📌 Glenfinnan, Highland
★★★
Yes, it’s that viaduct. Perhaps you’ve seen it in the Harry Potter films, on a Scottish £10 note, or in one of countless Scottish tour operator brochures. The elegantly-curved viaduct on the West Highland Line over the River Finnan now attracts thousands of visitors each day in the summer months, in addition to many more who travel across it on the Jacobite steam train or even a regular ScotRail service. The best viewpoint for the viaduct is tucked away behind the Glenfinnan Monument visitor centre, though you’re likely to have to jostle for a space along with dozens of others if a steam train is due (times available at the visitor centre). You can also take in the 100-foot arches from below, or from the link path to Glenfinnan Station – part of a worthwhile circular walk.
🌍 Location
📌 Access from the A830 0.5 mi northeast of Glenfinnan railway station
🧭 O.S. Grid Reference: NM 910814
🛰️ GPS coordinates: 56.876183,-5.431904
🚌 Bus stops on A830 at viaduct turnoff | 🚆 Glenfinnan (0.5 mi via off-road path)
🚗 Car park on A830 immediately east of River Finnan bridge (charge, gets full)
📝 Key info
🔗 Always viewable, or take a train
🎫 Free to view
💬 From the car park it’s a 5-min walk to the visitor centre viewpoint (⬤ Easy). Head east (with the main road to the right) a short distance to the visitor centre, behind which a path winds uphill onto the hillside overlooking the viaduct. The foot of the viaduct is a 10-min walk (each way) from the car park (⬤ Easy). Follow a new path north (away from the main road) across a footbridge over the River Finnan, with the viaduct visible ahead. Another path on the left just before the viaduct leads to an alternative viewpoint above the track, also continuing to Glenfinnan railway station.
