TravelinSperry

Hello all,

Trying to decide how best to get to Skye from Oban.

I have a rental car. Will be departing Oban and self-driving to Skye in August. I will be staying in Dunvegan on Skye.

Options according to Google appear to be either

(i) to drive through Glencoe, Ft William, and Glenfinnan towards Mallaig and the ferry crossing (87 miles, google estimates 2h 7m).

(ii) Alternatively I could avoid the ferry by passing Ft William and going via Invergarry using A87. This gets me to Kyle of Locash (close to the bridge) in 118 miles or 2h 46m.

First I realize the google drive time estimates are absurd. People say you should double them as I want to stop and see the sights, take pictures, allow for mother nature, have a snack, etc.

Since I will be heading to Inverness after Skye, I will essentially be returning via option (ii) above so I much prefer option (i). However, having a reserved Ferry does put me in a bit of a 'stressed' environment. Now while I want to see sights, I have a deadline I must meet, arriving the Ferry at least 30 minutes prior (and likely an hour just to be safe). So... assuming I did want to do option (i), what time would I need to leave to be able to Glencoe, and Glenfinnan properly and still make my ferry? There is a 1330 ferry - that seems to give me a good amount of time assuming I leave at 8:30am. There is also a Noon Ferry if I am giving myself too little time.

Finally, if one misses a Ferry, I assume they are all sold out in August, yes? So what are the options then? Drive all the way back and around to the bridge?

rcspeirs

Option 1. You don't drive through GlenCoe. You'll pass close to GlenCoe village but not the Glen itself. If you want to see that, you'll need to head up the A82 towards Crianlarich then backtrack. GlenCoe is utterly spectacular, but on the other hand you'll see loads and loads of other spectacular scenery on this trip, so I would not fret about skipping it.
The ferry. August is peak time, so some will be full. If you're doing this on a weekend day, odds are the ferries will be choc a block. If it's (say) a Tuesday, there's a decent chance there'll be spare spaces on sailings.
The Google driving time could be achievable by a confident driver who knows the road in a sports car..... In real life, assume three hours plus time for stops.

TravelinSperry

Thank you!

I realize I can see the Glen on the ride up from Glasgow to Oban so it will not impact me on the way from Oban to Mallaig to catch the ferry. That is nice since I can now have less worry about the time.

You say it takes 3 hours from Oban to Mallaig. So, if I were to leave Oban at 8am, I could catch the Noon Ferry. Or if later the 1:30pm Ferry. It is mid-week (Wednesday). I wonder how far in advance does one need to pre-book the ferry? I won't be renting my car until Monday (2 days prior). The ferry website asks for the exact model of car (which I don't have). I will have the car type however and can enter that.

HIDDY

We did a similar trip a few years ago only in reverse.....we arrived to Skye via the bridge and left by ferry to Mallaig. I wouldn't normally go that route but I wanted my wife to see that part of the country...I'd seen it many times before.
As it was in May we didn't need to book the ferry in advance so were able to turn up at Armadale and get on the next departure. For peace of mind I'd book a later ferry, this will give you more time to stop off along the way which is what a holiday is all about. The tickets are pretty flexible anyway so if you turn up at the ferry port early you can take an earlier ferry if there's room.
As for model of car, I wouldn't worry about that.

rcspeirs

Just put "rental" down as the car type, they're used to that.