAY Tarbet BUSINESSES… route and prepare your car wildaboutargyll.co.uk A83 Strachur for the weather. 24 gin and whisky distilleries KILMARTIN LOCH Kiloran CRINAN LOMOND “A warm welcome to Argyll and the Isles. Argyll and the Isles has as 23 inhabited islands A811 Take advantage of great many waterways as it does Garvard Inverlussa HELENSBURGH With a geography covering 6,900 sq km JURA Lochgilphead COWAL AA bus services with West road and rail links. Ports national nature reserves 4 COLONSAY Ardrishaig Tarbet A82 and a population of nearly 87,000, this Coast Motors from Glasgow and harbours are spread Tayvallich Gourock Dumbarton Colintraive is the second largest region in Scotland and the central belt, with throughout the west coast, Feolin DUNOON KNAPDALE To Glasgow connections throughout our islands and peninsulas Knockrome Rhubodach encompassing over 3700km of coastline, Argyll and the Isles with all to give you access to Tarbert Wemyss Bay Port Askaig Portavadie 23 inhabited islands, major towns and other modes of transport. amazing sailing routes. Craighouse Kilberry Rothesay Kennacraig Sit back and enjoy the Or start by land at any of BUTE tiny villages with direct easy access Bridgend Skipness views or hop on and off as the many ferry ports and Claonaig transport links to the central belt. Bowmore you please. Plan ahead at start your journey with a Portnahaven ISLAY Ardminish westcoastmotors.co.uk unique CalMac experience. Tayinloan Ardrossan What better place to explore and seek For sailing routes visit Port Ellen GIGHA sailscotland.co.uk and plan A83 Brodick Carradale out new adventures, than here on your With a direct rail link from with ferry timetables at Main Roads doorstep? We are so proud that local Glasgow to Oban, The calmac.co.uk Vehicle Ferry Routes Troon KINTYRE residents, communities and businesses Gateway to the Isles, you Passenger Ferry Routes can make your journey in Canal are actively going the extra mile to safely Machrihanish Campbeltown good time, and less stress. Cycling really is one of Airports and responsibly welcome everyone back, And with the launch later the best ways to actively Train Stations this year of cycle carriages travel throughout Argyll as we ease out of lockdown.” Southend from Scotrail, you can be and the Isles. With Transport links are changing as active as you like once carefully designed cycle regularly as lockdown MULL OF you arrive. Plan ahead with routes soaking up the best lifts. Please always check KINTYRE Iain Jurgensen, before travelling and book 50cl Orange & Coffee scotrail.co.uk and check out landscapes and places of ahead where possible. to Ballycastle Liqueur from Beinn An Tuirc, Chair, Argyll and the Isles Tourism Cooperative. the Rail and Sail tickets with interest, you can enjoy a wildaboutargyll.co.uk/travel distilled in collaboration CalMac Ferries too. gentle pedal or step it up a with close friends from gear on a more intense ride Argyll Coffee Roasters. on one of our many long If you are moving in and distance cycle routes with WIN! Take and share your most ADVERTISING WITH THANKS around areas within Argyll the Wild About Argyll bike Go wild and plan your adventure loved spot of Argyll & the Isles, Wyvex Media: Oban 01631 568000 To www.kieranjduncan.com, West Coast and the Isles, make the most packing trail. and tell us why by tagging Waters, Wild About Argyll, VisitScotland at wildaboutargyll.co.uk #wildaboutargyll. We’ll pick a EDITORIAL and Shutterstock for imagery, all business of the great outdoors in www.visitscotland.com/see- lucky winner through a prize draw The AITC team in collaboration and visitor content contributors, all its beauty, by exploring do/active/cycling/national- and send a special bottle with Designline Creative. our advertisers and sponsors. on foot. There are an routes/map of Orange & Coffee Liqueur. 4 Be inspired and stay connected | #wildaboutargyll Going the extra mile | wildaboutargyll.co.uk 5 Sponsored by GOING THE EXTRA MILE FOR OUR VISITORS WE’RE GOOD TO GO, ARE YOU? We are wild about Argyll, but we’re also wild about our visitors. On 15 July, we released our new Our businesses and communities are working hard to give LOOK OUT FOR national film Only in Scotland: Creating a welcoming experience is always what’s important to us, Why Scotland Needs You, to but even more so post-lockdown. you a welcome, that is not only friendly and warm, but also THIS LOGO welcome back Scottish tourism safe and responsible. and remind us what a beautiful WHEN PLANNING country we have right on our Hear from a local business who made virtual-visitors her priority during When you visit you’ll notice things are a little A record number of Good to Go AND BOOKING doorsteps. It encourages Scots, different, but everyone really is going the extra businesses here in Argyll & the Isles Q&A WITH RHODA, lockdown, and also from VisitScotland who share how you can make and people who consider Scotland mile to make these differences positive and ISLE20.COM AND the most of your staycations in a responsible way. #OnlyInScotland At the end of July, over 10% of all Good to AHEAD home, to travel close to home in a comfortable, to give you peace of mind that all TIREE TEA ON SERVING Covid-19 guidelines are being met across the Go accreditation’s in Scotland were from responsible way and appreciate all UP VISITORS A NEW tourism and hospitality industry. Argyll – 575 businesses of 5773 - given we Scotland has to offer. SHOPPING EXPERIENCE are only 2% of the Scottish population, this TOP TIPS WHEN VISITING We ask that all visitors go that extra mile too, to is an impressive number and showcases our Well working on Isle20 has food shops and suppliers, so As a follow-up to the national film, respect staff, communities and fellow visitors by dedication. This number of accreditations is LOCAL SHOPS, OUT FOR kept me very busy throughout I’m piloting a programme in we’ve created a regional Argyll & following the Government guidelines we are all so growing day on day! FOOD & DRINK AND STAYING lockdown but I also have another Tiree called ‘Isle Eats’ similar to the Isles film which showcases the familiar with now.