English (UK)
English (US)
Français
Deutsch
Español
Italiano
Nederlands
简体中文
Château
Rothesay Castle
Moated castle of the Stewart kings with Scotland's only circular curtain wall; the great hall has displays.
Un mini-guide de
Rothesay and the island
Rothesay Castle, the Victorian toilets, Mount Stuart and the beaches of the west coast
Photos
1 / 7Bienvenue dans le quartier
Rothesay Castle, the Victorian toilets, Mount Stuart and the beaches of the west coast
Rothesay, the island's main town, wraps around its harbour, where the ferry from Wemyss Bay arrives after 35 minutes. In the town are Rothesay Castle, with Scotland's only circular curtain wall and a moat, and the Victorian toilets on the west pier, opened in 1900 and now a listed attraction. The Town Hall and Sheriff Court stand beside the castle.
South of the town, Mount Stuart, designed by Robert Rowand Anderson for the 3rd Marquess of Bute, opens for a summer season. At the southern tip are St Blane's Church, on a monastery site of the 500s, and the vitrified fort of Dunagoil. The west coast has the sands of Ettrick and Scalpsie bays, and the West Island Way crosses the whole island.
Points forts
Par où commencer
Si vous n'avez que quelques heures, voici de bons endroits pour commencer.
Bâtiment classé
Victorian Toilets
Public toilets on the west pier, opened in 1900 and renovated in 1994; now a listed tourist attraction.
Musée
Bute Museum
Museum of the Bute Museum and Natural History Society on the archaeology, history and wildlife of Bute; shorter winter opening from October.
Country house and gardens
Mount Stuart
Gothic Revival home of the Marquesses of Bute, designed by Robert Rowand Anderson in the late 1870s; seasonal opening.
Église en ruine
St Blane's Church
Remains of a monastery founded in the 500s and a 12th-century parish church, at the south end of the island.
Iron Age fort
Dunagoil
Vitrified Iron Age fort on a volcanic headland, its ramparts melted by intense heat.
S'orienter
Sur la carte
The map shows Rothesay and the island and the streets around it. The Getting there page lists nearby stops and stations.
Bons plans d'initiés
Avant de partir
1
Go by train and boat
CalMac says the Wemyss Bay station sits next to the ferry terminal, so the trip from Glasgow needs no car.
2
Check Mount Stuart's season
Mount Stuart has a summer opening season and offers private tours outside it.
3
Walk the West Island Way
The route can be walked in stages over several days, according to CalMac.
Les conseils de la rédaction d'Britlens
Crédits photos
- Rothesay and the island (area photo): Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Rothesay Castle: Otter, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Victorian Toilets: Kristijrn, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Mount Stuart: Colin, CC BY-SA 4.0, source
- Dunagoil: Anne Burgess, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Kilchattan Bay: Nicholas Mutton, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Ettrick Bay: John Firth, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- West Island Way: Richard Webb, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Port Bannatyne: Frank Jordan, CC BY-SA 3.0, source
- Kames Castle: Rob Farrow, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- St Colmac's Church: Thomas Nugent, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
- Rothesay Town Hall: Leslie Barrie, CC BY-SA 2.0, source
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, used under the licences shown. All photo credits
Keep exploring Isle of Bute