Accommodation recommendations on West Highland Way?

[walkerjohn]

Hi,

Was looking at some accom on the internet after getting the Rucksack readers guidebook. Some of them look OK but some look really very poor!?

Has anyone got any recommendations or is there not much choice?

John

[sue k]

Hi John
A bit late in replying to you, but the best place we stayed at when walking WHW in 2005, was the Blackwaterfoot Hostel in Kinlochleven. A very comfortable and warm stay, and despite being totally soaked to the skin (literally) we managed to get everything dry by morning, in the superb drying facility.
Happy walking, sue k

[Louise]

Hi John,

We were very lucky to get a stay at the Kings House Hotel, expensive but comfortable! It is situated right on the WHW and what a views!
Also I can recommend te WHW-sleeper right on the station of Bridge of Orchy, Bunk beds but ver nice and special.
We made our choises for the accomodation that it was near the track, cause after a day walking any detour has to be avoided!
At Fort William the final is great in the Hostel right next door to the Ben Nevis. When you have time and breath left you can get up to the top, must be quite an experience.
We didn't, saved it for some other time.
As we are from Holland, I had to arrange evertything by Internet. We made the reservations quite early  (january for the walk in May!). This is really to be reccommended as there are indeed not so much places to stay next to the WHW and the route is very popular.

Have a good time!, Louise 

[jimmystep]

I did the WHW last year (May 2006) and stayed at the following place;

The Oak Tree Inn, Balmaha, in the bunkhouse. Good accommodation
Beinnglas Farm Campsite, in one of the Chalets. Excellent, luxurious accommodation!
Bridge of Orchy, in the bunkhouse. Iffy accommodation (smelliest Drying room ever!)
Blackwaterfoot Hostel, Kinlochleven, in the bunhouse. Good accommodation, great drying room!

We are planning on doing it again this year but taking an extra day so we can spend some time in the pub! I’d use the bunkhouse at the Bridge of Orchy again but my mate wouldn’t so he can book into the hotel!

Cheers...Jimmy

[fortypockets]

Hi,
We spent far too long doing the walk - 8 days- but we had to squeeeeeze in some world cup football and some serious whisky tasting..oh, and enjoying the most fanatstic and varied scenery.
Can't remember  all the details (alcohol) but
night 1 - Drymen - a  B&B opposite the Thai restaurant - I think it's name began with E - it was OK
night 2 - a B&B in Rowardennan with a caravan too ! no details, sorry
night 3 - wigwams at Inverarnan - midgies won easily, great pub 1 mile away. Table tennis in the shed.
night 4 - a lovely night in a B&B on the left just as you come into Tyndrum from the South.
night 5 - short walk to the Bridge of Orchy Bunkhouse - we had no problems there but our sense of smell may have been deadened by then...Highlights were standing on the bridge and being asked by some New World visitors " so how far's the bridge ?"  My Irish mate bought me the most expensive glass of whisky I've ever had  - £11 a shot - just to prove that Irish whiskey was better. Still not convinced !
night 6 - What can I say? - best night ever, Kingshouse Hotel with a million walkers from every nation under the sun; fell in love with 2 Swedish birds (turned out they came from Bristol), sufficiently lubricated that the Devil's Stairscase  the next day seemed no worse than Everest. Fantastic views of The Buckle - glorious sunshine when we arrived & glowering cloud the next morning. I would say that shortening your days walking by doing Bridge of Orchy to Kinlochleven in one go might leave you tired: apologies to those that think it's an easy stroll, but we don't all have long legs and boundless enthusiasm and we like time to enjoy the views.
night 7 - Kinlochleven - good B&B (sorry can't remember name, up hill on the south bank of the loch), deer grazing on the lawn when we got back from the Tailrace pub in the early hours.
night 8 - Fort William - we stayed at the Bank Street Lodge - basic but no problems. FW is geared for tourists, plenty of options. Good enough for us to return when we did the Great Glen Way, station bar open @ 8:00 am for those catching the early train back to Glasgae.

Goodnight the noo!

Fortypockets

[RoyHayward]

My colleagues George, Brian and I started to walk the WHW in May 2006 and used one of the accommodation booking services ( in our case easyways ) to pre-book B&B's/Hotels for us together with baggage transfer services. We had planned out what we wanted to do and see over 7 walking days using the Rucksack guide and also the photos on the www.jbutler.org.uk web site.
Started off with a great laugh with lovely landlady Morag at the West View Guest House in Milngavie. Then an excellent B&B in Drymen for our first walking night -- the Hawthorns ( the 'auld doctor's hoose' ) within falling distance of the Clachan Inn and with great footballing stories from our host Hugh Gallacher. Great support from Hugh here when Brian was forced to return home following a sudden family bereavement. George and I moved on to the Rowardennan Hotel, a good well-documented hotel directly on the WHW, for our next overnight. Then to Inverarnan where we stayed and enjoyed great hospitality at the Rose Cottage B&B within a hundred metres or so of the Drover's Inn -- careful planning ? On to Tyndrum where we were booked in at the Invervey Hotel ideally situated on the main street some 100 metres or so again from the WHW. If we stay in hotels we have tended to eat out but here we were more than happy to avail ourselves of a hotel meal and their bar facilities. Next to the excellent Kingshouse Hotel. Check out its web site www.kingy.com with its webcam with 2-hourly updates of its surroundings especially Buchaille Etive Mhor. It does benefit from being isolated and as such has a captive walking audience but has great hospitality and atmosphere and is likely to be very busy. Then onto Kinlochleven where we stayed at Edencoille, a really welcoming and homely B&B a short distance off the WHW. They are renouned for their breakfast and it certainly defeated me - there was enough on the table for an army. We tried our best but made little impression on the feast - and then wished we hadn't on the climb out of Kinlochleven up onto the old military road. Friends we had made earlier on the walk stayed at the Tailrace Inn -directly on the walk. We spent an excellent evening having a meal and drinking in the bar with them. Finally onto Fort William where we stayed at the Dalkeith Guest House. Ideally situated on the main but quiet road especially having to catch the early morning train back to Milngavie. Too early for breakfast but packed breakfast provided instead.
The useful point to note is that most accommodation has it's own web site these days or is promoted on walk web sites.
Lengthy but hopefully of use.
Roy.

[grbree]

My wife and I started the WHW in June 2006 and continued on the Great Glen Way immediately after, spreading the days walking to fill our holidays.There is little in the way of accommodation on the latter Way and the following list took some organising. We travelled to Milngavie by car and was able to leave the car at our first night's accommodation for the whole time we were walking and pick it up on our return by coach from Inverness. This was The Burnbrae Inn at Bearsden, about 1 mile from the start of the Way. (There's a Premier Travel Inn in front of it with an Olde Worlde pub doing fine evening meals.)

Our accommodation list follows and phone numbers and addresses can be supplied if required: The Hawthorns, Drymen. The Rowardennan Hotel . Beinglas Farm (wigwams,campsite and chalets). The Invervey Hotel, Tyndrum. The Bridge of Orchy Hotel. The Kings House,Glen Coe. The Tailrace Inn, Kinlochleven. The Glenlochy Guest House, Nevis Bridge, Fort William. For accommodation on The Great Glen Way see appropriate heading. G R B.

[davem]

I walked the Way about three years ago. My accommodation was:

Northwood Cottage, Sallochy excellent b&b gave us a lift back from the pub and took us to rejoin the path in the morning where we had finished the night before. Lovely hot bath if i remember correctly 

Inverarnan  I cannot trace the b&b so it may have closed

Bridge of Orchy  Bridge of Orchy hotel wooden huts. This was run down and pretentious. The wooden huts were cold and damp and the drying facilites very poor. The food was weird - who likes lavender gravy? Pie and mash is what walkers want!

Kingshouse   The hotel where else would you want to stay? Excellent accommodation, pleasant and knowledgeable staff and great food. The red deer show on the lawn was fantastic

Kinlochleven  McDonald Hotel  Formal but pleasant and comfotable. No boots in the bar! Still they have a range of accomodation to suit all pockets.

There you have it: a great walk, a wet week, good friends to accompany you and some really good accommodation. What more could you ask for?

Dave