Ganavan Sands – Sandcastles, Rock Pools and Lunch by the Bay
A few hours.
The route
Ganavan Sands is just up the coast road from Oban, a beach for a morning with little ones.
There's soft sand for castles, shallow water for a paddle and a big view over to Lismore and Mull, then lunch in town at Cuan Mor, a family favourite on the bay.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
The day
Ganavan
A morning on the sand just north of Oban. Build castles and paddle at Ganavan, look in the rock pools at Wee Ganavan just down the road, then warm up over lunch in Oban.
About three hours
Ganavan Sands
An attraction
Park in the council's Ganavan car park above the beach, which charges £1.20 an hour at the time of writing, with public toilets beside it. Ganavan is Oban's own beach, a curve of soft pale sand under a green headland, looking across the water to Lismore and the hills of Morvern and Mull. Bring buckets and spades for sandcastles and let the children paddle at the edge. Stay close to little ones by the water. Wee Ganavan, the smaller bay just down the road, has rock pools at low tide and only a little roadside parking, so check the tide times for Oban before you go. A van sells ice cream and hot food on the beach only in the busy season, so bring a flask for a winter morning.
7 min by car
Cuan Mor, Oban
Lunch
From Ganavan it's 7 minutes' drive into town for lunch at Cuan Mor on George Street, looking out over the bay. It serves breakfast from 8am, coffee and cake until noon, then the lunch menu from noon to 4pm and its main menu until 9pm, with a children's menu. Walk in if you are up to five; groups of six or more should book on 01631 565078. Dogs are welcome in its designated areas. There's no disabled toilet.
If it rains
On a wet morning, swap the beach for the Ocean Explorer Centre at Dunbeg, just north of Oban, where the children can look down microscopes and spin a giant globe under a roof, then come back to Cuan Mor for lunch as planned.
