Tiny island with UK’s smallest cathedral, Victorian promenade and white sand beach – just 8 minutes from the mainland
THE tiny Scottish island of Cumbrae has the UK’s smallest cathedral – and it’s just a eight-minute ferry journey from the mainland.
Located on the Ayrshire Coast in Western Scotland, Cumbrae, also known as Great Cumbrae, is just four miles long and two miles wide.
It is perhaps because of its small size that Cumbrae is overlooked compared to other more well-known isles like Skye, Islay and Mull.
The island is home to just 1,500 residents, with day-trippers visiting Cumbrae from the likes of Glasgow in the summer months.
Despite its small size, Cumbrae is often regarded as Scotland’s “most accessible island” because it takes just 10 minutes to reach the island via ferry from the mainland.
Ferry company Caledonian MacBrayne operates a direct service between Largs in North Ayrshire and Millport, Cumbrae’s only town.
The seaside town is home to the Cathedral of the Isles, which claims to be the UK’s smallest cathedral.
Designed by architect William Butterfield, the Cathedral of the Isles was built in 1851, with worshippers flocking there ever since.
Hidden behind a cluster of trees, the cathedral is just a seven-minute walk from the heart of Millport.
Holidaymakers can learn more about the history of Cumbrae at the Museum of Cumbraes, which has a mixture of permanent and temporary exhibitions.
Located in Garrison House, entry into the museum is free.
Cycling is another key tourist activity, with visitors able to cycle around the entire circumference of the island in under two hours.
Visitors will be able to take in views of the North Ayrshire Coast and the Isle of Bute.
Cumbrae has a sandy beach that is popular with families, surfers and canoeists.
A large painted, plastic, crocodile sits on a rock at the beach, which is considered to be a good spot for crab hunting.
There’s also Newton Beach – an award-winning beach that’s said to have fine white sand.
Wildlife-watching boat trips also take place around the island with daily sightings of Seals, Oyster Catchers, Gannets, Cormorants in the surrounding waters.
Holidaymakers who don’t want to get the ferry back to Largs on the same day will be able to stay overnight at a handful of hotels.
Stays at the Millport Pier Hotel start from £90 per night, based on two people sharing a room.
There are plenty of other lesser-known islands to explore in Scotland.
OTHER ISLANDS TO VISIT IN SCOTLAND
Isle of Erraid
The tiny, and stunningly beautiful, Inner Hebridean Isle of Erraid is tidal island, just a mile square located just off the tip of the Ross of Mull.
For an hour or two either side of low tide, it’s linked to the mainland by a broad expanse of sand which you can cross.
It’s been home to a small group of members of the Findhorn Foundation for over 40 years after they were given it by Dutch owners the Van der Sluis’ to look after, on condition that for one month during the summer, they would return to enjoy the freedom and adventure of the island.
A small group of intrepid members moved to the island, restored the cottages and started a spiritual community. But Erraid’s major claim to fame is its inspiration for the famous novel ‘Kidnapped’ by Robert Louis Stevenson.
Foula
The island of Foula really is remote. Found 20 miles west of the Shetland and 100 miles from the mainland, it was known in Roman times as ‘Ultima Thule,’ which roughly translates as ‘the edge of the world.’ In 1936, the classic movie of the same name was made there.
So what do you get in return for making the effort to get to Foula? It’s not big, at just five square miles, but it is dramatic, with one of the highest sheer sea cliffs in Britain, Da Kame, standing at an impressive 1,233ft.
It’s home to around just 35 islanders, mostly crofters who make a living from farming the rare and colourful Foula sheep. Its old Norse name was Fugla-ey, meaning ‘bird island’’. It’s still a haven for sea and moorland birds, including Great Skua, which divebomb anyone walking too close to their nests, so be careful!
What's it like to visit Cumbrae?
THEIR silky backs sparkle in the sunshine as they leap from the waters.
Dolphins are not a regular sight when you’re cruising the Scottish Isles, but here they were, literally out of the blue, dancing in the wake of our boat.
The pod of four 8ft-long bottlenose dolphins were obviously showing the ropes to a smaller, paler calf.
Our skipper, Ted Creek, a marine biologist explained that the pod were usually spotted travelling up and down the west coast but had stuck around the Clyde Bay since the youngster was born last year.
Ted has been running Argyll Cruising since taking over the business last year, having previously ferried travellers from the bottom tip of South America to Antarctica.
Our home for the four-day trip around the isles of Bute, Arran and Cumbrae is an elegant, repurposed fishing vessel, a vintage 1950s trawler called Splendour.
There’s room for just eight guests, offering an intimate opportunity to sail the stunning waters in style.
Ted gave us a safety briefing as we set sail from Holy Loch Marina, Dunoon.
While we sipped champagne and tucked into baked treats, he explained our route.
After the debrief, we were taken to our charming cabins with wood-panelled walls and porthole windows.
There was also tartan pillows and blankets, as well as central heating and en-suite bathroom.
After a gorgeous meal cooked by the chef Tom Canning, we were gently rocked to sleep in the comfortable bed, with nothing but the splashing of water and surrounding wildlife to listen to, after docking next to Arran overnight.
In the morning, we headed to Holy Isle — a tiny island inhabited solely by residents of a Buddhist monastery.
They share the land with wild animals, including Eriskay ponies and Saanen goats.
But it is perhaps most famous for its sea life, as seen in David Attenborough’s BBC documentary Wild Isles.
A Brit is the leader of a remote island in the middle of the ocean – and claims it’s the smallest country in the world.
Michael Bates became the leader of “Sealand”, a platform 7.5 miles off the Suffolk coast when his dad Roy died in 1991.