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Voykit pocket guide · United Kingdom
Lochbuie
Locha Buidhe
Go only with a car and only for half a day: Moy Castle, the stone circle and Laggan Sands, then drive back out. No public transport, no signal, no pub.
Lochbuie is a hamlet of a few dozen people at the end of a single-track lane on the south coast of Mull, about 20 miles (32 km) from Craignure. There is a ruined 15th-century tower, a prehistoric stone circle, a tidal island and a good beach, all within a short walk. It is a half-day stop on a Mull driving day, not a base, unless you have booked one of the self-catering cottages.
- Country
- United Kingdom
- Local name
- Locha Buidhe
- Best months
- May–Jun, Sep
- Avoid
- Nov–Feb (short days, wet, midges gone but little open)
- Stay
- 0–1 nights
Checked 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change; anything marked (check) is not confirmed.
Essentials
- Currency
- GBP
- Money
- Currency is the pound sterling (GBP, £). Cards and contactless work almost everywhere; some places are card-only.
- Daily spend
- Budget £45–70 excl. bed · Mid £70–110 excl. bed · High £110+ excl. bed (estimate; check)
- SIM and data
- EE, Vodafone (merged with Three in 2025) and O2 run the networks; prepaid SIMs sell in supermarkets, phone shops and airport vending machines, no registration needed.
- Emergency
- Police, fire, ambulance, coastguard 999 · Police non-urgent 101 · NHS non-urgent (Scotland) 111
- Plugs
- Types G · 230 V · 50 Hz · Three-pin Type G only; European, US and Australian plugs need an adapter. Bathrooms have two-pin shaver sockets only.
- Tipping
- Restaurant with table service: 10–12.5% if no service charge is on the bill; check before adding more.; Pub or bar: Not expected; 'and one for yourself' offers the bartender a drink.; Taxi: Round up or 10%.; Hotel porter: £1–2 per bag.; Tour guide: £5–10 per person for a day tour; free walking tours expect £10–15.
- Water
- Tap water is safe everywhere. Free refills are common; restaurants will bring tap water if you ask.
- Toilets
- Public toilets are scarce and some charge 50p–£1 or are card-only. Stations, museums, department stores and pubs (if you buy a drink) are the fallback.
What things cost
| Item | Price |
|---|---|
| Coffee or tea at the Old Post Office | £3–4 |
| Sandwich or light lunch | £5–9 |
| Ready-cooked meal delivered to a cottage | £10–15 |
| Petrol or diesel, per litre on Mull | £1.50–1.70 |
| Camping pitch above the beach | Free or small fee |
Desk estimates, checked 2026-09; check locally.
Get in
By air
- GLA · Glasgow
- Mainland gateway; about 3 h 30 min by road to Oban or Lochaline, then ferry to Mull.
- EDI · Edinburgh
- Longer drive to the Mull ferries; check connections before booking.
Typical fares
- Oban → Craignure ferry, foot passenger
- about £8–9 one way, 45–50 min (check)
- Oban → Craignure ferry, car plus driver
- about £45 one way (check)
- Craignure → Lochbuie by road
- 32 km (20 miles), about 1 h on single-track lanes20 miles (32 km), about 1 h on single-track lanes
Show 7 more sections and the pocket cardHideGet around, See and do, Sleep, Phrase card, Etiquette, safety and scams, One and two days, Sources, Pocket card
Get around
You need a car or a bike. The lane from the A849 at Inverlussa is single-track with passing places and takes about 40–50 min for the 32 km (20 miles). The village sights are all within a short walk of each other; the mausoleum is a 2-mile (3 km (1.9 mi)) hike south along the coast.You need a car or a bike. The lane from the A849 at Inverlussa is single-track with passing places and takes about 40–50 min for the 20 miles (32 km). The village sights are all within a short walk of each other; the mausoleum is a 2-mile (1.9 mi (3 km)) hike south along the coast.
See and do
Known for
- Moy Castle
- Lochbuie Stone Circle
- Laggan Sands
- Maclaine Mausoleum
Day trips
| Where | How | Time |
|---|---|---|
| Craignure | Drive the lane back to the A849 at Inverlussa, then east | About 1 h |
| Fionnphort | Drive back to the A849 and turn west | About 1 h 15 min |
| Salen | A849 east, then north | About 1 h 15 min |
| Tobermory | A849 east and north via Salen | About 1 h 45 min |
| Calgary | A849 west, then the lane north of the road | About 1 h 30 min |
Sleep
- Lochbuie village
- Self-catering cottages by the road junction near Moy Castle; book months ahead for summer.
- Camping above the beach
- Tents only, just beyond the Old Post Office; no caravans. Check locally before pitching.
- Craignure or Salen
- Better base for a Mull trip; Lochbuie becomes a half-day drive from here.
Phrase card
| English | Say or show |
|---|---|
| Thank you | Tapadh leibhTAH-pah leev |
| Good morning | Madainn mhathMA-ting vah |
| Please | Mas e do thoil emas eh do hull eh |
| Where is the ferry? | Càite a bheil an aiseag?KA-chuh a vayl an ASH-ak |
| Is there a signal here? | A bheil comharra an seo?a vayl CO-urra an shaw |
| Cheers | SlàinteSLAHN-chuh |
Etiquette, safety and scams
Etiquette
- Greeting: Handshake at first meeting; 'hi' and first names quickly; avoid: Cheek kisses with strangers
- Conversation: Weather is a safe opener; understatement and self-deprecating humour; avoid: Asking about salary or class
- Queues: Join at the back; avoid: Pushing onto buses or trains before others get off
- Apologies: 'Sorry' is said constantly, even when not at fault; avoid: Taking it as an admission of blame
- Pubs: Buy rounds in a group; wait at the bar without waving money; avoid: Clicking fingers at staff
- Nations: Call Scots Scottish and Welsh Welsh; avoid: Calling the whole UK 'England'
Scams and watch-outs
- No public transport to Lochbuie: the last miles are car or bike only.
- Mobile signal is unreliable; Vodafone may work outdoors, other networks often do not.
- Moy Castle is unsafe to enter; view it from outside only.
- The stone circle sits in the grounds of Lochbuie House, which is private: keep to the path.
- Midges are severe on still, damp evenings from June to August; bring repellent.
- Single-track road: use passing places and do not park in them.
Low crime, real exposure: the risks are the single-track road, fast weather changes, boggy ground at the stone circle and no phone signal. Tell someone your plan and carry water.
One and two days
No timed day plan for Lochbuie yet. Suggested stay: 0–1 nights. Build a day from the list below, mornings for the big sight.
- Moy Castle
- Lochbuie Stone Circle
- Laggan Sands
- Maclaine Mausoleum
Sources
Written by Voykit; facts cross-checked against these sources, last desk check 2026-09. Prices, hours and rules change: check on the day.
- VisitScotland — Isle of Mull: www.visitscotland.com/places-to-go/islands/mull
- Caledonian MacBrayne (CalMac) ferries: www.calmac.co.uk/
- Argyll and Bute Council — roads and travel: www.argyll-bute.gov.uk/
- Wikivoyage: Lochbuie, revision 4813466 (CC BY-SA 4.0): en.wikivoyage.org/w/index.php?oldid=4813466
Pocket card
Cut along the border and keep it in your wallet. Show the local-script lines to a driver.
LochbuieLocha Buidhe
Gu Locha Buidhe, mas e do thoil e
To Lochbuie, please
My hotel (write the name and address in the local script)
No consulates on Mull; US, Canadian, Australian and Irish embassies are in London, with a US consulate-general in Edinburgh. Check the official embassy site for current contact details.
Print this card before you leave; you may have no signal in Lochbuie.
Voykit · checked 2026-09
Printed from Voykit (/lochbuie). Written by Voykit; checked 2026-09. Estimates only: confirm prices, hours and entry rules on the day.