Fort William on the sleeper then Mallaig but where next?

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Hello Scotland experts. We are heading up to Scotland in July on the sleeper.

We chose this holiday because it will thrill our teenager who loves train journeys.

I’d be really grateful for advice on what to do next without a car. Here are the things I like:
1 Dolphins whales sea birds et cetera

2 peace and solitude

3Trees especially near water

4 getting in the water outside

5 Long walks near the sea

We live in the Yorkshire Dales so heather moorland is not exciting for us. We don’t care about things like whiskey (my only memory of going to Fort William 20 years ago is it being very bored in the whiskey distillery)

I’m 51,work very hard, etc. In my head I’m a traveller/backpacker still. In reality I’m exhausted and need rest. So accommodation near the sea would be a big plus.

Seil Island.
www.visitscotland.com/info/towns-villages/seil-p235691

The obvious choice for dolphins would be Inverness.
From Inverness you could get out to Loch Ness. There are several bus lines that connect Inverness to the villages on the shores of Loch Ness and it takes about 30 mins. The number 16 goesto Dores, which has the best beach and for good measure, the Dores Inn is right on the beach.
You could also take a train from Inverness to Aviemore. It's a beautiful ride, climbing steadily through the Cairngorm Mountains. Craigellachie National Nature Reserve is close to the centre of Aviemore. There are walking trails of various levels in the woods. From Aviemore you can take the Strathspey Steam Railway.

Get the ferry from Mallaig to the small isles - eigg, rhum, muck and canna - canna is amazing. Only 30 people live on the island. I think k you can do a wee cruise round them all …

Absolutely Canna or any of the small isles. As long as u want quiet and outdoors! Boats go from Mallaig and you can’t bring a car so no prob getting about without. Good chance of seeing whales and dolphins, though I am unlucky and never have.

Will the teenager mind being unlikely to run into other teens? If not then the small isles are absolutely perfect and tick every bit of your criteria you set out.

If you do end up near Inverness, then it's not too far to Chanonry point which is a good spot for seeing dolphins. As long as you are hiring a car! Public transport isn't great up here tbh.

You can do a cruise out of Mallaig to the small islands which ties in with the train times on the train, so you can return to Fort William the same day. I'd advise this, as there are so many day trips for whale and dolphin watching that leave from Fort William. There is also loads of accommodation there at reasonable prices.
We were booked to go on a private 6 person wildlife cruise for only £150 but it had to be cancelled due to the weather (fully refunded without issue though!)
We did get to do the train trip to Mallaig and the views are stunning.

We're in Yorkshire too. We did Isle of Arran last year and loved it. We're doing 2 weeks in Scotland this summer starting with 2 nights Loch Lommond, same at Glen Nevis, the 8 nights at a couple of different places on Skye and then a couple of nights at Glen Coe on the way back home.

I'm sure there's a place does sea kayaking from near Mallaig. Or maybe kayaking generally.

Check out the Calmac ferry schedules from mallaig to the small isles and/or Skye

We won’t be going across to Inverness this time (we took the other sleeper line to Inverness a couple of years ago and had fun).
But the west coast ideas are great

We loved Arran too, would love to go back. We saw a pod of dolphins off Whiting Bay which was amazing! If in Fort William there is a company doing various boat trips on Loch Linnhe. Really enjoyed it, beautiful scenery and opportunities for seal spotting. Lovely people running it too.

There used to be sea kayaking at Glenuig but I gather it has stopped. The views from the train to Mallaig are absolutely wonderful. Arisaig might be worth a look?

What about Mull? Would probably need to hire a car in Fort William but I think would tick a lot of your boxes. We've been a few times and it's a big island with beaches, whale/dolphin trips, etc.

This is the local site www.visitmullandiona.co.uk

Wherever you are are the West Coast you would need to book accommodation early.

We go to Skye a lot. The Sleat/Armadale area is lovely and IIRC there are buses that connect to the ferry. You can explore quite a bit of Skye by bus . On the mainland Loch Morar area and that coast down to Arisaig (taxi from Mallaig) is peaceful too. There is so much sea and scenery around that area it’s hard to go wrong wherever you base yourselves. Take your midge repellant!

Will you be driving? If so, anywhere in Ardnamurchan would give you all of these things. You could go from Glenuig down to Acharacle and Kilchoan.

If not then the boat to one of the small isles or Skye is really your only option from Mallaig.

Go to Oban on the train. The station is next to the ferry terminal. Catch the ferry to Mull. The bus runs from Craignure to Tobermory where there's a couple of hotels or stay at the Mull and Iona Spa Hotel in Craignure.
There's lovely beaches and Mull is the only Scottish island to have a munro (Ben More). There's also whale watching trips from Tobermory.

I can personally recommend Arisaig and the small Isles and also Ardnamurchan (plenty of trees near the sea and lovely beaches at end). There are local buses to Ardnamurchan that connect with the trains in Fort William.

Or you could go on the boat from Mallaig to Knoydart and stay in Inverie, i havent done it but friends have and enjoyed it.

Shh, don't tell everyone about Ardnamurchan!

@OscarCharlieTango

Get the ferry from Mallaig to the small isles - eigg, rhum, muck and canna - canna is amazing. Only 30 people live on the island. I think k you can do a wee cruise round them all …

Be really careful with ferries this year! The CalMac fleet is in dire need of replacement and at the moment many routes are subject to cancellation at the last minute, or breakdown halfway across (the Lochmaddy to Uig ferry had to return to port a couple of days ago because one of the engines failed and it still isn't fixed). If you aren't using CalMac, then the small isles are a great option, but I wouldn't rely on ferries otherwise.

Get the boat from Mallaig to the Knoydart peninsula for the most remote pub in mainland Britain