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Town in Argyll and Bute, Scotland
Photo: Thomas Nugent, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Dunoon is the ferry port and only town on the Cowal peninsula, in Argyll and Bute in the Scottish Highlands. It's 30 miles (48 km) from Glasgow yet cut off by Loch Long to the east and Loch Fyne to the west. The peninsula is broken up by the inlets of Loch Goil, Holy Loch and Loch Striven, so the roads have to wind around. A narrow channel separates Cowal from the island of Bute. The area is hilly, containing the "Arrochar Alps" or Argyll Forest, the western portion of Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park. In 2020 the population of Dunoon was 7660.
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120-acre estate managed by the Royal Botanic Gardens of Edinburgh, you enter through a towering avenue of 150-year-old redwoods. RBGE have placed many of their Chinese and Himalayan collections here, where the climate suits, and the rhododendrons are rampant in early summer. Wear sturdy shoes.
You buy a booklet online for £10, it sets you a murder mystery that takes you walking round Dunoon while solving clues.
Bar, grill and pizzeria in retro-America diner style.
B&B with great views of Holy Loch and a family-run feel, welcoming and comfy. It remains closed in 2023.
This has static caravans (no tourer pitches), self-catering lodges and leisure and entertainment facilities. Open all year, min stay 2 nights, dog-friendly.
Friendly hotel in a charming old building, built in 1856 in mock-Tudor.
Overlooking the pier, decent enough mid-range hotel with 33 rooms. Sometimes noisy from nearby pubs.
Dated but clean and friendly.
Pleasant small hotel in a quiet spot south edge of town.
Traditional drovers' inn with rooms and restaurant, great reviews.
Grand little inn on Loch Fyne, great food, dog-friendly. Open all year.
By car
The car ferry to Hunters Quay is the quickest way, see above. But you can do it all by road, to create a circular itinerary, or if the weather's rough and the ferry is likely to be cancelled.
By bus
West Coast Motors run several services to Dunoon from Tignabruich, Inveraray and other nearby villages. See the timetables on Argyll & Bute Council's website.
You really need a vehicle or to be a keen cyclist. Buses are sporadic M-Sa and there's nothing on Sunday.
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