Attractions in North Coast 500

26 places from our North Coast 500 guide, from Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats to Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt. Each links to its area guide and, where we have one, its official site.

Saved on this device only.

Attractions

Attractions in North Coast 500

26 places

An Teallach, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Mountain

An Teallach

Torridonian sandstone mountain group south of Little Loch Broom; its highest top, Bidean a' Ghlas Thuill, reaches 1,062 m.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Ardvreck Castle, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntCastle
Ruined castle

Ardvreck Castle

Ruin on a rocky promontory in Loch Assynt, dating from about 1490 and linked to the Macleods of Assynt.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Balnakeil Bay and church, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsCathedral or church
Beach and ruined church

Balnakeil Bay and church

Wide bay at the mouth of the Kyle of Durness beside the ruined Balnakeil Church, a scheduled monument.

Outdoor
  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Castle of Mey, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsCastle
Castle and gardens

Castle of Mey

Former home of Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother, about 6 miles west of John o' Groats, with gardens and a visitor centre.

Outdoor
  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Castle Sinclair Girnigoe, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsCastle
Ruined castle

Castle Sinclair Girnigoe

Ruins of two castles, 15th-century Girnigoe and 17th-century Sinclair, on the cliffs about 3 miles north of Wick.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Castle Varrich, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsCastle
Ruined castle

Castle Varrich

Ruin on a rocky high point above Tongue and the Kyle of Tongue, linked with the chiefs of Clan Mackay.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Ceannabeinne, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsPark or nature
Beach and ruined township

Ceannabeinne

Ruined township east of Durness, beside a sandy beach looking out to Eilean Hoan.

Outdoor
  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Corrieshalloch Gorge, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Gorge and waterfall

Corrieshalloch Gorge

Gorge about 60 m deep where the 46 m Falls of Measach are seen from a Victorian suspension bridge; National Trust for Scotland.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Duncansby Head, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsPark or nature
Headland and lighthouse

Duncansby Head

Most north-easterly point of the British mainland, between the Pentland Firth and the Moray Firth, with a lighthouse.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Dunnet Head, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsPark or nature
Headland and lighthouse

Dunnet Head

Peninsula ending at Easter Head, the northernmost point of the island of Great Britain, with a lighthouse.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Holborn Head, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsPark or nature
Headland and lighthouse

Holborn Head

Headland west of Thurso Bay with a promontory fort and a Stevenson lighthouse completed in 1862; a footpath circles it.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Inverewe Garden, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntGarden
Garden

Inverewe Garden

Garden created from 1862 by Osgood Mackenzie on the shore north of Poolewe, now cared for by the National Trust for Scotland.

Outdoor
  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Isle Martin, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Island

Isle Martin

Uninhabited island in Loch Broom, once a monastery site, herring curing station and flour mill, now owned by a community trust.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
John o' Groats, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsOther sight
Village and signpost

John o' Groats

Village on the north-east tip of Scotland with the signpost; a summer passenger ferry crosses to Burwick in Orkney.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Knockan Crag, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Nature reserve and geology trail

Knockan Crag

Crag in the North West Highlands Geopark where older Moine schists sit above younger rocks, the subject of the 19th-century Highlands Controversy.

Outdoor
  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Loch Eriboll, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsPark or nature
Sea loch

Loch Eriboll

Sea loch about 16 km long, long used as a sheltered anchorage, with 19th-century lime kilns at Ard Neakie.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Pulteney Distillery, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsOther sight
Distillery

Pulteney Distillery

Distillery in the Pulteneytown area of Wick that makes Old Pulteney single malt and has a visitor centre on Huddart Street.

Indoor
  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Smoo Cave, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsOther sight
Cave

Smoo Cave

Large combined sea cave and freshwater cave at Durness, fed by the Allt Smoo stream; guided tours run in season.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Stac Pollaidh, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Mountain

Stac Pollaidh

Rocky Torridonian sandstone peak just over 610 m high, popular because the path starts from the road.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Strathnaver Museum, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsMuseum
Museum

Strathnaver Museum

Volunteer-run museum in Bettyhill, open since 1976, telling the story of north-west Sutherland through the Highland Clearances.

Indoor
  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Suilven, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Mountain

Suilven

Steep-sided ridge about two kilometres long rising from the moorland and lochans of Assynt, east of Lochinver.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Summer Isles, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntPark or nature
Islands

Summer Isles

Archipelago at the mouth of Loch Broom, seen from the Coigach coast around Achiltibuie and Altandhu.

  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Ullapool harbour and Loch Broom, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntOther sight
Harbour

Ullapool harbour and Loch Broom

Deep natural harbour on Loch Broom used by the Stornoway ferry, fishing boats, leisure craft and cruise ships.

Outdoor
  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Ullapool Museum, Ullapool, Coigach & AssyntMuseum
Museum

Ullapool Museum

Local museum on West Argyle Street covering fishing, maritime history, Gaelic culture and everyday life in Ullapool. It opens seasonally.

Indoor
  • Ullapool, Coigach & Assynt, North Coast 500
In our guideOfficial siteDirections
Whaligoe Steps, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsOther sight
Historic harbour steps

Whaligoe Steps

About 330 steps cut down the cliff to a tiny harbour, which held 14 herring boats by 1814.

  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections
Wolfburn Distillery, Durness, Thurso & John o' GroatsOther sight
Distillery

Wolfburn Distillery

Single malt whisky distillery on the edge of Thurso, opened in 2013 and named after a distillery that closed in the 1860s.

Indoor
  • Durness, Thurso & John o' Groats, North Coast 500
In our guideDirections

By area

Things to do by area in North Coast 500

Each link opens the area guide with the full descriptions, photos and directions.

More about North Coast 500: the North Coast 500 guide, free things to do and UK museums and galleries.

Other destinations

How the flags work

What we show, and what we leave out

Every flag below comes from a source you can open. Where we hold no report, the list says "not stated" or shows nothing: it does not guess. Check the venue before you travel, because prices, hours and booking rules change.

  • Type. Our own grouping of each place's kind in our destination guides (for example museum, castle or garden). It is a filter, not a rating.
  • Entry (free or paid). Shown only where the venue's own website says so in plain words, read on 25 Oct 2026. 0 places here are marked free and 0 paid; the other 26 are not stated. "Free" means general admission: special exhibitions, events and facilities can still be charged. The words we relied on are on the sources page.
  • Booking. We have not yet read a venue page that advises booking for these places, so there is no booking filter. Check each official site.
  • Step-free. Reported status only, from OpenStreetMap contributors or the venue's own access page: 0 places have a step-free or partly step-free report. The step-free filter hides places with no report; that does not mean they are not accessible. Contact the venue.
  • Indoor or outdoor. Our rules for the kind of place (4 indoor, 0 partly covered, 6 outdoor; the rest are not classed). It says nothing about opening hours or shelter on the day.
  • Family-friendly. Places marked family-friendly in our guides (0 so far).
  • Nearest to me. Straight-line distance from the position your device reports when you choose it. The position stays in your browser.
  • Saved on this device. Places you have saved with the heart. They are kept in this browser only, and appear in My trip.

Sources

  1. Our destination guides: the places, descriptions and positions come from their "Things to do" pages, which link each venue's official site.
  2. Venue websites, read on 25 Oct 2026 for free-entry, admission-price and booking wording. Each flag and the words behind it: flag sources.
  3. OpenStreetMap contributors (opens in new tab), for reported step-free tags.
  4. Our free things guide, which lists places whose own websites say entry is free.