Europe > Britain and Ireland > United Kingdom > Scotland > Scottish Highlands > The Great Glen and Strathspey > Kingussie
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Kingussie is a small town in the Scottish Highlands, in the upper part of the Spey Valley as it descends from the lonely moors. It's a good base for exploring the western side of Cairngorms National Park.
Get in[edit]
By train[edit]
- 1 Kingussie railway station, Ruthven Road PH21 1EN.
- Scotrail services link Kingussie with Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness several times a day.
- LNER runs a daily service between Inverness and London via Kingussie. The service calls at principal stations including Edinburgh, Newcastle and York.
- The Caledonian Sleeper leaves London Euston nightly except Saturday around 21:00 to reach Pitlochry by 07:00 on its way to Inverness. The southbound sleeper picks up around 22:00 and reaches Euston by 08:00. You might prefer to take the Lowland Sleeper from Euston towards midnight and change in Edinburgh for a daytime train. Returning south, you need to leave Pitlochry before 20:00 to join the Lowland Sleeper from Edinburgh around 23:30.
By car[edit]
- Kingussie is just off the A9, the main road north to Inverness.
By bus[edit]
Most of the buses along the A9 bypass Kingussie, and there's usually only one Citylink bus per day from Edinburgh, Glasgow and Perth.
Get around[edit]
The town can easily be explored on foot, but a car or bicycle could be useful for seeing the surrounding countryside.
See[edit]
- 1 Ruthven Barracks. Always open. A ruined 18th century fort, stands just across the Spey about 1 mile from the railway station. Maintained by Historic Scotland. Free.
- 2 RZSS Highland Wildlife Park (5 miles NE of Kingussie), ☏ +44 1540 651270. Safari park and zoo.
- 3 Highland Folk Museum, Highland Folk Museum, Kingussie Road, Newtonmore, PH20 1AY, ☏ +44 1540 673551. Apr-Aug daily 10:30-17:30, Sep-Oct daily 11:00-16:30, Nov-Mar closed. Open air museum of ordinary highland life based in nearby Newtonmore. Free, donations welcome.
Do[edit]
- Walk: Kingussie is a good base for walking in the Cairngorms.
- Newtonmore Highland Games are held there in early August on "The Eilean". The 2020 event was cancelled so the next is probably Sat 7 Aug 2021 but tbc.
Buy[edit]
- 1 Co-op Food, 24 High St Kingussie PH21 1RH. Daily 06:00-22:00. Convenience supermarket.
Eat[edit]
- The Cross gets rave reviews for its restaurant, see "Sleep".
- 1 Tipsy Laird, 68 High St PH21 1HZ, ☏ +44 1540 661708. Daily 11:00-23:00. Restaurant and bunkhouse (beds from £20). Mains from £10.
Drink[edit]
- Several hotels have public bars, eg the Duke of Gordon in village centre.
- Speyside Distillery is two miles east of Kingussie on the back lane to Feshiebridge. The whisky is widely available but they don't offer tours.
Sleep[edit]
- 1 Greystones B&B, Acres Road (At the Kingussie traffic lights turn up Ardbroilach Road. Take the 4th right turn into Acres Road, Greystones B&B is to the end on the right.), ☏ +44 1540 661052. Lovely house, very friendly owners who have dogs in the house. from £30 (breakfast from £6).
- 2 The Cross, Tweed Mill Brae, Ardbroilach Road PH21 1LB, ☏ +44 1540 661166. Excellent small hotel with top-class restaurant. B&B double £150.
- 3 Arden House, Newtonmore Rd, ☏ +44 1540 661369.
Connect[edit]
- Three and EE have 4G coverage, O2 and Vodafone only outdoors. 5G has not yet reached Kingussie.
Go next[edit]
- Aviemore is a good centre for exploring the Spey Valley and Cairngorms, though the ski centre remains closed.
- Fort William is on the doorstep of Ben Nevis.
- Blair Atholl is the first town south after crossing Drumochter Pass. It has a scenic castle.
Routes through Kingussie |
Inverness ← Aviemore ← | NE ![]() |
→ Blair Atholl → Perth |