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Surf rolling onto the beach under a wide sky.
Argyll and Bute

Machir Bay

A long Atlantic beach of pale sand below the dunes at Kilchoman on Islay, overlooked by the Otranto war graves.

Welcome

Machir Bay is one of the most beautiful beaches on Islay, a long sweep of pale sand on the island's Atlantic coast at Kilchoman, backed by high rolling dunes and open to the full swell of the ocean.

It is often called Kilchoman beach, after the old church and farm on the hill above it, and the Kilchoman distillery is half a mile away.

It is a beach for walking rather than swimming: the currents here are strong, and bathing is not safe. The sea off it has a sad history. On 6 October 1918 the troopship HMS Otranto sank in Machir Bay after a collision in bad weather, and many of those lost are buried in the small military cemetery that overlooks the bay, among them the ship's captain, Ernest Davidson. To get here, turn off the road to Bruichladdich about a mile before the village, follow the signs for Kilchoman for about four miles, keep right towards the dunes and park; a little bridge takes you onto the sand.

A short drive awayPort Charlotte HotelA small hotel by the beach in Port Charlotte, with sea-view rooms, seafood platters and live music in summer.17 min by roadSee itPort Charlotte Hotel
Before you go

Turn off for Kilchoman about a mile before Bruichladdich, follow the road for about four miles, keep right towards the dunes and park.

Strong currents; do not swim.

Where
Kilchoman, west Islay.
Swimming
Not safe; strong currents.
Where it is

Kilchoman, on Islay's west coast.

Close byOn Islay.
  1. The Kilchoman kiln with its pagoda roof beside the farm road.Kilchoman DistilleryIslay's family-run farm distillery at Rockside Farm, making whisky from barley grown in its own fields.1 mile 4 min by road
  2. Saligo BaySaligo BayA west-coast bay of pale sand and layered rock, famous for its light, looking out to the Sleeping Giant.2 miles 6 min by road
  3. The dark green hide at Loch Gruinart, set low in the grass.Loch GruinartThe RSPB reserve at the head of Loch Gruinart, where tens of thousands of Greenland geese spend the winter.6 miles 14 min by road
  4. Bruichladdich DistilleryBruichladdich DistilleryA Victorian distillery on Loch Indaal making Bruichladdich, Port Charlotte, Octomore and The Botanist gin.6 miles 14 min by road
  5. White cottages line a clifftop row with a lighthouse in the distanceIsle of Islay (pronounced Eye-la)The most southerly of the Hebrides, famous for its whisky, with white villages, great beaches and the Lords of the Isles.20 miles 37 min by road
Directions
The bar of the Port Charlotte Hotel, whisky bottles lined up behind a carved wooden counter.RestaurantsPort Charlotte Hotel8.3 miles
Ruined stone chapel with gabled walls surrounded by weathered gravestones and a Celtic crossAttractionsKilnave Chapel and Cross8.9 miles
The long white building of the Celtic House on the corner, its windows along two streets.ShoppingThe Celtic House12 miles
Peatzeria's whitewashed building on Shore Street, Bowmore, with its belfry and pointed windows.RestaurantsPeatzeria12 miles
Bowmore Distillery, Isle of IslayAttractionsBowmore Distillery12 miles
The Harbour Inn and its neighbours by the harbour in Bowmore, the loch beyond.RestaurantsHarbour Inn12 miles
Bowmore, Isle of IslayAttractionsBowmore12 miles
The whitewashed front of the Bowmore Hotel on Jamieson Street, its name across the gable.RestaurantsBowmore Hotel12 miles
The drive up to An Gleann, a white cottage behind its gate and hedges.ShoppingAn Gleann Tablet12 miles
The Daily for 18 October, from Scotland with love. Golden-hour light catches a shadowed mountain above a loch, rust-coloured moorland in the foreground

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