Complete Visitors Guide to Millport Isle of Cumbrae

Updated July 2023

This post is a visitor guide to Millport Isle of Cumbrae.

A Complete Visitor Guide to Millport, Isle of Cumbrae

Millport is the only town on Great Cumbrae, which is an island located off the west coast of Scotland. Great Cumbrae is actually considered "Scotland's most accessible island", as it's only a short 10-minute ferry from Largs Ferry Terminal.One of the most popular things to do in Millport is cycle around the whole island, which only takes around 1-2 hours at a leisurely pace. I've grown up on the west coast of Scotland and I've cycled around Millport a couple of times, it's a lovely activity especially on a sunny day.Millport also holds the title for having the world's narrowest house and the UK's smallest cathedral - both of which you can visit. There's no where quite like Millport. This little unique Scottish island is definitely worth a visit as part of a day trip or turn it into an overnight stay!This post covers how to get to Millport, things to do in Millport, Millport accommodation and Millport restaurants.

This blog post will cover:

Where is Millport?
How To Get To Millport
9 Of The Best Things To Do In Millport
Lovely Millport Accommodation For All Budgets
7 Delicious Millport Restaurants To Try When You Visit
More Blog Posts You'll Love

Where is Millport?

Millport is the only town on Great Cumbrae, which is an island located off the west coast of Scotland about an hour from Glasgow. The whole island has a population of around 1,300 people with around 1,200 of them living in Millport.

Great Cumbrae is actually considered "Scotland's most accessible island", as it's only a short 10-minute ferry from Largs Ferry Terminal.

How To Get To Millport

1. How To Get To Largs Ferry Terminal

Step one, you need to get to Largs Ferry Terminal to take the ferry over to Cumbrae Ferry Terminal.

Largs has great transport links, so you can choose to get here by car, bike, train or bus.

By Car To Largs Ferry Terminal

From Ayr - It's around a 50-minute drive from Ayr to Largs Ferry Terminal by following the A78.
From Glasgow - It's around a 55-minute drive from Glasgow to Largs Ferry Terminal via the M8 and A760.
From Edinburgh - It's around 1 hour and 50 minutes drive from Edinburgh to Largs Ferry Terminal via the M8.

Once you get there to Largs, you can choose to leave your car in a car park or take it over to Cumbrae with you. You don't really need to take your car over to Cumbrae as it is such a small island with good transport links.

By Train To Largs Ferry Terminal

From Ayr - Take the train from Ayr station to Largs station with 1 change in Kilwinning. The quickest journey only takes around 55 minutes and an off-peak adult return day ticket will cost about £9.50.
From Glasgow - Take the train from Glasgow Central station to Largs station (direct, no changes). This journey takes around 1 hour and an off-peak adult return day ticket will cost about £11.
From Edinburgh - Take the train from Edinburgh Waverley station to Largs station with 1 change in Glasgow. You will have to switch from Glasgow Queen Street station to Glasgow Central. This journey takes around 2.5 hours and an off-peak adult return day ticket will cost about £26.

Once you arrive in Largs station, it's only a 4-minute walk to the Ferry terminal. Book your train tickets from any departure point via the Scotrail website.

By Bus To Largs Ferry Terminal

From Ayr - Take the 585 Stagecoach bus from Ayr bus station to Largs Main Street. This journey should take around 1 hour and 40 minutes. An adult return day ticket costs £7.20.
From Glasgow - Take the 901 or 906 McGill's bus from Buchanan bus station to Largs Main Street. This journey should take around 1 hour and 55 minutes. An adult return day ticket costs £5.70.
From Edinburgh - Take the 900 Citylink bus from Edinburgh Princes street to Buchanan bus station in Glasgow. Book this bus through the Megabus website for the cheapest ticket prices. You'll then need to switch to the 901 or 906 McGill's bus from Buchanan bus station to Largs Main Street. This journey takes around 3.5 hours. An adult return day ticket costs as little as £14.30.

Once you arrive in Largs Main Street, it's only a short 3-walk to the Ferry terminal.

2. How To Get The Ferry to Millport

Step 2, you need to get the ferry to Millport. The ferry route is Largs - Cumbrae Slip Ferry and it will only take about 10-minutes.

It costs £3.60 for an adult return ticket and an additional £13.90 if you want to take your car over. A bike is free to take on the ferry.

There's two timetables for the ferry; summer timetable and winter timetable:

The summer timetable runs from the 31st March 2023 to the 15th October 2023. For days and times, check out the summer timetable here.
The winter timetable runs from the 23rd October 2023 to the 28th March 2024. For days and times, check out the winter timetable here.

Depending on the timetable in operation, the ferry times may be different.

3. How To Get From Cumbrae Ferry Terminal to Millport

Step 3, you need to get from Cumbrae Ferry Terminal to Millport and here's three ways to do that:

By Car - If you brought your car on the ferry, the quickest route to Millport will take you under 10 minutes. However, there is a slightly longer, more scenic route, which will take you around the coastline of the island to get to Millport.
By Bus - Take the 320 bus to Millport, it only takes around 10 minutes and will cost £3.50 for an adult return ticket.
By Bike - If you brought your bike to Cumbrae, the quickest route to Millport is just under a 20 minute cycle. Again, you could take the slightly longer, more scenic route.

9 Of The Best Things To Do In Millport

Cycle Around The Whole Island of Great Cumbrae

Since Great Cumbrae is such a small island, it is possible to cycle around the whole island. This is actually one of the most popular things to do in Millport and often one of the main reasons for people visiting the island.

The cycle route is 10 miles and will take around 1-2 hours to complete. It's a nice, easy, non-strenuous cycle as it's mostly flat terrain. There's no rush to complete it, so take as long as you need and stop as many times as you want.

You can start the cycle route anywhere you want as it's essentially a loop. If you've brought your own bike with you, you could just start at Cumbrae Ferry Terminal. If you are hiring a bike, you'll need to start in Millport as all the bike rental places are there.

You can hire bikes from 'Mapes of Millport' or 'On Your Bike'.

The Glaidstone Viewpoint

The naturally occuring Glaidstone rock marks the highest point of the isle at 417ft, providing incredible views over the rest of Great Cumbrae and the surrounding isles. Definitely worth a visit!

The Glaidstone Viewpoint is located near the inner ring on Great Cumbrae and a minor road passes by close to it. To reach it by car from Millport would take less than 10 minutes and by bike would take 20 minutes.

Isle of Cumbrae Distillers

This Scottish gin distillery is located right on Millport's Shorefront. It's one of the few gin distilleries owned by women in Scotland and has 4 award winning craft gins. It's a relatively new distillery, having only launched their first gin in 2020.

You can visit the shop for a wee browse or go on their 1-hour gin tour and tasting. If you are looking for something a bit different, they also offer a Maura Lamp Making workshop.

The Wedge

The wedge is recorded as being the narrowest house in the world and officially made it into the Guinness Book of World Records a couple of years ago. You can spot the property on Millport's shorefront.

The name came from the property being likened to a wedge of cheese. It has an open plan living room and kitchen area and one bedroom upstairs. At it's narrowest point, the house is a tiny 1.19m wide.

The Cathedral of the Isles and College of the Holy Spirit

Not only is millport home to the narrowest house in the world. It also holds the title of having the smallest cathedral in the UK.

The Cathedral of the Isles and College of the Holy Spirit dates back to 1851 and only has enough seats for around 100 people.

The Cathedral is open to visit from 8.30am-6pm daily throughout the year.

**Millport Cathedral (www.dvlcom.co.uk / Shutterstock.com)**

The Cumbrae Rocks

Great Cumbrae is home to some weird and wonderful rock formations including:

Crocodile Rock - This rock formation can be found on Millport beach and was decorated with crocodile markings like the name suggests all the way back in 1913 and is repainted every year! It's actually considered to be one of Scotland's "quirkest, best-known landmarks" - when you visit, you'll soon see why!
Lion Rock - This rock formation measures a massive 10 metres in height and 50 metres in length. It actually dates back to 65 million years ago and can be found on the bottom east coast of the isle of Great Cumbrae.
Indian Rock - This rock formation can be found on the bottom west coast of the isle of Great Cumbrae and is the most difficult to spot out the three. The markings date back to the 1920s.

Garrison House

If you are looking to find out a little more about the history of Millport, then this is your place to do so! It contains a small museum on the ground floor and is free to visit.

It's a lovely old building on the shorefront in Millport with nice views overlooking the bay. It has beautifully decorated gardens and also has a little cafe inside if you're feeling peckish!

Robertson Museum and Aquarium

The Robertson Museum and Aquarium is situated in the Field Studies Council (FSC) Millport. It will teach you all about the fascinating underwater world and history of the marine station on the Isle of Cumbrae. You'll even get to meet some local wildlife!

It's open Monday to Friday between 11am and 3pm. It costs £2.50 for an adult ticket and £1 for a child ticket.

Millport Activities

Watersports - You can hire Kayaks and Paddleboards from On Your Bike and head out on the water. Try and see if you can spot any local wildlife, as seals are known to live in this area all year round.
Crazy Golf - Play some crazy golf right in the centre of Millport on the shorefront. You can also find swingboats and trampolines here too!

Lovely Millport Accommodation For All Budgets

All the options below were chosen with peak season in mind and two people sharing.

Budget (£0-£75 per night)

Mid (£75-£150 per night)

High-end (£150+ per night)

7 Delicious Millport Restaurants To Try When You Visit

All the restaurants below are situated in Millport except from The High Tide Cafe at Fintry Bay, which you will pass if you choose to cycle around Great Cumbrae.

The Dancing Midge Cafe (£)

This quaint cafe is situated right on the shorefront in Millport, with lovely views over to Little Cumbrae. It's open most days from 9am-4pm, meaning that it's a perfect option to go for breakfast, lunch, brunch or even, a bit of cake. It gets rave reviews so it's not to be missed!

Frasers Bar (£)

A classic Scottish bar in Millport serving up good pub grub and a great selection of beers. It even has a beer garden where you can sit and soak up the sun (or rain, which there's probably a higher chance of!!). It's open 7 days a week, from 11am until late (midnight/1am).

The Newton Bar (£)

There's always something going on at this lively little pub in Millport, whether it's curry club on a Wednesday, live music on a Saturday and a quiz night on a Sunday. You're sure to be kept entertained here. They also serve up delicious food so you won't go hungry either!

The High Tide Cafe at Fintry Bay (£)

This cafe is situated on the west coast of Great Cumbrae, about a 15-minute cycle from Millport so it's the ideal place to stop off for a break and get some delicious food to fuel you for the rest of your cycle. Plus, it has amazing views over to the Isle of Bute. Well worth the visit!

Crocodeli Millport (££-£££)

A lovely bakery and deli right in the heart of Millport, serving up the freshest produce including baguettes and pastries. Perfect for a picnic on the beach!

Round Island Cafe (££-£££)

This gorgeous restaurant is located right on the shorefront in Millport. It's open for lunch and dinner on Friday - Monday, serving up a variety of delicious dishes and cocktails. If you go there on a Sunday, they even, do a roast beef.

Edwards at the Harbour (££-£££)

Open for dinner Thursday to Sunday, Edwards at the Harbour is a lovely cosy restaurant in Millport shorefront serving up the finest food including fish and steak dishes with all the sides and yummy desserts for after.