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Planning a trip on Scotland’s West Highland Way can feel overwhelming – there’s a lot to think about. Wondering how to plan a walk on the West Highland Way? Here are 10 steps to plan your own West Highland Way hiking trip along with some West Highland Way tips.

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Step 1: What types of accommodations do you want?

The first stepin West Highland Way planning is to decide what type of accomodations you want to stay in. There are lots of options – you can choose what fits your comfort level and budget. Here are some choices:

Wild camping in Scotland

Wild camping – sometimes known as dispersed camping or backcountry camping – is legal almost everywhere in Scotland. There are a few rules around it, but you can set your tent up almost anywhere. If you are going to do that, know and respect the rules and be sure to leave no trace. There’s an area around Loch Lomond where wild camping is not allowed, so plan to camp outside of that area or get other lodgings. Other than that, you can wild camp on the West Highland Way.

Campgrounds on the West Highland Way

Campgrounds offer tent camping with shared facilities such as toilets and showers. When camping, your tent will be on a pitch with other tent campers so you have other people around you. Costs vary by campground, but these are generally a very affordable option.

Cabins / Microlodges

Many campgrounds also offer cabins. These are no-frills rooms (generally a standalone building) with differing amenities. Some will have a heater and electricity; others are a bed with a roof over your head.

They have a little more comfort than tent camping and they cost less than hotels. Toilets are usually in the shared campground facility.

Bunkhouses and hostels

Bunkhouses and hostels generally have a shared bathroom and sets of bunk beds in a room. These are a step up from camping, though there’s no privacy and they can be noisy, but they are cheaper than hotels.

Hotels

Hotels, as you know, are a room of your own. Sometimes there’s a shared bathroom down the hall (I had this at Drover’s Inn), sometimes it will be in the room. These cost more, but if you like a little more luxury this might be the best way for you. Many hotels also have restaurants.

Step 2: Baggage transfer service

You can hire a company to pick up your luggage every morning and deliver it to your next destination. This is sometimes known as slackpacking. There’s no shame in it – I did it and I loved it!

Here’s how it works: You drop your bag off at a designated area where you’re staying – I had to have mine ready by 9 a.m. every day. They’ll pick it up and deliver it to your next destination by the afternoon.

This means you only have to carry a day back with just the basics in it – your rain gear, food for the day, and so on. Your heavier gear, like sleeping bag or tent if you have one, get to travel by vehicle and you don’t have to carry them.

But if you’re wild camping, they generally can not deliver to a wild camping area – you have to have a designated place to stay that night.

There are several companies that offer the service. I used AMS Scotland and I was very happy with them. You’ll need to look at the cost to decide if you want to do that or not.

Step 3: Pick your route on the West Highland Way

This is probably the hardest part of planning to hike the West Highland Way – there’s a lot to think about. Start with knowing what mileage you’re capable of, keeping in mind how much gear weight you’ll have. Get a guidebook – I loved this West Highland Way Guidebook – and use that to see which towns have the kinds of accommodations you’re looking for. Then combine what you plan to do for miles with where the towns are to see how far you can get.

Bonus tip: Don’t plan your longest mileage days for the harder parts of the trail. For me, Conic Hill and the rocky section along Long Lomond were the most difficult sections of trail – they were also my longest mileage days. They were tough, even without carrying a full pack.

If you watch my West Highland Way videos, you’ll get a good idea of what the trail looks like through there.

My route on the West Highland Way

I spent 9 days hiking the West Highland Way, though the last day was only 2 miles and could have been completed on day 8. Starting in Milngavie, I stayed in Drymen, Rowerdennan, Inverarnan, Tyndrum, Bridge of Orchy, Glencoe, Kinlochleven, Glen Nevis, and ended at Fort William.

There are lots of different ways to complete the West Highland Way and it’s easy to adjust based on the amount of days and/or miles you want to do.

Step 4: Timing

When do you want to hike the West Highland Way? This may be based on when you can take the time to do it, what your favorite season is, or when you think you can avoid midges (good luck with that!) Pick your dates, and make sure to give yourself enough time to book places to stay because they can fill up.

Step 5: Find accomodations

You know the kinds of places you want to stay, you have a route, and you have dates – it’s time to book places to stay. If you’re wild camping, scope out the areas where you think you might end up. Know where you can’t camp so you have a plan for that and, if you’re booking places to stay, get that done before they fill up.

Step 6: Travel plans

If you’re traveling long distances, you’ll need to arrange airfare, train, or whatever your means of travel is. Give yourself extra time so if there are travel delays or cancellations you don’t miss part of your trip.

Step 7: Gear

Get the gear you need and test it. You do not want to set up your tent for the very first time in a swarm of midges!

Step 8: Training

Train for the weight you will carry or more. You can add extra weight while you’re training to simulate elevation gain. There is almost no elevation where I live, so I usually hike with a heavy pack to get in shape. Train on rough terrain and carry the gear you will use on the West Highland Way.

Step 9: Food on the West Highland Way

Can you get meals at your accommodations or do you need to bring it all? Are there places you can re-stock part way through? Look at your route and which options are available to you. You can buy some things in advance and plan how to manage the rest. I was able to buy additional food from some of the places I stayed. Some places will also make a lunch for you to pack and carry on the trail. Check with your accommodations if that’s something you’re interested in.

Step 10: Last minute supplies

Where will you get stove fuel if you can’t bring it with you on a plane? Do you need to pick up backpack meals when you get there? Plan out where to buy those things before you hit the trail so when you start your hike on the West Highland Way, you are ready to go. I hit up the Tiso in Glasgow for fuel and some meals before I started on the West Highland Way.

Bonus tip: Plan for the beginning and end of your trip

Are you going to stay in Glasgow, or maybe Milngavie? How are you going to get there? Do you have accommodations? Don’t forget to plan for those parts, too!

Plan your trip on the West Highland Way

I hope this helps you plan your own trip on the West Highland Way. I made arrangements for my trip about a month before I left – I wished I had started sooner. Some of the accommodations had filled up, limiting my choices, but my trip turned out great. There are so many ways to do it – wild camping, staying in hotels -to match however you like to travel.

Want to see what it’s like to walk West Highland Way?

Check out this playlist with all my West Highland Way videos.