How to get to the Isle of Lewis – All you need to know.

The Isle of Lewis is the most northerly of Scotland’s Outer Hebrides and therefore the most northwesterly point in the UK. Its fusion of stunning scenery, beautiful beaches, wildlife and history gives this island a truly magical feel.

The Isle of Lewis occupies the same land mass as the Isle of Harris, even though they are considered two different isles. They are in fact, distinctly different, with their own identity and differing landscapes.

Lewis is larger and more barren, yet home to the capital, Stornoway with its ferry port and the island’s only airport. Harris, meanwhile, boasts impressive mountains, cliff formations and lochs and is home to the famous Harris Tweed and the ferry port of Tarbert.

Travelling to the Isle of Lewis by Ferry

Our one top tip when it comes to travelling to Lewis is to book your ferry early! Sailings are limited and fill up quickly in the tourist season, so don’t leave this til the last minute.

There are two ferry ports that you can choose from, depending on where on the island you are staying.

Ullapool – Stornoway

Stornoway is the main port when travelling to the Isle of Lewis and the crossing from Ullapool on the mainland is two and a half hours. The ferry itself has a cafe, plenty of seating ,a small shop, a new observation room and an outside deck. If you’re lucky, you might just spot some dolphins, whales or other sea life en route. So get a seat by the window and keep your eyes peeled!

Tarbert- Uig

Another option is the ferry to Tarbert on the Isle of Harris. You can travel here from Uig, on the Isle of Skye, which itself is connected to the mainland by the Skye Bridge. This sailing is one hour and forty minutes and the ferry is slightly smaller than the Ullapool-Stornoway route. Since this crossing is shorter, this route is also slightly cheaper.

We did both crossings. Ullapool – Stornoway on the way out, and Tarbert – Uig on the way home.

If you have enough time and want to see all the islands in the Outer Hebrides, book a ‘Hopscotch’ ticket. This allows you to island hop around the Outer Hebrides, and take a trip to Uist and/or Barra, and there are also tickets which include the Inner Hebrides in these routes.

Check out Calmac ferries here for all sailing options.

Can you fly to the Isle of Lewis?

Stornoway Airport is connected to the mainland with direct flights to Glasgow, Edinburgh (both one hour) and Inverness (30 minutes). For those looking to island hop, you can also fly to Benbecula on Uist, or to Barra. Barra is the world’s only airport which uses the beach as its runway for scheduled flights. This is definitely on our bucket list! Check out Logan Air here for prices and availability.

How do I get around the Isle of Lewis?

Your own wheels are a must. The island is vast and the roads are small, so in order to get out exploring all the amazing places here, you really do need your own transport. Not a problem if you’re driving here from the mainland, but something to consider if you are flying into Stornoway. Car hire is available at several sites in Stornoway.

To give you a scale of time, it takes over two hours to drive from the top of Lewis to the bottom of Harris. There are many single track roads with passing places, but the breathtaking scenery will keep you occupied en route. And once you get into the island way of life, you won’t want to be rushing anywhere, anyway.

Family Rhino’s Route to the Isle of Lewis

Outbound trip : 3 days plus 1 day for ferry crossing.

We drove our campervan from South Wales to Ullapool for the crossing to Stornoway. Travelling with kids, we decided to break up the journey into three days and made sure the ipad was fully charged and films were downloaded before we set off. We also had a fully stocked picnic to avoid queuing at the services and snacks to keep the kids going.

Day 1 – Swansea to Tebay Services

Google Maps showed that the fastest route North that morning was along the A470 and through Wales, avoiding the M5/M6 stop start traffic. This was a scenic drive and despite the hills and winding bends, it was traffic free. We stopped overnight at Tebay Services, just off the M6. The advantage to this being that no time was wasted driving half an hour off the motorway to reach our pitch and I have to say, Tebay Services exceeded all our expectations.

For £22, we parked up in the caravan park in Tebay North, with access to toilets and showers, all services including water and EHU and slept soundly amongst the pine trees. You would never know that you are right next to the motorway when you wake to the sounds of the birds in the trees. The services themselves have a fantastically well stocked Farmshop, beautiful views over the hills and a kitchen serving home cooked meals. Kids eat for £1 with every adult meal purchased after 11:30am. An all round winner!

Drive time was 6 hours 15 minutes (including a services stop) distance travelled 275 miles.

Day 2 – Tebay Services to Fort William

This drive was about 250 miles, not that it felt like it with the spectacular scenery driving through the Scottish Highlands. We stopped at a second Farmshop services in Cairn Lodge for a Scottish breakfast of champions to fuel the drive. The girls loved the wooden play room in the dining area, where they could stretch out before continuing the trip.

The scenery was so spectacular, we had to stop many times en route to marvel at the beauty of the mountains and peaceful lochs. As we arrived in Fort William, we stopped to pick up a few supplies in the shops and take a look around this charming town.

For our one night here, we stayed at Linnhe Lochside Campsite, where we pitched our awning and settled in for the night. This was a great campsite with a play area overlooking the sea for the kids and electric hook up to get the devices charged up for the next and final day. It took most of the day to get there, estimated drive time 6/7 hours but with multiple stops en route to take in the sights of Loch Lomond, Loch Ness and Loch Lochie, as well as Fort William.

Day 3 – Fort William to Ullapool

This should have been the shortest day of travelling but when we saw the Jacobite Steam Train pass our campsite, we knew we needed to stay around longer to get a better view. The famous scene from Harry Potter where the Hogwarts Express crosses the viaduct was just minutes from our campsite so we stayed around to catch a glimpse of it. And it was worth it, plus we actually caught it twice.

Once up close passing Beasdale station and once at the Glenfinnan Viaduct. It was spectacular, and even more magical for our little Harry Potter fans.

After a few hours of train spotting, we set off for our final leg of the journey to Ullapool, 140 miles and three and a half hours. We pulled up in the evening at Broomfield Holiday Park which was pretty basic but had everything we needed – EHU, toilets and showers. Ullapool was busy with many restaurants closed on the Monday, so we struggled to find somewhere to eat. There is a Tesco just around the corner from the campsite, where we picked up some croissants the next morning before our crossing to Stornoway.

Despite the hefty mileage of the journey to the Isle of Lewis, it really was a pleasant trip. I would urge you not to be put off by the distance – it is worth it. Just get prepared and enjoy the ride!

Return Trip

2 days including ferry crossing.

Day 1 – Uig – Blair Drummond

Our return trip was Tarbert – Uig and we parked up in the van overnight near the ferry terminal and caught the 07:20 crossing with a full day’s driving ahead. It takes about an hour to drive through Skye and cross the Skye Bridge, but we stopped after spotting three golden eagles en route to get a better view. We had a full day of driving from Skye to Blair Drummond Holiday Park, which was a beautiful site to spend the night.

There is a great playground with zip wire (and our pitch was right next to it) and the best showers I’ve ever had on a campsite. It was a tough drive after the early start for the ferry and the twists and turns of the Highlands.

240 miles, 5 hours drive time but with many stops along the way.

Day 2 – Blair Drummond to South Wales

We travelled from Blair Drummond to Swansea in one straight drive, with only one short stop en route. Packed up with a picnic for the drive and new films on download, we were all ready for the final leg of the trip. With zero traffic we drove the whole route with only one short stop. 450 miles in 7 hours of drive time.

Top Tips for travelling to the Outer Hebrides (road trip).

1. Book your crossing asap.
2. Get prepared for the journey (entertainment for the little ones/big ones, food and drinks to last the route).
3. Break it up. Don’t overdo the drive, you’ll just arrive exhausted and that’ll take the shine off the trip.
4. Allow time to stop and take in the spectacular sights of Scotland en route.
5. Fill up with fuel before the prices hike! We noticed a 30p/litre difference in fuel as we drove through the popular tourists spots of the Highlands and lochs. Fuel on the Outer Hebrides was roughly the same as here in Wales.

That’s it. It’s really not as much of a mountain as it seems, and the drive is absolutely worth it when you get there.

If this blog has whet your appetite for a Hebridean adventure, check out my related blog post Best Places to explore on the Isle of Lewis.