One of my favorite experiences on the Isle of Skye was taking the ferry from Elgol to Loch Coruisk. There are so many amazing places in Skye (and in Scotland in general!) to explore, and it’s hard to see them all! But I knew I wanted to go on a boat trip during my trip to Skye. And after seeing a few photos of Loch Coruisk, I had made my mind up: I had to go!
Bella Jane Boat Trips
There are two different companies that offer ferry trips from Elgol. I booked with Bella Jane, and would absolutely recommend them. They do recommend booking in advance, as opposed to just showing up and buying a ticket on the day. That was a bit tricky as we barely had phone signal the day before! But eventually we got service and were able to get through to make our booking.
Bella Jane offer a few different options for the ferry to Loch Coruisk. One of the most popular is the “standard return trip,” which is 3 hours. It’s approximately 45 minutes from Elgol to Loch Coruisk, and then you have 1.5 hours at the lake itself. Then you can hope on the next ferry, which again takes roughly 45 minutes. This is the one that we did, and I really enjoyed it!
They also do a flexible return trip, to give yourself 3 hours, 4.5 hours, or 6.5 hours onshore. This would be enough time to walk around the lake (which is meant to take about 3 hours), or even more major walking! You can also book a “one way in” trip for walkers/climbers. The ferry brings you out, and then you can either walk back to Elgol, or onto another destination. You can also book a “one way out” trip, if you hike to Loch Coruisk and want to get the ferry to Elgol. There were two people on our ferry ride who were doing the “one way in”—they were planning to camp at Loch Coruisk that night, which would be amazing! While I didn’t do this, you can still check out all about the best wild camping spots on the Isle of Skye!
As they recommend booking in advance, I called the day before and had no issues getting a spot on the ferry at 10:45am! Doreen took our name and card details over the phone, so all we had to do when we got to Elgol the next morning was pop into the office, say hello, and get our receipt.
The Ferry Trip to Loch Coruisk
I was pretty worried about the weather going out to Loch Coruisk. It looks very miserable, misty, foggy, and it rained a bit on our journey out. But it was a spectacular experience getting closer and closer to the magnificent Cuillins in front of us! There were a lot of us on the ferry (it was completely full), including two very cute dogs. We also learned a lot about the other islands we could see (including Soay and Rum), which was so cool!
While the company don’t guarantee it, generally you can see seals on the way to the lake. We saw loads of them!!! They looked so cute and were just spread out across the rocks, having a great time and enjoying life.
The ferry journey isn’t particularly rough or scary at all. It took about 35 minutes actual sailing on the boat to get to the landing for Loch Coruisk. Luckily by the time we got to the landing, the clouds had parted and we were treated to some sunshine!
Exploring Loch Coruisk
Loch Coruisk is one of the most stunningly beautiful places I’ve ever seen. The color of the water is unreal. From the boat landing, you walk along a short river to the beginning of the lake. You can cross over on some stepping stones, which Adam did successfully!
We really just set out to walk along part of the lake until it was time to turn back. The views were amazing. There were other people both from our ferry and the previous one, but it felt so remote and peaceful. Maybe it was just something about only getting there by ferry or by walking!
One of the best parts about visiting Loch Coruisk is the chance to get up close and personal with the Cuillins (the mountain range in the southwest of Skye), without actually having to do major hikes or climbing! You have the most amazing view of the mountains from Loch Coruisk. If we had had more time, I would have wanted to walk the entire length of the lake. The path wasn’t always clear in places at the beginning (where we were walking), but it is essentially just a circular path around the lake. But even doing what we did and just getting out and exploring was amazing!
I don’t feel like photos can do Loch Coruisk justice. It was just stunning.
Back to Elgol
We got the ferry back that left around 1:25pm, and returned to Elgol around 1:50pm. You pre-order a hot drink on the way out, and then they’ll have it ready for whichever ferry you’re getting back! It was windy and blustery on board so definitely nice to have a hot chocolate included. There isn’t much to see in Elgol itself, but it’s a cute enough village with great views out to the other islands.
The Basics
A standard return trip with Bella Jane costs £28 for adults, £26 for students/over 60’s, and cheaper for children. We paid over the phone by card with no problems. As I said, they do recommend booking in advance (ferries can and will fill up during busy times), so try to call ahead to avoid any disappointment. You can view all the information on their website here.
There is very limited parking at Elgol. We arrived at around 10:00am for our 10:45am ferry, and there were barely any spaces left! I’d definitely recommend getting there in the morning if you can, just to snag a place to park. Elgol is about 14 miles from Broadford, on a very narrow single-track road. Be prepared to frequently use the passing places built into the road. There is no other road going to Elgol.
Accommodation on the Isle of Skye gets booked up months in advance. I recommend using Hostelworld to book hostels, and Booking.com for hotels! You can also sign up to and search accommodation on Airbnb here. There are no trains on the Isle of Skye, but if you are getting train tickets to Scotland I always book in advance on Trainline. The closest airport for Skye is Inverness—use Skyscanner to find the best deals. Considering travel insurance for your trip? World Nomads offers coverage for more than 150 adventure activities as well as emergency medical, lost luggage, trip cancellation and more.
Loch Coruisk was one of my favorite places I visited on the Isle of Skye! It was a beautiful, remote area, with a lot to explore. Taking the ferry from Elgol was a unique experience. I can’t recommend doing this trip enough! Give yourself half a day or a day to get out and see Loch Coruisk under the shadow of the Cuillins!
Have you visited this part of the Isle of Skye? Or gone on another ferry trip?!
Check out my other posts on Scotland:
The Best Wild Camping Spots On The Isle Of Skye
Alternative Isle Of Skye: 4 Ways To Avoid The Crowds
Staying In The Camasunary Bay Bothy On The Isle Of Skye
12 Tips For Planning Your Scottish Highlands Road Trip
All my Scotland posts!
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