Choose your adventure
Scotland is a great place for long distance hiking. Walk on one of our established trails or follow your own route. Complete it all in one trip or keep coming back until you've finished. There are no rules!
The Scottish National Trail (Scotland’s longest) is 864km and can take up to 2 months to complete. Whether you manage something that big or just walk one stage at a time you’ll get to experience some of Scotland’s most amazing places.
Our highlights
There are too many long distance routes in Scotland to name check them all individually, so we thought we'd share our hostel owners' top recommendations.
- Cape Wrath Trail (14 - 18 days) - a challenging unmarked route from Fort William to Cape Wrath through some of Scotland's most remote and beautiful landscapes. Recommended for experienced long distance walkers.
- Cateran Trail (4 - 6 days) - a circular waymarked route from Blairgowrie through some lesser known glens in Perthshire and Angus.
- Great Glen Way (5 - 6 days) - a waymarked route along the Great Glen from Fort William to Inverness. A good introduction to long distance walking.
- John Muir Way (9 - 10 days) - a waymarked coast to coast hike across Scotland's Central Belt from Helensburgh in the west to Dunbar (the birthplace of John Muir) in the east.
- Rob Roy Way (5 - 8 days) - from Drymen to Pitlochry through the Trossachs and along Loch Tay. The route follows tracks, minor roads and cycle paths.
- Speyside Way (6 - 8 days) - a waymarked trail following the River Spey from Buckie on the Moray coast to Newtonmore in the Cairngorms. The area is famous for its whisky distilleries.
- St Cuthbert's Way (4 - 5 days) - a cross border waymarked trail linking various locations sites associated with St Cuthbert from Melrose Abbey in the Scottish Borders with Lindisfarne in Northumberland, England.
- West Highland Way (5 - 8 days) - Scotland's first and most popular long distance trail between Milngavie (on the outskirts of Glasgow) and Fort William. Get ready to walk through some of Scotland's most stunning scenery.
Why our hostels are great for long distance hikers
We have hostels located on all our highlighted routes as well as these ones - Affric Kintail Way, Clyde Walkway, Dava Way, East Highland Way, John O'Groats Trail, Kintyre Way, Loch Ness 360, Moray Coast Trail, Scottish National Trail and the Skye Trail.
Staying in one of our hostels is a great choice for long distance hikers. You'll be sure of a warm welcome and our hostel owners will be able to give you the best advice on the next stage of your hike.
As well as a comfy bed and a hot shower, there'll be a drying room to get your kit dry, laundry facilities, a kitchen to make a meal and the chance to meet fellow hikers!
Using public transport to go from hostel to hostel is a great way to hop on and off a long distance trail.
If you want to find which of our hostels are on a long distance trail, you can see the full list below or use our search facility.
Our hostels on long distance routes
Highlander Bunkhouse
Highlander Bunkhouse Gordon Arms Hotel The Square Huntly AB54 8AF
Set in the heart of North East Scotland ideal for touring and walking, visiting castles or distilleries, checking out the heritage of the area incl...
More InfoScottish Hostels is the trading name of Scottish Independent Hostels