Visiting the Cairngorms National Park

The Cairngorms National Park encompasses the Cairngorm mountain range as well as the larger surrounding area of the Scotland’s Central Highlands.

The Cairngorm mountains themselves are virtually inaccessible by public road, but luckily there are many roads within the National Park’s limits that provide access to them. The A9 is a main green road that runs up on the Western side of the range, providing access to Newtonmore, Kinguissie and Aviemore, as well as all of the mountain resorts on the way, before becoming the A95 to Grantown on Spey, where you can connect with the A939. The 939 is a more minor road, which runs along the Eastern edge of the mountains, through historic Tomintoul, among others, before finally reaching Ballater. Hotels in Ballater make an excellent base from which to hike in the Cairngorms. The A93 services the South-Easterly side of the park.

To reach the mountains themselves from Ballater, roads end at Linn of Dee and Allanquoich, which, though once a settlement of hamlet-esque size, is now little more than a single farmhouse. Alternatively, coming from the North-West, you can get as far as Coylumbridge and the Cairn Gorm Ski Slopes, near Aviemore.

In the winter, as well as Cairn Gorm, the park offers three of Scotland’s five ski areas with real snow, as the Cairngorms are known to hold their snow better than most European ski regions, due in part to their Northerly location. The other two are Lecht 2090, reachable easily from Tomintoul, and Glenshee ski area, near to Braemar in the South.

Hiking is also a major activity in the park, with many walking trails to suit all ages and levels of ability, and accessible from most villages that circle the park. Some of the best local routes take in ancient Caledonian pine forests, and are located around the Rothiemurchus Estate and in the wider Glenmore region. There is also the Speyside Way, running from Aviemore and following the Spey as it flows Northwards to the sea, enough to make any short breaks Scotland. There is also excellent climbing.

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