Scotland has some of the prettiest white sand and blue water beaches you can imagine. If you are in Edinburgh for a short stay this summer or live here all year round, make the effort to explore our beautiful country. Here are At Home in Edinburgh’s top picks.
Achnahaird beach
The bay of Achnahaird is a rarely visited and peaceful place. Lying north of Ullapool, the beach is reached by a road two miles past Achiltibuie
Sands of Morar, West Higlands
If you have seen Local Hiro you will appreciate the cinematic quality of these starched white beach. There is little else to do here but light up a campfire and blown away by a Hebridean sunset. It´s one of the best beaches for camping. To get there from Forth William you would need to go by car or a camper van for the 40 mile or one hour drive aprox.
Sandwood Bay, North Highlands
This is one of Scotland’s hidden beaches, some people living nearby don’t even know about it. Sandalwood has no public transport near by and no car park at the beach. The way to get to Sandwood Bay would be by driving or cycling from the crofting hamlet of Blairmore. This is one of the points that make this beach so attractive!
Luskentyre, Isle of Harris
The beaches of Harris are frankly breathtaking, if they were in the Caribbean they would be packed with hotels and tourists. In addition to this, Luskentyre boasts great views of the mountains of North Harris and the isle of Taransay. To get here, there are ferries to Harris from the Isle of Skye and the Isle of Berneray. You will also need a car to get to Harris, it’s a 17 mile drive to Luskentyre from the ferry port at Tarbert.
Uig, Lewis
Uig is a remote region of Lewis, lying 20 odd miles west of Stornaway on the Island´s of Atlantic North. The landscape here is more dramatic than in the rest of Lewis with a combination of myriad islets, wild cliff scenery and golden sand. The area extends from Brenish in the west to Lochganvich in the east. This beach is famous for being the site where the Lewis Chessmen, 12th century Viking pieces were found. This beach its 35 mile (50 minutes) drive west drive across the island to Uig.
St Ninians, Shetland
This beach looks like taken from a James bond film. The wide beach by the mainland narrows dramatically as it pushes out towards the point where it meets with St Ninian’s Isle. In summer you might well be sharing the sands with cute puffins. To get here you can fly into Sumburgh on the Shetland from where you will need to hire a car or a bike to cover the 10 miles( 20 minutes) to the beach.
Calgary bay
Calgary bay is located on the north west of Mull about 5 miles beyond Dervaig and 12 miles from the island’s capital Tobermory. The sand here is white and it creates an idyllic scene framed by the blue atlantic and the Scottish hills. The island capital of Tobermory is a picture-perfect place where the waterfront is lined with pastel-coloured houses and boutique shops. There is a distillery and a sea food restaurant too.