Portnahaven – White Cottages, Seals and a Quiet Beach
About 2.9 miles on foot.
Portnahaven is the village at the very end of the Rhinns of Islay, rows of white cottages stepped round a narrow rocky bay.
Seals haul out on the rocks in the middle of it, close enough to watch from the road, and the Rhinns of Islay lighthouse stands on the island of Orsay just offshore. From the village a quiet road and path lead north-west up the coast to the small beach of Currie Sands, about a mile and a half away.
- Time
- About an hour and a half: some 2.3 km, or 1½ miles, each way by the map.
- The path
- Village streets and a single-track road, then a path to the beach.
- Where to start
- A small car park on the High Street in Portnahaven.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. From November to March big swells break on this coast: keep back from the water. From November to January set off by 1pm. Every Islay ferry uses Port Askaig while Port Ellen's terminal is closed, until 2029. No ferry on 25 December or 1 January. Wind can stop the boat: look at CalMac's service status page on the morning you travel.
- Dogs
- Under close control, and well away from the seals.
- Children
- Seals to watch from the road; keep children back from the rocks in a swell.
- Toilets
- Public toilets in the village.
- Before you set out
- From November to March the Atlantic swell here can be enormous: stay well back from the rocks and the water's edge. Every Islay ferry uses Port Askaig while Port Ellen's terminal is closed, until 2029. No ferry on 25 December or 1 January. Wind can stop the boat: look at CalMac's service status page on the morning you travel.
The walk
Park in the village, where there's a small car park on the High Street. Start by walking round the bay itself. Seals lie on the rocks in the inlet, and they're curious animals that will often watch you back. Bigger groups haul out on Orsay, the island just offshore, below the Rhinns of Islay lighthouse, which was built in 1825. The village church was designed by Thomas Telford, and it has two doors because it serves Portnahaven and its neighbour Port Wemyss. For the walk, Currie Sands is a small sandy beach at Claddach, north-west up the coast. By the map it's about 2.3 km, or a mile and a half, each way on a single-track road and a path, so allow an hour and a half there and back with time on the sand.
The west coast here takes the full weight of the Atlantic, and from November to March the swell can be enormous, so stay well back from the rocks and the water's edge when the sea is up. Keep dogs under close control and well away from the seals. There are public toilets in the village. The village pub, An Tigh Seinnse on Queen Street, keeps its own hours in winter, so ring 01496 860725 before counting on lunch there, and bring food if in doubt. From November to January, set off by 1pm. Portnahaven is 22 miles from the ferry at Port Askaig, about 45 minutes' drive. Islay is reached on CalMac's car ferry from Kennacraig in Kintyre, a crossing of just under two hours.
Port Ellen's ferry terminal is closed for rebuilding until 2029, so every boat lands at Port Askaig, in the north-east of the island. Book the car on before you travel, and be at the pier 30 minutes before the boat sails. On the winter timetable, from 19 October 2026 to 25 March 2027, the first boat leaves Kennacraig at 7am, or at 10am on a Tuesday and a Sunday. The last boat off the island leaves Port Askaig at 5.25pm on a Monday and a Wednesday, 6.05pm on a Tuesday and a Friday, and 6pm on a Thursday, Saturday and Sunday. Until 18 October the summer timetable applies, so read the times on CalMac's Islay page. Wind can stop the boat: look at CalMac's service status page on the morning you travel.
If it rains
The seals are there in any weather and can be watched from the road round the bay, a few steps from the car. In rain or a gale stay in the village and leave Currie Sands, which is open to the Atlantic, for a calm day.
Before you go
Book the car onto CalMac's Kennacraig to Port Askaig ferry before you travel, out and back, and be at the pier 30 minutes before the boat.
For further reading, before you go.