Scotland Travel Blog March 2026

”5 Magical Places in Scotland for a Picnic”

Contrary to popular myth, Scotland does get some hot sunny days. Of course, you can never really be certain when they might happen and it might rain very soon after, but opportunities do arise for dining “al fresco”.

Our following list is just a few of the places where you might find us on one of those magical days when the green of the mountains has a back drop of clear blue sky and the thermometer creeps up to, and maybe even beyond 25 degrees centigrade.

Ardtoe Bay:

There are lots of great beaches that we could list here, but Ardtoe gets a special mention because its location is so far off the beaten track, but you can get to it by car, so you don’t have to lug a picnic hamper for several miles.

Along the road to Ardtoe, you pass a large boulder painted with the grimacing face of a sharp-toothed monster. Planted beside the painted boulder, there is a sign warning you about the “Monster Midge”, and this probably deters most people from considering eating outdoors. However, if you pick a day with a gentle breeze, you will find that the midges are not a threat as they struggle to fly in winds above 5 mph.

The appeal of Ardtoe Bay is its sheltered sandy beach which provides a safe place for kids to enjoy exploring rock pools and, if they are hardy enough, a swim in the sea. And if the weather suddenly changes and spoils your picnic plans, you don’t have too far to drive to get to Acharacle, where there’s a great cafe at Cafe Tioram.

Falls of Pattack:

The Falls of Pattack are located a few metres from the A86 road that crosses east to west from Newtonmore to Spean Bridge. Despite being so easily accessed from the road, it is a scenic spot that is poorly signposted and very easy to miss (unless you have a Secret Scotland itinerary to follow).

The appeal of this picnic spot is the pool at the bottom of the falls which is perfect for a "wild swim". The water might not be the warmest, but the pool is in a gorge surrounded by mature pine trees, which means you are well sheltered from the wind.

There are several woodland paths nearby, such as the trail to Dun da Lamh Hill Fort. So we’d suggest going for a hike and then returning to the falls to end your ramble with a picnic and cool your feet in the pool, or better still, use the cold water of the falls to chill your beers.

Camusdarrach Beach:

This beach is quite well-known as it is one of the many great beaches on the coastline from Morar to Arisaig. Fortunately, it isn’t very well signposted, so it doesn’t get quite as many visitors as the nearby Sands of Morar, which is a bit too busy with campervans these days.

Camusdarrach is a magical beach enhanced by its views of the distinctive islands of Eigg and Rum. It’s an especially photogenic beach at sunset, and you might know it better as the location for the beach scenes in the 1980’s film “Local Hero”. But Camusdarrach is best appreciated on a sunny day, when the waters take on the same magical hues of green and blue that you normally associate with the beaches of the Caribbean.

We recommend going here for a roll down the sand dunes. Great fun for kids (and adults), but trying to climb back up the sand dunes is a bit of a workout as Aury demonstrates. We apologise for her colourful language!

And if you need to stock up with picnic treats, head to Mallaig to get bread from the Bakehouse & Crannog to make sandwiches with delicacies from Ardshealach Smokehouse in Glenuig.

Falls of Bruar:

The House of Bruar is a very popular stop for visitors looking to do some gift shopping. It also has an excellent Food Hall for stocking upon tasty delicacies for a picnic. If you get the chance, try the Scottish smoked langoustine. They’re a taste sensation that I can best describe as a sort of succulent sweet, smoked bacon flavour. Expensive, but oh so delicious!

Although the shops at the House of Bruar can be swarming with tourists, relatively few of the visitors ever make the effort to explore the woodland walks that rise up the hill behind the shops. Some make it as far as the first set of waterfalls, but the really good stuff is to be found further upstream, and this requires ~30 minutes of a climb.

The woodlands around the falls have been thinned out since we took the photo above, and this has spoiled the appeal of some of the viewpoints. But you can still find lots of attractive spots beside the river for a picnic. And, if you want to see the falls from a different angle, it is possible to book canyoning experiences at the Falls of Bruar with a guide.

Alvie Kirk, Loch Alvie:

Loch Alvie sits about 3 miles south west of Aviemore in the Cairngorms National Park. It is sandwiched between the busy A9 artery road to Inverness, and the quieter B9152 back road that we prefer to follow when we’re passing through the Cairngorms and aren’t in a hurry.

A short section of the B9152 passes close to the southern shores of the loch, and you get a tantalisingly brief glimpse of the white painted Alvie Kirk across the water. So seeing the kirk from a distance isn’t too hard, but finding the way to it isn’t so easy. The access road is near a bend, and it’s a private road with no signs indicating that it leads to the old church. The best way to visit here is by hiring a bike, and there are several places in nearby Aviemore where you can do this.

At the end of the road, you come a picturesque late 18th century church surrounded by mature trees and a graveyard. The church stands on a site that has had religious significance for many centuries and has links to St Drostan, one of the early Christian missionary’s who visited this region in the early 7th century.

The church has an interesting mystery that wasn’t revealed until 1880 when modifications to the building unearthed a mass grave of 150 bodies laid out head to head in rows beneath the church floor. The cause of death wasn’t determined and the bodies have now been reinterred in the graveyard and marked with a pink granite gravestone.

From the church, you can follow a grassy path down to the shores of Loch Alvie where you can find a small jetty that makes for a perfect waterside picnic spot under the shade of leafy trees. It’s also a good spot from which to launch a kayak or paddle board to go exploring on the loch.

Directions to find these picnic spots, and lots more, are included in all of our itineraries for planning self-drive tours of Scotland.