Port Appin - a hidden gem on our cycling holidays

Last week we were up in Scotland, scouting out routes for a very exciting new cycling holiday we're putting together. With no rain to speak of, we were rewarded on Day 4 with an absolutely stunning parting of the clouds, to reveal a dusky sunset bathed in golden light. It helped that we had just arrived in the most picturesque of settings: Port Appin.

Situated at the end of a long and windy single-track road, so remote that we nearly turned around before reaching the end as we assumed there was nothing down there, Port Appin is a simple little place with a small, independent hotel, a patch of green grass, and a pier from which one can catch a boat. The ferry, which runs several times a day, transports people over Loch Linnhe to the Isle of Lismore. Part of the Southern, Inner Hebrides, it's a wonderful island to visit, and popular amongst those in-the-know, partly because there's a walk along its ridge which offers such spectacular views that it's been named one of the UK's Top 100 Walks.

Even if you don't have time to make the trip across to Lismore, we really couldn't recommend paying a visit to Port Appin enough. The hotel there is a hugely popular cult favourite - The Pierhouse. It's got a real boutique feel to it, very friendly staff, characterful rooms done in great taste, and a fab seafood restaurant. If you happen to be there around tea time, order the house special hot chocolate with marshmallows. You will not regret it!

If all this has whet your appetite to visit Port Appin and the surrounding Scottish Highlands, keep you eyes peeled for more info coming soon on our new cycling holiday. We think the tour has more beautiful scenery than any of our other cycling holidays.... and that's really saying something!