West Highland Line
Photo: Alan Mitchell, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons
The West Highland Line is a railway in Scotland running from Glasgow to Fort William and Mallaig, with a branch to Oban. It's rated one of the most scenic railways in the world, but is a practical everyday route for passengers and freight. It's a lifeline not only for communities along it but for Hebridean islands connected by ferry to the terminuses, as indicated by its Gaelic name Rathad Iarainn nan Eilean - "Iron Road to the Isles".
UnderstandIn the mid-19th century, a frenzy of railway expansion reached all the cities of Scotland, even Inverness, but the northwest remained blank on the map.
PrepareThe train is the easy bit. Timetables, fares and discounts are described on the National Rail website, which directs you to the multiple train operators to buy your ticket.
Get inGlasgow is the start of the West Highland Line, and the usual springboard for exploring it.
GoThe full route from Glasgow takes 5½ hours to Mallaig or 3 hours to Oban, diverging at Crianlarich.
Sources and licences
- Guide text adapted from the Wikivoyage article "West Highland Line" by its contributors, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read on Wikivoyage · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo: Alan Mitchell, CC BY-SA 2.0 via Wikimedia Commons