Banff is a small fishing port in Aberdeenshire in northeast Scotland. It stands on the west bank of the mouth of the River Deveron, with the village of Macduff on the east bank. The main reason to visit is the scenic coastline, dotted with little coves and harbours, and for Duff House which is nowadays a branch of the National Galleries of Scotland.

Sir George Steven (1829-1921), founder president of the Canadian Pacific Railway, was born in Dufftown in Aberdeenshire, and named Banff, Alberta and Banff National Park after this Scottish town.

Get in

Duff House

By car

From the south - Follow M90 to Perth, then take the A90 Dundee road and follow this up to Aberdeen.

For coastal route - as soon as you reach Aberdeen, follow road signs for A90 for around 18 miles, then turn off on the A952 to Fraserburgh. Then at Fraserburgh, follow signs for A98 to Banff.

For country route - follow roadsigns for A947 Banff/Macduff.

From west/north - from Inverness, follow the A96 Aberdeen road until a mini-roundabout near the end of Fochabers, when you turn off on the A98 Fraserburgh road. Follow this road to Banff.

By bus

Stagecoach Bus 35 runs from Aberdeen to Macduff and Banff, taking two hours, and continuing to west to Portsoy and Elgin. Since March 2020 this only runs every two hours.

Bus 273 runs every two hours between Banff, Macduff and Gardenstown. It usually continues to Fraserburgh but this has been curtailed since March 2020.

By train

Banff lost its railway in 1964. The nearest stations are Huntly and Keith but these lack onward public transport; Elgin is a better option. These three stations are all on the line between Aberdeen and Inverness, with trains every two hours.

Get around

Buses 35 and 273 link Banff and Macduff.

See

• 1 Duff House. Apr-Oct daily 11:00-17:00, Nov-Mar Th-Su 11:00-16:00. A magnificent house designed by William Adam in 1735, and now housing an exhibition by the National Galleries of Scotland. Adult £7. (updated Jan 2017)
• 2 Macduff Marine Aquarium, 11 High Shore, Macduff AB44 1SL. Apr-Oct M-F 10:00-17:00, Sa Su 11:00-17:00; Nov-Mar Sa-W 11:00-16:00. Adult £6.65. (updated Jan 2017)
• 3 Museum of Banff. Museum founded in 1828, housed in the library which was built in 1902. Exhibits include the burgh cross dating from the 1400s and a claymore (sword) from the early 1300s. (updated Nov 2018)

Do

• 1 Banff Castle. A mansion house designed by architect John Adam, built in 1750, now used as a community arts venue. (updated Jan 2017)
• Cornhill Highland Games are held in May / June on Cornhill playing fields, 8 miles southwest of Banff. The 2020 event was cancelled so the next is probably Sat 5 June 2021, tbc.

Buy

The Farmers Market is held last Saturday of the month 09:00-12:30 in the Fishmarket, Macduff.

Eat

• 1 Co-op Food, Bridge Rd, Banff AB45 1HE. Daily 07:00-22:00. Near the river bridge so it's also reasonably handy for Macduff. (updated Apr 2020)
• 2 Tesco Metro, Carmelite St, Banff AB45 1AF. M-Sa 07:00-22:00, Su 10:00-18:00. Small supermarket. (updated Apr 2020)
• There's also a Scotmid on Duff St (B9026) at the south edge of Macduff, open daily 07:00-21:00.

Drink

In Banff are Ship Inn, Castle Bar, Aul Fife, Market Arms, Central Bar and Railway Inn. In Macduff is The Old Moray.

Sleep

• 1 Banff Springs Hotel, Golden Knowes Road, Banff, AB45 2JE. Restaurant has mains around £20. from £66. (updated Jan 2017)

Go next

• West to Portsoy, Lossiemouth and Elgin
• East to Gardenstown and Fraserburgh
• South to Methlick and Huntly