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Display cases of birds and finds in Bute Museum's hall.
Argyll and Bute

Bute Museum

The island's own museum on Stuart Street in Rothesay, by the castle, with the archaeology, history and wildlife of Bute.

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Welcome

Bute Museum is the island's own museum, in a building of 1925 and 1926 on Stuart Street in Rothesay, right beside Rothesay Castle, and it is run by the Bute Museum and Natural History Society, which has been studying the island since the early 1900s.

It is small, but a great deal is packed into it: the archaeology, history, flora, fauna and geology of Bute, with cases of finds from every chapter of the island's past and examples of the birds and animals still to be seen there today.

It makes a good hour on a wet day in Rothesay. In summer it opens Monday to Saturday from half past ten until half past three, and on Sunday afternoons from half past one; in October and November and in February and March it opens on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday afternoons from half past one. Adults pay £5, and children under sixteen go free.

Close byMusickerA vegetarian café on Rothesay's High Street, opened in 2002 for good coffee and good music.1 min by roadSee itThe white shopfront of Musicker on Rothesay's High Street, its name on a green sign above the windows.
Before you go

Summer: Monday to Saturday 10.30am to 3.30pm, Sunday 1.30pm to 3.30pm.

October, November, February and March: Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday, 1.30pm to 3.30pm. Adults £5, concessions £4, under-16s free.

Summer
Mon to Sat 10:30 to 15:30; Sun 13:30 to 15:30.
Oct, Nov, Feb, Mar
Tue, Wed, Thu, Sat 13:30 to 15:30.
Prices
Adult £5; under 16 free.
Where it is

7 Stuart Street, Rothesay.

Close byIn Rothesay.
  1. Rothesay's seafront terraces rising above the bay.Rothesay TownBute's Victorian resort town on a wide bay, with a moated castle, a royal charter of 1401 and celebrated toilets on the pier.Under a mile1 min by road
  2. The castle walls reflected in the moat.Rothesay CastleThe round, moated castle of the Stewarts in the middle of Rothesay, with Scotland's only circular curtain wall.Under a mile1 min by road
  3. The Kettledrum café on its corner in Rothesay, a red shopfront with CAFE in white letters above the door.Kettledrum CaféA family-run café and bistro on East Princes Street in Rothesay, for fish and chips, pies and early dinners.Under a mile1 min by road
  4. The front of Ambience on Victoria Street, Rothesay, under its blue awning.Ambience CaféA café and restaurant on Victoria Street in Rothesay, known for its fresh breads, cinnamon buns and focaccia.Under a mile2 min by road
  5. The roofless gable of St Mary's Chapel among the graves.St Mary’s ChapelThe roofless chancel of Rothesay's medieval church, with the canopied tombs of a Stewart knight and an unknown lady.Under a mile2 min by road
Directions
The white shopfront of Musicker on Rothesay's High Street, its name on a green sign above the windows.CafeMusicker0.3 miles
Rothesay Castle's round walls behind its moat.AttractionsIsle of Bute2.0 miles
Mount Stuart's red sandstone front across the lawns.AttractionsMount Stuart3.9 miles
The wide sands of Ettrick Bay at low tide.AttractionsEttrick Bay5.0 miles
The low brick café at Ettrick Bay on a sunny day, with blue pillars and doors, benches and parasols along the front.CafeEttrick Bay Café5.0 miles
Scalpsie Bay's sand and the green fields behind, from above.AttractionsScalpsie Bay5.6 miles
A bus on the shore road round the wide sandy bay, the village beyond.AttractionsKilchattan Bay8.0 miles
The ruins of St Blane's under a blue sky.AttractionsSt Blane's Chapel8.9 miles
Viking longboat beside the Battle of Largs 1263 monument signAttractionsVikingar, Largs13 miles
Stay nearby

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

A white harled house with crow-stepped gables catches the sunset glow above a loch, yellow flowering shrubs in the foreground.Glenstriven House
  • To stay
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 8 miles from Bute Museum
Free 25–27 OctThe Hollies, Argyll and ButeThe Hollies
  • Sleeps 18
  • In Argyll and Bute
  • 9 miles from Bute Museum
Check datesPlaces to stayEvery stay in Argyll and ButeAll our places to stay nearby, to search by date and by who is coming.See them all
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For further reading, before you go.