These two anchorages are on opposite sides of a small headland, within easy walking distance of each other. Both are exposed to the south.
If you can stand the rolling about which can be a problem at Port Appin, there are mooring buoys supplied by the beautifully situated Pierhouse, a very good place for a meal with I am told an excellent but not inexpensive seafood restaurant (ph 01631 730302). I have only ever had a bar meal years ago, which I guess they may not do anymore, and there were no real ales. But I can report the teas with scones are excellent in 2026. Originally the building was a 19th century cottage for the pier-master when steamships used to call here. It was considerably improved and extended in the 1990s. New owners arrived in 2019 and the whole place is on the move upwards.
For the very serious foodie the Airds Hotel beckons, just a few minutes up the road (ph 01631 730236). Here you could get one of the best meals in Scotland, and they didn't mind too much if you were a wee bit scruffy off a boat (no ties needed thankfully). But maybe the food is a better experience if you stay at the hotel, the gastronomic effect is rather spoiled by a wet row back to the boat in a strong southwesterly wind. In 2014, a Michelin star, but alas no longer. Indeed in 2026 it was for sale so we will have to see how it goes.
Just across the road from the Airds you will find the very pretty top section of the old Sgeir Bhuidhe lighthouse (yes, another Stevenson, built in 1904). In 2002 the original lighthouse was replaced by one of those ugly modern low-maintenance eco-friendly solar-powered boxes designed by someone with no aesthetic sense whatsoever. Indeed, the proposed change was so resented by the local community that one day they woke up to find their dear old lighthouse had been repainted to look like Mr Blobby, a well known TV cartoon character at the time. Needless to say the Northern Lighthouse Board was not amused.
If you want to nip across to Lismore there is a passenger ferry operating from the pier. And you can hire bikes in Port Appin.
Airds bay is a bit more sheltered than Port Appin, at least from the north and west. The fine big house overlooking the bay is 18th century, Airds House, privately owned so you can't really get near it. However, the walk round the headland is good. It takes about 40 minutes if you are not side-tracked by the two excellent eating establishments in Port Appin (see above). Go ashore (with some difficulty) on the west side of the bay where the rocks end and a sort of beach begins, pick up the track and turn left or right. To the left, near the headland is an impressive natural arch in the quartzite. The deciduous trees are lovely, clinging in some places to the limestone cliffs. In a short while you get to the Pierhouse. Further on, just before taking the path back off the road to Airds Bay, is the Airds Hotel. Also the village hall is near here where you can get local information, and there is a small general store too. Plus the Lighthouse Craft Shop which is excellent and sells what it says on the tin, ideal for Christmas presents. And a red telephone box converted into a book exchange. The Port Appin studio, right by the pier, is run by Alex Gourlay, a landscape artist, and his wife Midge who is a textile designer. You can visit by appointment, or buy on-line (ph 01631 730594). The pastiche turrets on some of the modern houses by the pier leave something to be desired. Another walk is along the road towards Glaceriska Bay on Loch Creran.
