Scotland by Boat and Bike: Inner Hebrides and the Isle of Mull

Day 1 — Oban, embarkation (no cycling)
Make your own way to Edinburgh or Glasgow, then train or bus to Oban. A group transfer from Edinburgh is available at extra cost: it leaves the city centre at 3.30 pm and the airport at 4 pm. Cabins are ready at 6 pm and you can leave luggage on board earlier. Dinner is late, so everyone meets the crew and the guides at the table. Dinner on board.

Day 2 — Oban to Toberonochy, then sail to Crinan. 36 km
You set up your bike after breakfast and ride south out of Oban, over hills and past a small highland loch back to the water. You cross the island of Seil, then take a short ferry to Luing, one of the Slate Islands. Mining its grey, glistening slate played an important economic role until the mid-20th century; the University of Glasgow is largely built from slate from this small island. The ship picks you up at the Toberonochy pier and sails to Crinan for the night. Breakfast and dinner.

Day 3 — Crinan to Kilmartin and back. 37 km
A ride from Crinan to the excavation site of Kilmartin, where stone circles reminiscent of Stonehenge and prehistoric burial mounds mark the wide landscape. After the museum grounds and lunch at the museum cafe, you ride back to Crinan. The ship then sails past the Kintyre peninsula to the island of Jura. Breakfast and lunch.

Day 4 — Isle of Jura, then sail to Mull. 27 km
You cycle north on Jura. George Orwell spent the last three years of his life here and called it an extremely un-get-at-able place; the quiet is only occasionally disturbed by one of the more than 5,000 deer that live on the island. You pass the Paps of Jura and meet the ship at a small pier. On the way to Mull you cross the Corryvreckan, one of the largest whirlpools in the world. The crew takes the ship safely to a quiet bay on Mull for the night. Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 5 — Isle of Mull: Loch Spelve to Salen. 52 km
The longest ride of the week, dedicated to the natural beauty of Scotland: hilly ground and a coast road with another view behind every bend. After the junction for Iona the traffic disappears and you share the tarmac with sheep and shaggy highland cattle. The route follows Loch na Keal to Salen, where the ship waits in the quiet harbour for the evening and the sunset. Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

Day 6 — Isle of Mull: Salen to Tobermory. 50 km
A climb through the north of Mull, a tea room at the top, then on to Calgary Bay, a brilliant white beach with crystal-clear water, considered one of the most beautiful in Scotland, and a swim if you want one. A few more rises before Tobermory, the main town, with its colourful facades. In the evening a visit to a typical Scottish pub is high on the agenda, with fish and chips or haggis. Breakfast and dinner.

Day 7 — Tobermory to Glengorm and back, then sail to Oban. 19 km
A short ride out to Glengorm Castle, a 19th-century manor in the northern outskirts of Mull, with its tea rooms, and back to Tobermory. The ship then sails to Oban for the last night. There is time before dinner for a stroll through Oban and a visit to McCaig's Tower, an incomplete replica of the Colosseum in Rome. Breakfast and dinner.

Day 8 — Oban, disembarkation (no cycling)
Breakfast on board, then your own way home from Oban, or the group transfer to Edinburgh airport at extra cost.

About the meals: the cook is part of the crew and makes breakfast plus one hot meal a day. Catering runs from dinner on day 1 to breakfast on day 8. The meals are adapted to the travel conditions: there is no warm meal on board on the sixth day, but two warm meals on board on the fourth. Bed linen and towels are on board.

About the route: the itinerary can change with wind and weather conditions or organisational requirements.