Islay distillery tour recommendations?

Hi, Jane,

Were you planning to drive yourselves to Islay, or were you planning to travel on a coach tour? You would have much more flexibility driving on your own. You would be able to spend as much time as you like at each distillery. There are nine distilleries currently operating on the island - do the group tours visit all of them, or only a selected few?

Islay is a beautiful island. There is much more to see and do outwith the distilleries. Having a car would add greatly to your enjoyment of the island.

Best wishes for your travels!

Mike (Auchterless)

Thanks Mike! We originally thought about renting a car but then figured that drinking and driving probably wasn’t a good idea! The coach tours that I have looked at are four days with stops at around 6 distilleries. I wish there was a local Islay tour that could just pick us up at our Islay hotel/B&B and take us to the distilleries but I haven’t found one .

Hi again, Jane,

Three of the main taxi companies on Islay offer whisky tours, so you could leave your car at your lodging and be escorted around the island. I don't know how much time they give you at each distillery, but you could contact the companies to find out.

The three companies are:

Bruichladdich Taxis
Islay Taxis
Carol's Cabs

There are several other small taxi companies which offer the same service. A little bit of searching on the internet will provide you with names and contact information.

There is also public bus service, although it only travels the main roads, and serves the main towns - Port Askaig, Bowmore, Port Ellen, and Portnahaven.

If you're staying in Port Ellen, three of the main distilleries are within walking distance. It's actually called the Three Distillery Walk. The distilleries are, in order from Port Ellen, Laphroaig, Lagavulin, and Ardbeg. By the time you're finished at Ardbeg, you'd probably need to take a taxi back to Port Ellen!. :) (Although the local 451 bus runs out to Ardbeg, so you could take a bus back if you time it right.) Also, the Ardbeg distillery has an excellent cafe, one of the few places to eat on a Sunday on Islay.

Best wishes once again!

Mike (Auchterless)

Jane, I have sent you a personal message. Monte

Certainly worth contacting the taxi companies to see what tours they do, and whether or not they also can incorporate Jura on the tour.

Mike and Monte…..thanks so very much for the information. This is much more in line with what we were hoping to do. I will definitely be in contact the Islay taxi companies and will probably reach out to both of you as I am doing my planning. Jane

Hi once again, Jane,

Here's a link to the Three Distilleries walk:

www.walkhighlands.co.uk/islay-jura/three-distilleries.shtml

Enjoy!

Mike (Auchterless)

Thanks again Mike! You should be a guide!

This summer was my 26th time over, so I've gotten to know the country pretty well! You'd think I'd have been everywhere in Scotland by now, but I find something new and wonderful on each visit.

Can't wait for the next trip!

Mike (Auchterless)