Hidden Scotland
Sign in
A still pool of the young Forth by Aberfoyle, green hills beyond.
Loch Lomond

Aberfoyle

The southern gateway to the Trossachs, a Victorian resort that grew from Scott's Lady of the Lake, with its slate quarries and fairy minister.

Welcome

Aberfoyle is the southern gateway to the Trossachs, a village where the hills of the Highlands begin, inside the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park.

It was a modest place until 1810, when Sir Walter Scott published The Lady of the Lake; tourism in the Trossachs quickly grew by five hundred per cent, and Aberfoyle became a Victorian resort, with a railway terminus in 1882 and the Duke's Road over the hills to Loch Achray in 1886.

It was a working village too. By the end of the 1800s its four slate quarries turned out 1.4 million slates a year, and Aberfoyle slate was used for the billiard tables of the liner Queen Mary. Scott's Rob Roy is remembered in the Poker Tree, an oak by the crossroads, and the Rob Roy Way passes through. Today there are shops and cafés, the Scottish Wool Centre, and the forest walks of the Lodge Forest Visitor Centre just up the road.

The Daily

Arrives at 5am every day.

A free morning email to see what’s on this week, catch up on what’s happening in Scotland and find somewhere new to go.

The Daily for 3 November, from Scotland with love. Black cattle graze a fort mound above a river valley, a farmhouse and white cottages scattered among green fields and autumn woodland.
A little further outLoch LubnaigA long, quiet loch below Ben Ledi between Callander and Strathyre, with the Rob Roy Way along its shore.25 min by roadSee itLoch Lubnaig
Before you go

Aberfoyle is on the A821; the Duke's Road climbs north over the hills to Loch Achray.

Where
The A821, Trossachs.
Nearby
The Lodge Forest Visitor Centre, Loch Ard.

Been here? Tell others what you know, and the best go on this page with your name.

Add your review
Where it is

The Trossachs, north of Glasgow.

Close byIn Aberfoyle.
  1. Old gravestones in the kirkyard with the hills beyond.Aberfoyle Old Parish ChurchThe old kirkyard of Aberfoyle, with its iron mortsafes and the grave of Robert Kirk, the minister taken by the fairies.Under a mile 1 min by road
  2. The Duke's Pass winding through autumn hills, the road curving away below.The Duke's PassThe winding road over the hills from Aberfoyle to Loch Achray, built by the Duke of Montrose, one of Scotland's best drives.2 miles 3 min by road
  3. A loch winds through forested hills beneath a grey, cloudy skyThree Lochs DriveThis seven-mile drive along forest tracks winds through some outstanding scenery.2 miles 4 min by road
  4. A wooden footbridge over a burn in the green forest.Queen Elizabeth Forest ParkThe great forest park of 1953, from Loch Lomond to the Trossachs, with its visitor centre at The Lodge above Aberfoyle.3 miles 4 min by road
  5. The forest drive winding past a loch through the woods, from above.Three Lochs Forest DriveA seven-mile one-way forest road above Aberfoyle, past Lochan Reòidhte, Loch Drunkie and Loch Achray.3 miles 7 min by road
  6. The tall roofless walls and arched windows of the priory church.Inchmahome PrioryThe ruined island priory on the Lake of Menteith, where the child Mary Queen of Scots was hidden in 1547.4 miles 6 min by road
Directions
Loch Ard still as glass, reflecting trees and hills.AttractionsLoch Ard3.8 miles
A wood-fired pizza with pepperoni, mozzarella and fresh basil on a wooden table at Nick's at Port of Menteith.RestaurantsNick's at Port of Menteith4.5 miles
The Lake of Menteith, its wooded islands and the hills beyond.AttractionsLake of Menteith4.7 miles
Autumn woodland reflected in a calm loch, framed by bare branchesAttractionsLoch Achray5.0 miles
The view from Ben Ledi's slopes over the hills of the Trossachs.AttractionsBen Ledi6.0 miles as the crow flies
The steamship Sir Walter Scott at the pier on Loch Katrine.CafeSteamship Café6.7 miles
Ben Venue in low evening light above the forest and Loch Katrine.AttractionsBen Venue6.7 miles
Families with wheelbarrows picking pumpkins across the field at Arnprior under a grey October sky, with a painted photo frame in the foreground.AttractionsArnprior Farm6.9 miles
Loch Chon among autumn woods, a white house on the far shore.AttractionsLoch Chon7.4 miles

Recommend to a friend

Stay nearby

Places to stay near the village, and when each is next free.

A Highland calf walks across a lawn before a pink harled house, a stone wall and outbuilding visible behind.Monachyle Mhor
  • To stay
  • In Balquhidder
  • 12 miles from Aberfoyle
Check datesA grand stone mansion with multiple gables and chimneys stands behind a lawn set with wicker chairs, seen through overhanging leaves.Cromlix
  • To stay
  • In Kinbuck
  • 17 miles from Aberfoyle
Check datesSuie Hunting Lodge, Loch LomondSuie Hunting Lodge
  • To stay
  • In Luib
  • 17 miles from Aberfoyle
Check datesPlaces to stayEvery stay in Loch LomondAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
Hidden Scotland, the magazine

Scotland, in print.

We want to show you the best that Scotland has to offer. The makers and the creatives, the enduring experiences, the evocative tales, the concealed corners. The roads less travelled that take you to places that matter. The adventures that gather you up and sweep you away. The blend of the wild and the artistic that makes Scotland what it is. We’d love for you to join us.

Get Issue 13Read it here
Read on

The collections it is in and more in Loch Lomond.

CollectionThe Prettiest Villages in Scotland
More in Loch Lomond
Find out more

For further reading, before you go. The details on this page were checked on .