Overview|History|Cowal Highland Gathering|Accomodation|Outlying Areas

Overview

The picturesque haven of Dunoon is located on the West Coast of Scotland, in the peninsula of Argyll. It is the gateway to the isles. It is hard to believe that a place with so much natural beauty is less than 45 minutes from Glasgow. Dunoon alone has ample to satisfy most visitors and many, many people return year after year. However Dunoon’s surrounding areas are rich with tourist attractions, an abundance of natural beauty in the Argyll National Park and a mix of fresh and seawater lochs.

Taking the ferry journey, either Western Ferries or Caledonian MacBrayne will open your eyes to the beauty of the Clyde estuary and brings further anticipation to the adventure, which awaits.

Although the Argyll Forest Park provides pleasure for many visiting the area, there are numerous other attractions, places of interest and activities which are of the more typical for a tourist resort.

The area is blessed with 3 golf courses, a theatre, a cinema, an abundance of eating establishments and restaurants, craft shops, art galleries, beautiful gardens, a bird park and museums. There are a number of activities which would appeal to those with a more adventurous appetite. Quadbiking, high-speed boat trips, yachting and diving are available in the locality.

You can see from the what 2 do page, that there are many great things to see and do. If its things you want to do with the kids, things to do on a rainy day, trips out in the car, walks, places to fish, activities for the daring, golfing, restaurants, pubs, hotels, you name we have the best listed. We also publish a review guide which details the best and worst of the experiences provided for each attraction.

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A little bit of history

It wasn’t until the eighteenth century with the introduction of reliable rail and steamer links that Dunoon was opened up to the tourist trade. It expanded rapidly into a major Clyde resort. Many wealthy Glaswegian businessmen adopted Dunoon as their holiday destination of choice with many of them owning their own holiday homes in the area.

The infrastructure developed under the guise of David Napier in the 1830’s, who had a home in Kilmun. It was Mr Napier who helped the steamer and railway companies build up their fleets. Piers were built in most of the havens surrounding Dunoon, many of which are still standing today (although not many are used). Piers such as Dunoon, Rothesay, Largs, Gourock are still regularly used. Dunoon Pier is perhaps the most famous in the area and was built during in 1835 and further extended years later.

Shipping via the steamers was by far the major transport method and many local communities relied on this heavily until the advent of the motor car in the 1940’s.

During the Second World War, a submarine base was introduced to Sandbank with many local hotels becoming naval quarters for the duration of the war.  In the 1960’s, the cold war brought the presence of the American navy submarine base into the Holy Loch. This saw many protests from anti-nuclear demonstrators at the time but despite this, many local girls married into the American navy and this explains the strong links that the area still has with the USA today. Visit www.holyloch.com for more info.

The navy base is long gone, leaving in 1992. The navy base took with it much needed revenue and many businesses struggled or closed during this time. However, the area didn’t stay down for long and improvements in local tourist development brought the towns major industry back to life.

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Cowal Highland Gathering

The largest event in the local calendar is that of the Cowal Highland Gathering which is held in the town on the last weekend of August every year. It brings together pipebands, athletes, dancers and supporters from all over the globe. It is considered to be the premier highland gathering in Europe and is the largest in the world.

For Dunoon it is some spectacle with the streets lined with supporters and local folk cheering on the bands as they march up to Dunoon stadium to compete and down the street again at night, proudly showing off their trophies. The crowds cheer as many bands pipe majors toss their batons. The highlight is a firework display at the pier end of the town in the evening, and some display it is.

Many people return to Dunoon year on year specifically for this event. Of course watching the bands march up and down the town and enjoying the firework display in the evening is free, however, many people choose to buy a ticket to the stadium which is where the real action can be witnessed.    This is where the real competition takes place with the pipe bands competing against each other, highland dancers and athletes all taking part.  There are many things for kids to do inside the stadium with stalls and bouncy castles surrounding the perimeter. If it’s a nice day, then there is nothing better than soaking up the atmosphere on the banks of the stadium.

Visit www.cowalgathering.com for more info.

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Accommodation

There is a multitude of accommodation in the area, ranging from 4 star hotels to single star bed and breakfast establishments. Our accommodation guide will be published soon, however, clicking on the accommodation link will list the different types of accommodation, the facilities and contact details.

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Outlying Areas

Dunoon is a great base for exploring many of the west coasts attractions. There are many more hamlets and towns near by, places such as Oban, Rothesay, Largs, Helensburgh, Loch Lomond and Balloch, Isle of Arran… the list goes on.

Take a look around our site to get the most of your visit to Dunoon.

We hope you enjoy your stay.

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