Dates
We do offer private and bespoke group trips on all our treks and walking holidays. These can start on any date of your choosing, with a minimum of 4 people.
Please contact us with your preferred dates and accommodation, along with your group size.
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View Package PricesSunday15 August 2027Sunday22 August 2027
Overview
The East Highland Way is an 82-mile (132km) trek which connects Fort William, at the foot of Ben Nevis, with Aviemore, famous for its mountains and ski resort.
This trail really does have it all, from ancient Caledonian pine forests and shimmering lochs to stunning mountain scenery.
As the name suggests, this trek rivals the West Highland Way for diversity and scenery, but due to it being much less well known, it also has the advantage of being a much quieter trail. This allows you to appreciate this remote area in relative solitude.
Highlights of the East Highland Way
- Views of the North Face of Ben Nevis, the UK's highest mountain.
- Trekking in the shadow of the Grey Corries.
- Walking on the shores of Loch Laggan and the largest freshwater beach in Britain.
- Hiking through the remote Glen Banchor under the Monadhliath Mountains.
- Completing your trek through mature pine forests in the the Cairngorm National Park, home to Red Squirrels and Capercaillie.
Itinerary
Each day, you will be guided along the East Highland Way by your qualified and friendly walking guide, and all the logistics of your trek will be managed by your trek manager, ensuring a smooth and enjoyable experience.
We will be with you from the moment you set off in the morning to the moment you arrive at your accommodation in the evening. You will only need to carry your day bag, with essentials to keep you warm, dry, fed, and hydrated for the day. Your main luggage will be transported to your next accommodation for you.
Everything will be taken care of so that you can just enjoy the walking!
Today is the day we will all make our way to Fort William to begin our East Highland Way adventure. In the evening, you will get a chance to meet the rest of your group, as well as your guides, for a welcome evening and briefing. This will be in a local pub/restaurant where you will have the option of an evening meal.
Accommodation in Fort William.
This is the first day of walking and when your trip really begins. In the morning you will be met by one of the guides, who will take you to the start. Once everyone has made it to the start and purchased packed lunches, the walk to Spean Bridge will begin.
It is 12 miles of walking in total and offers a gentle introduction to the trail, being mainly on good flat paths. We will begin by getting fantastic views of the famous Ben Nevis, the highest mountain in the UK. We will leave Fort William behind before ascending through Glen Spean on very good forest tracks.
We will eventually reach a quiet road, which we will walk a short way along until we get to Spean Bridge itself. Usually, your B&B will be located in Spean Bridge, meaning we can walk you straight to the front door.
Distance: 12 miles (19.5 km)
Total ascent: 290m
Time: 6-7 hours
Accommodation in Spean Bridge.
After a hearty breakfast, we will begin our second day of walking. Today we will be walking to Fersit, which is 11 miles away.
The day will begin gently, with excellent forest tracks taking us away from Spean Bridge. We will then be walking on a minor road for a short section, next to the River Spean, giving beautiful views across to the hills in the south.
Here our day begins to become more challenging as the paths become trickier through open fields and across a small river, but it won’t be long until we are once again on tracks walking through the Meall Laire plantation. This then drops steeply into Inverlair.
From here, a section of quiet single-track road takes us to Fersit. Once at Fersit, we will drive you back to your accommodation in Spean Bridge as there is no accommodation nearby.
Distance: 11 miles (18 km)
Total ascent: 380m
Time: 6-7 hours
Accommodation in Spean Bridge.
Today we will be walking to Feagour, and it is the most challenging day of the trek. Although the walking itself is not difficult and we will be using good forest tracks for much of it, it is close to 20 miles in length. So be prepared for tired legs, yet a very rewarding day.
The route will give you fantastic views throughout the day, starting with views of the Moy Reservoir to the north, followed later by Binnein Shuas to the south and Creag Meagaidh in the north. An excellent full day and one where trail trainers may be more comfortable than hiking boots.
Once you have finished walking, we will drive you to your B&B as there is no accommodation in Feagour.
Distance: 19.5 miles (31.5 km)
Total ascent: 420m
Time: 8-9 hours
Accommodation in Newtonmore/Kingussie.
This morning we will return to Feagour ready to start your next day on the trail. We will be trekking to Newtonmore today, which is 15 miles away.
This day offers some of the best views of the trip; we will be ascending through the Black Woods to a fantastic vantage point. Much of the first section of the day is on good forest tracks until we reach the Spey Dam, where we will continue through farmland before reaching Laggan village.
After the village, we will be walking along the road to Balgowan (optional). From here things become more remote and our afternoon will be spent walking through forests and over moorland, before crossing and following the River Calder. The ground will be boggy and rough in places, but we finish with firmer footing on a quiet road descending into Newtonmore.
Distance: 15 miles (24 km)
Total ascent: 350m
Time: 7-8 hours
Accommodation in Newtonmore/Kingussie.
Today we will walk to Kincraig, which is 14.5 miles away.
We will start the day heading out of Newtonmore to the north, passing Loch Gynack before descending into Kingussie. From here, we continue gently over a level cycle path, which will give you views over the broad floodplains of Badenoch and the ruins of Ruthven Barracks.
Soon after, we will be following the paths of the Badenoch Way, which will take us through open moorland and broadleaf forests. Continuing onwards, we will be passing small hamlets and descending through plantations to the shores of Loch Insh, where we will conclude our day at the outdoor centre.
We will then take you back to your B&B in Newtonmore for your final night here.
Distance: 14.5 miles (23 km)
Total ascent: 420m
Time: 7-8 hours
Accommodation in Newtonmore/Kingussie.
This is the last day of walking, and we will be making our way to Aviemore itself. It is 10 miles of walking mainly on good forest tracks giving some excellent views of the Cairngorm foothills.
We will be ascending steadily on the forestry tracks until we leave the plantation on a small footpath through ancient bog forest. We will be passing the island castle of Loch an Eilein in beautiful mature Scots Pine forests, before continuing to Aviemore through fields and forest into the town itself.
We will then take you to your B&B for a well-deserved rest and a few celebratory drinks!
Distance: 10 miles (16 km)
Total ascent: 150m
Time: 5-6 hours
Accommodation in Aviemore/Carrbridge.
Today is departure day. There are frequent train and bus links to Inverness, Perth, Glasgow and Edinburgh from Aviemore/Carrbridge.
If you need to return to Fort William for your car we can help you with arrangements for this.
What's Included?
The cost includes
- Accommodation for 7 nights (breakfast included)
- 6 days guided walking
- Qualified UK Mountain Leader as your guide
- Luggage transfers
- Support vehicle
- Full Information Pack
- Training advice
- Maximum group size of 12
Not included in our packages
- Lunches, snacks and dinners
- Arrival and departure transport
Accommodation Options
Bed & Breakfast
The Bed and Breakfast option provides good standard accommodation, with cooked or continental breakfast included in the price of the holiday.
The B&Bs we use are located in small towns or villages, giving you access to local shops and a choice of pubs, ensuring plenty of opportunities for an evening meal. In areas where no B&Bs are available or where facilities such as shops and pubs are lacking, we will drive you to a nearby village to ensure a better overall experience.
FAQs
This trek is graded 3/5 on our trekking scale.
A good, challenging trek for the average walker. The terrain will include hills and rougher paths, and there will be some challenging longer days. It should be achievable for a person of good general fitness and determination.
The East Highland Way is similar in difficult to the West Highland Way. It keeps to the glens and avoids much in the way of hill climbing. However, this trail is not waymarked and there is some rougher more remote ground to cover.
To help you decide if this trip is right for you, please also refer to the itinerary, which includes daily distances, ascent, and detailed descriptions of the terrain.
You can read more about our grading system in our Trip Difficulty Guide.
Please note: all long-distance walking is challenging, particularly if you are not used to walking/exercising on consecutive days. What makes a trek challenging is personal and depends on your fitness, strengths, and preferences.
Don’t forget to read through the day-by-day itinerary of the route to give you a good idea what to expect. In general you can expect quiet trail on what is a less-trodden sibling of the West Highland Way. Although there are some rough and boggy sections you can expect good paths and tracks underfoot for large sections of this long-distance trail. There are streams and a river to cross as well, but we will help you negotiate these safely.
As will most routes in Scotland there is interest to be found in the human history of the area, the geology and nature. The ruined fortress of the Ruthven Barracks stands above the Inch Marshes National Nature reserve. The Frank Bruce sculptures aren’t far from a possible sighting of Ospreys feeding on Loch Garten.
The trek finishes through the Caledonian forest, with the beautiful mature Scots Pines providing homes to Red Squirrels and Crested Tits, amongst as host of other wildlife.
The East Highland Way is similar in difficulty level to the West Highland Way. Therefore, if you have enjoyed the West Highland Way, you are very likely to love this trail.
The main differences are that the East Highland Way is much quieter, more remote, and is not waymarked. This also makes for a fantastic trek for the first-timer.
While you don’t need long-distance walking experience you will need a reasonable level of fitness and a positive mental attitude to help you get to the finish. The fitter you are the more enjoyable the experience. After booking you can opt in to our ‘Training for the Trails’ mailing list to help you arrive prepared for your trek.
This trek begins in Fort William which has excellent transport links by both bus and train. If you choose to drive to the start there are also long-stay car parks available in the town.
You will usually be staying for 1 night in Fort William, 2 nights in Spean Bridge, 3 nights in Newtonmore (or Kingussie), and then your final night in Aviemore or Carrbridge.
This gives you the advantage of not having to repack every day while still getting to experience the different villages on the trail. Whilst we cannot guarantee this is where you will be staying each night this is certainly the experience most of our customers receive.
Fort William – the largest town you will be staying, it has a large variety for restaurants, pubs and shops. It also has outdoor gear shops so you have the opportunity to buy any extra items you need on the day you arrive. If you are planning to arrive early then The West Highland Museum is well worth a visit too.
Spean Bridge – a very small village, on the banks of the famous River Spean. However, it still has the important facilities you need, such as a couple of pubs/restaurants and a shop.
Newtonmore – a little village is famous for its wild cats. Not just a living wild cat population but also many of the houses and shops proudly display their wild cat statues. It also has a large shop and a few very good places to eat.
Aviemore – a bustling small town of the A9, which connects Inverness to the North with Perth to the South. Aviemore has a numerous shops, cafes, pubs and restaurants as well as train station.
Carrbridge – a small village just outside Aviemore and is known as the gateway to the Cairngorms National Park. There is a small shop there as well as multiple places to eat. It is a great place to celebrate completing the East Highland Way.
You will be provided with a full kit list, but as a guide the basics you will need are:
A small rucksack (around 25 litres), walking boots, waterproof trousers, waterproof jacket, hat, gloves, a spare warm layer and walking trousers (not jeans or denim), a water bottle, sun and midge protection.
With Thistle Trekking you get a personal service. We are happy to answer any questions and queries and help where we can with all aspects of your trip.
Your point of contact will be the same person from the first enquiry to the final communication before your East Highland Way trek.
Our guides are all qualified, experienced, and fun companions on the trail.
What our walkers said about their East Highland Way trek
You provide excellent service and I will happily recommend you to all my friends. Thank you so much for making the trip so logistically easy for us! Thank you for everything!
Kelli E
A lovely trek in beautiful countryside with some amazing views along the way.
Margaret T
An excellent trip with a charming, knowledgeable guide Cecilia, who took great care of us and kept a very high morale throughout the trip. Both David and Cecilia went to a lot of trouble to make sure that we were happy with the walk, the food and the accommodation. They provided a very personal and flexible service.
Jean
Dates
We do offer private and bespoke group trips on all our treks and walking holidays. These can start on any date of your choosing, with a minimum of 4 people.
Please contact us with your preferred dates and accommodation, along with your group size.
-
View Package PricesSunday15 August 2027Sunday22 August 2027
