Finlaggan – The Island Seat of the Lords of the Isles
About 0.8 miles on foot.
For two centuries the west coast of Scotland and the Hebrides were ruled from a small island in a quiet loch on Islay.
Finlaggan was the seat of the Lords of the Isles, and what's left of it is a ruined chapel, carved grave slabs and the footings of old halls on Eilean Mòr. It's a short, level walk across a field and a timber walkway to reach it, with the Paps of Jura on the skyline.
- Time
- About an hour: some 600 metres each way from the car park, on the level.
- The path
- A path across a farm field and a timber walkway to the island, then rough grass among the ruins.
- Where to start
- The Finlaggan Trust's car park beside the visitor centre, at the end of the farm road off the A846.
- When to go
- All year in daylight. The Trust's visitor centre is seasonal: from mid October ring 01496 840644 before counting on it. 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
- On a lead at all times; only guide dogs inside the visitor centre.
- Children
- A short, level walk; open water either side of the walkway.
- Toilets
- None when the visitor centre is shut.
- Before you set out
- The visitor centre is seasonal and isn't to be counted on from mid October: ring 01496 840644. The road in is a gravel farm road on a working farm. 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 at the Finlaggan Trust's car park beside its visitor centre, at the end of the farm road signed off the A846 between Ballygrant and Port Askaig. The last stretch is gravel and runs through a working farm, so expect animals on the road. From the car park it's about 600 metres to the island, some ten minutes each way, on a path through a farm field and then a timber walkway over the reeds. The Trust asks for a donation in the honesty box at the bridge. Eilean Mòr is the larger of the islands in the loch. In the 1300s and 1400s the Lords of the Isles ruled the Hebrides and much of the west coast from it, until the title was taken from them in 1493. You walk among the low walls of their buildings to the roofless chapel, where carved grave slabs lie under glass.
The smaller island just beyond is Eilean na Comhairle, the Council Island, where their council met. Dogs must be on a lead at all times. The visitor centre is seasonal and isn't to be counted on from mid October: ring 01496 840644 to ask. There are no toilets when it's shut. The Ballygrant Inn, in the next village south on the main road, serves lunch in its whisky bar. Ring 01496 840277 to check before relying on it. Finlaggan is three miles from the ferry at Port Askaig, about 10 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
It's a short walk with no shelter on the island, and the field path is muddy after rain. In a shower it's still only ten minutes each way, so go in waterproofs and boots.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
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.