Getting Around By Sea
Sea
Getting Around Scotland By Air | Getting Around by Road | Getting around by Sea | Travelling Around Scotland by Train
There are around 60 or so inhabited islands off the coast of Scotland, and nearly 50 of them can be reached by a scheduled ferry service. Most ferries carry vehicles and can be booked in advance. If you're travelling to the islands by car, it's a good idea to book ferries in advance whatever the time of year, particularly to the more popular islands.
The majority of ferry services on the west coast are operated by Caledonian MacBrayne, or CalMac as they're more commonly known. They sail from Oban, Mallaig and Ullapool to over 20 islands in the Inner and Outer Hebrides. They also run services on the Firth of Clyde. Fares are expensive, especially with a car, but if you're planning on using ferries a lot, you can save a lot of money with an Island Hopscotch ticket, which offers reduced fares on 17 set routes. The ticket is valid for one month and you need to follow your set itinerary, though this can be changed en route without too much fuss. For more details and some sample fares, see under the relevant destination.
A more flexible option is the Island Rover, which offers unlimited travel on CalMac ferries for a set period, though you still need to make reservations. An eight-day pass costs £43 per passenger and £210 for a car, and a 15-day pass costs £63 per passenger and £315 for a car. CalMac schedules are complicated, but fares and frequency of sailings are given under each relevant destination in this guide. Western Ferries runs services between Gourock and Dunoon and Islay and Jura.
P&O Scottish Ferries run car ferries to Orkney and Shetland. Ferries to Orkney depart from Aberdeen once or twice weekly and take eight to 10 hours, or from Scrabster, near Thurso, a few times daily and take two hours. Fares from Aberdeen are about £80-85 return for passengers and £140 for a car; from Scrabster it costs £30-35 per passenger and £80-85 for a car. There's also a passenger ferry from John O' Groats to Orkney which sails daily during the summer only (May-September) and is run by John O' Groats Ferries.
P&O Ferries run an overnight ferry from Aberdeen to Shetland daily except Saturday during the summer months. The journey takes 14-20 hours. Fares are around £115-120 per passenger and £180 for a car. You should also book in advance on these routes if you're travelling by car.
The Orkney islands are linked by services run by Orkney Ferries, Tel. 01856-872044, while Shetland's inter-island ferries are run by Shetland Islands Council, Tel. 01806- 244234. There are also numerous small operators offering day-trips to various islands. Details of these are given in the relevant chapters.