Portpatrick

📌 Village in Dumfries & Galloway
★★★

We rate Portpatrick as one of Scotland’s most attractive seaside resorts. This bustling village has long been a popular holiday destination – ferries from Ireland and other UK ports used to call here – and still retains ample B&B’s, hotels, ice cream shops and seafood restaurants. The natural amphitheatre cradling the village centre and harbour makes the place feel a bit like a Cornish coastal resort (accents aside), while the sea cliffs forming the sides of the bowl offer superb views over the colourful houses below. The surrounding coastal scenery is excellent too: the first leg of the Southern Upland Way long distance footpath heads north from here, while south leads to the 16th century ruins of Dunskey Castle.