Inchmahome Priory

Overview

About Inchmahome Priory

Why stop

Medieval ruins on a peaceful island
Short boat crossing adds to the visit

Heads up

Seasonal boat service limits access
Small island makes for a short visit

A 13th-century priory ruin sits on Inchmahome Island, the largest of the three islands in the Lake of Menteith. It was founded around 1238 by Walter Comyn for a small community of Augustinian canons, and it later provided sanctuary to Mary, Queen of Scots. The combination of a genuine medieval ruin and a peaceful island setting reached only by water makes this feel quite different from a roadside monument.

Parkwolf’s verdictWhy go

Map

Where it is

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SightInchmahome Priory56.17619, -4.29810

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Plan your stop

Before you go

Best time to go

Plan on about one to two hours overall, including the crossing, the ruins and the shoreline walk. Timings are approximate and depend on how long you linger and how the boat shuttle is running. Because the boat takes small groups, allow flexibility around the return crossing rather than booking yourself tightly into other plans.

Getting there: boat-dependent access

Access is by boat only. Visitors take a short crossing from the mainland near Port of Menteith, on a small motor boat carrying up to 12 people that shuttles between the shore and the island. The broad operating pattern is spring through early autumn, but you should check the current seasonal boat and visiting schedule before travelling rather than turning up on spec.

4 active Loch Lomond & The Trossachs alerts

CautionA82 restriction near Kings House HotelThe A82 is restricted in both directions near Kings House Hotel, Glencoe, because of planned roadworks. - Temporary traffic lights are in place; follow the traffic management.Official details
ClosureDaytime A827 closure at KillinThe A827 at Killin is closed during the day for roadworks from 28 September through 9 October 2026. - Closure hours: 9:30am to 3:30pm; avoid the route during those hours.Official details

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A park ranger sits on a dash-mounted phone, talking, as Parkwolf’s Tour Guide plays “Army Cutworm Moths: A Grizzly Bear Buffet” on Grand Loop Road below Dunraven Pass in Yellowstone — Parkwolf Tour GuideThe highest, rockiest slopes around here are a summer buffet for grizzly bears.

Loch Lomond & The Trossachs Tour Guide

Your drive to Inchmahome Priory, narrated.

Parkwolf is a GPS audio tour guide for Loch Lomond & The Trossachs National Park. As you drive, it chimes in with what’s ahead: hidden gems, upcoming stops, history, geology, and wildlife, right through your car’s speakers.

Recorded for this place

Inchmahome Priory and the Lake of Menteith

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“You're approaching the mainland departure for Inchmahome Priory on the Lake of Menteith. A small boat takes you to an island with the ruins of an Augustinian priory founded around twelve thirty-eight.”

Plays as you drive up to Inchmahome Priory in the Parkwolf Loch Lomond & The Trossachs Tour Guide.

More about Inchmahome Priory

What you see and doYou can explore the priory ruins at your own pace and read the information boards placed around…

You can explore the priory ruins at your own pace and read the information boards placed around the site to make sense of what survives. A gentle shoreline circuit takes roughly 15 minutes, so it is easy to combine a walk around the island with time among the ruins. The island also has general wildlife, flowers and trees to notice as you go.

Practical facilitiesParking: a rough tarmac car park on the mainland with 16 general-use bays.

Parking: a rough tarmac car park on the mainland with 16 general-use bays.
Toilets: located near reception on the island, reached up five earthen steps; an accessible toilet is on the mainland.
Shopping: a Priory Shop on the island.

Honest drawbacksThis is a small visit.

This is a small visit. The site is compact, the shoreline circuit is short, and once you have walked the island and read the boards there is not a great deal more to fill a day. The bigger limitation is dependence on a seasonal boat service: if the boat is not running, the island simply cannot be reached, and the 12-person capacity means crossings happen in small batches. Anyone unable to manage five earthen steps should note that the island toilets are up them, with the accessible option back on the mainland.

Wildlife

Wildlife in Loch Lomond & The Trossachs

All Loch Lomond & The Trossachs wildlife maps

14 sightingsGolden EagleMost seen around 6 PMSighting map

37 sightingsRed DeerMost seen around 7 PMSighting map

100 sightingsMute SwanMost seen around 11 AMSighting map

48 sightingsOspreyMost seen around 6 PMSighting map

24 sightingsEurasian BeaverMost seen around 8 PMSighting map

37 sightingsEurasian Pine MartenMost seen around 7 PMSighting map

Sighting maps show where each species has been reported across Loch Lomond & The Trossachs. Wildlife moves, so no sighting is guaranteed.