Getting to Islay

You can reach Islay from the mainland either by ferry or by air from Glasgow airport.

• Caledonian MacBrayne operate a ferry service between Kennacraig and Port Ellen or Port Askaig on the island. The timetables for this and all other services are available online. Also provided is a rather nice route map showing where the ferry docks and the roads on Islay. It is strongly recommended that you book your ferry in advance
• British Airways fly from Glasgow airport to Glenegedale, Islay's airport, just over five miles from Bowmore. Flight time is around 30 minutes. Timetables for these and other flights are available online. There is a Post Bus service to Bowmore from the airport which will meet the plane on arrival, so long as it is on time!
• Scottish Citylink operate a bus service from Buchanan Street in Glasgow to Kennacraig, leaving Glasgow at 9.00am and arriving at around 12.30pm, just in time for the ferry crossing at 1.00pm

Getting around Islay

There are a number of options for getting around Islay.

• There's a bus service on Islay operated by Islay Coaches and Royal Mail, which connects all the major towns. The bus timetables can be viewed on the Connect Islay Jura website
• A car hire service is available at the airport, operated by D & N McKenzie. If you would like to book a car, you should book ahead to ensure availability on your arrival. Contact John MacKenzie, Glenegedale, Isle of Islay on +44 (0) 1496 302300
• You could take your own car and drive yourself around. To plan your route to get the ferry at Kennacraig, the RAC website has a rather spiffy (and very busy) route planner. In Islay, the roads are all single carriageway, with some single track roads with passing places. However, the good news is that there are no traffic lights anywhere on the island!
• Cycling is a great option, and given that Islay is comparatively flat, it does not require a great degree of athleticism! Also, there's generally very little traffic on the roads

If you require more information, The Tourist Information Centre on Islay is in Bowmore, and is an excellent place to look for information, leaflets, books and maps. The telephone number is +44 (0) 1496 810254.

For finding your way around the island, the Streetmap website is excellent - just type in a place name or a postcode and it'll show you where it is.

If you'd like to buy a map, the Ordnance Survey Landranger series is ideal, as it covers an area of 25 miles by 25 miles (40km by 40km). Islay is 25 miles by 20 miles (40km by 32km) and fits rather conveniently onto one folding map, the Landranger 60 (ISBN 0319 223906).