Scotland Road Trip: Jacobite Steam Train from Fort William to Mallaig (Day 8)
Heading back to Fort William from Mallaig. Yes the steam engine is going backwards!
UPDATED: 2/5/2023
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Having picked up some basics for breakfast the night before at the grocery store, we were able to eat a quick bite before driving the short distance (about 10 minutes) to Fort William’s train station.
Jacobite Steam Train from Fort William to Mallaig
the train station at fort william
Near the train station is the parking lot for travelers. While there were a lot of cars there by the time we arrived at around 10am on a Wednesday, we did not have difficulty finding a parking spot. The parking lot is a pay lot, so there is a machine where you can purchase a ticket that you then place on the car’s dashboard.
The parking lot is right to the side of the train station and so is very close and convenient. Good thing, too, because we were running short on time!
The Jacobite Steam train route and details
The steam train essentially runs as a down-and-back route from Fort William to Mallaig, an 84-mile journey round trip, a route known as the “Road to the Isles”. The train runs during the warmer months of the year with two time options during the majority of the time. The morning train (which we took) was offered in 2019 from April 22nd through October 25th (weekdays with slightly different start/end dates for weekends), whereas the afternoon train was offered during a bit of a shorter window from May 13th to September 13th (with again different weekend schedules).
Along the route, which is 42 miles out, the train passes over Glenfinnan Viaduct, makes a short stop at the Glenfinnan station, and then passes through Arisaig and culminates in Mallaig, the end of the line and a cute coastal town. Glenfinnan, in addition to being home to the picturesque viaduct, is also where Bonnie Prince Charlie raised his standard in Scotland, the start to his march to retake his throne that would crash down a mere eight months later at Culloden Battlefield, which we had visited earlier on this trip.
The morning train we took departed at 10:15am with a planned arrival at Mallaig at 12:25pm. From there, we would have a little under two hours before the return train departure of 2:10pm and scheduled to arrive back at Fort William at 4pm.
seating options on the jacobite steam train
There are three main seat types: Standard Class Carriage, First Class Open Carriage, and First Class Compartment Carriage. We purchased our tickets for the First Class Open Carriage, which has more comfortable seats and included complimentary beverages, such as coffee, along with some small snacks for the journey. The seats were in clusters of four with two seats facing the other two with a table in between. It is important to note for those sensitive to motion sickness (as I am) that this means two seats face backwards, no matter the direction the train goes in so you’ll want to pay attention to where you sit.
We initially contemplated booking the First Class Compartment Carriage (only available on the morning route) to be in the private enclosed space, but those compartments house six seats each. Given that there were four of us, we decided we would rather not be stuck in a compartment with a couple of strangers.
Passengers are not able to make seat selections, though the booking system will place parties booked together in seats with each other. For some riders, being on side of the train with the best views of the viaduct is important, but since that is out of your control, we’ll share some tips further along in this blog to help you get those beautiful photos no matter what!
views along the journey
Because this is coastal Scotland, there is a fair chance you’ll experience fog or clouds along the trip. There were a couple of spots on our morning trip out that would have provided beautiful views were it not for the fog. But the fog wasn’t everywhere, and we were also able to enjoy the diffused light and softness that fog brings to an environment. Most of the route was through hills, wooded areas, and there was one beautiful spot on our side of the train that was a lake that had some trees on their own private mini-islands.
And the views were not only of scenery: there were several places along the way - not only at the viaduct - where train watchers were piled up, cameras in hand, awaiting the train to capture pictures of the photogenic engine. At one place where the road ran parallel to the train track, we observed several cars being driven by one person with a second person leaning out the passenger window filming the train. I can only imagine the type of coordination that went into pulling that off from timing to pacing to getting the lighting conditions just right!
what to do in Mallaig
The arrival of the morning train is timed perfectly to grab a bite to eat. The Mallaig train station is right in the center of the small harbor town that is the jumping off point for ferries to isles such as Eigg and Rum. There is a small Harry Potter store that has a sorting hat for children (or I guess Harry Potter fans of all ages).
During our visit, we were able to get a window view table at The Cornerstone restaurant from which we could watch the boats and sea birds. A boy maybe about 12 years old stood outside playing bagpipes with his parents and dogs sitting nearby, and we were able to hear the tunes inside.
Tip: Make a lunch reservation in advance or at least do some advance research and know where you plan to head as soon as the train stops at the Mallaig station. We did the latter and so while everyone else was getting off the train and thinking ‘now what?’ we high-tailed it straight over to a restaurant and got great seats. Making reservations in advance would have made that even easier, particularly given the crowds arriving at the same time and the relatively short period of the stop in the city. The restaurant was well aware that we were on the train (and inquired to confirm), so they make a point of ensuring people are in-and-out in time to make their return train.
tips for photographing the glenfinnan viaduct from the jacobite steam train
The greatest likelihood of being able to get a photo is if you are either at or near one of the ends of the train, so when you look out the window as the train curves around the viaduct, you can see the train cars.
If you are in a train car on the left side of the train outbound to Mallaig (when seated and facing in the direction the train is going), you are on the correct side to take photos since the train curves with you.
If you are on the right side (when outbound to Mallaig) or your seats are in the middle of the train, you will want to move to a better spot to take a photo. We were right near the front of the train so were able to get to the spot between train cars right in front of our car. You can select any of those pass-through areas throughout the train (again, you want to be near the front or back of the entire train, though).
These spots fill up quickly and early, so if a photo is important to you, get there and stake your spot. To be considerate of others, I’d recommend only one member of your party stand in one of those spots instead of clogging up the space. In our case, Dustin was the photographer.
The train windows can be a little dirty and aren’t the clearest glass - the train does put out steam after all! You can lower the windows in the train to get clearer pictures but be aware that the train goes through several tunnels so put the window back up or the entire car will get filled with the smoke from the steam (this happened on our car a few times).
When we arrived back at Fort William, we got our car from the parking lot next to the station and returned back to our AirBnb in Corpach. We walked to the grocery store nearby and picked up some supplies to cook dinner ourselves - lamb chops with mint and potatoes.
After dinner, we headed across the street to the train tracks to catch a glimpse of the evening Jacobite Steam Train returning to Fort William. It is very easy to get to the train track in Corpach, and no one else was there, so if you don’t plan to ride the train but want to see it, this is a good spot!
We could hear the train and see the steam rising from it in the distance and got our cameras set up, ready to get a good shot of the engine as it chugged by. While we were able to get some good photos, we had not planned for the fact that the engine would be facing backwards in this direction! While trains do get turned around on the tracks and the engines can face in either direction, you are probably more likely to get the engine facing the right way during the train’s journey to Mallaig, so you may want to keep that in mind if you plan on photographing it en route.
This is the approximate route we took on the train (though this map shows the road version). This route would be pretty whether you drive or take the train, though the benefit of the train is that you can enjoy the views more easily!
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Check out our other posts about Scotland:
To Callander
Hiking in Glencoe Valley, visiting Luss, “the prettiest village in Scotland,” and more on our next day of the road trip.