How far in advance do you need to book the ferry from Mallaig to Armadale? We are going in mid September and will be driving. We will have a rental and don't know yet the make and model of the car. One site I looked at needed this info for booking, will that be a problem?
Posted by
Delaware
1376 posts
Hi, Joan,
If you're going in mid to late September, you should have no problem obtaining passage. There are eight sailings daily. Go to the Caledonian MacBrayne website, and you can check for the departure time that suits you best. You can also make the reservation on the website, and there is a choice of registration information. Just check on the choice for "Registration unknown" in part two of the registration form. About half the people who use the ferry have rental cars, so they're used to it. I'd say to make your reservation about two weeks in advance, but if you're already in Scotland at that point, you can do it over the phone.
You can also call them directly from the U.S. to make the reservation, if you're uncomfortable with giving your credit card info on line. I've done that in the past. Keep your reservation information handy, and you can pick up your tickets at the CalMac office in Mallaig.
If this summer is the same as the last two, the main ferries serving the route will be the Lord of the Isles and the Loch Fyne. The last time we sailed this route, CalMac had taken the Loch Coruisk off of this route and added the Lochinvar, which was smaller. We made the sailing on the Lochinvar in a moderate gale, and our rented car was covered in salt from the sea spray. It was a blue car, but it was almost white from the spray. Fortunately, we found a car wash in Lochcarron the next day.
Posted by
OP
47 posts
Thank you auchterless! You have a wealth of great information and I always enjoy reading your posts on this forum. Cheers!