Cost Breakdown: Solo Hiking the West Highland Way [2023]
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When I solo hiked five long-distance trails back-to-back in Europe, including West Highland Way in Scotland, Hadrian’s Wall in England, Kerry Way in Ireland, Tour du Mont Blanc in France, Italy, and Switzerland, and the Alpe-Adria in Slovenia, I carried a heavy backpack and tried to camp in a tent as many nights as possible to keep costs down. The following is a day-by-day transportation and accommodation breakdown of what it cost me to hike the West Highland Way 96 miles (154 km) from Milngavie to Fort William in Scotland.
Regrettably I wasn’t tracking what I spent on food during these hikes, so this is simply the “base cost” prior to the variables that would differ wildly from person to person. I am also not including the entrance fees for fun optional sightseeing things that I did in Glasgow.
Wildcamping in Scotland is allowed throughout the majority of the West Highland Way (but not in Trossachs National Park for night two)! This means you could camp for free almost every single night if you want to. Hiking the West Highland Way can cost basically nothing. However, if you pay a nominal fee to pitch your tent at a designated campsite, or if you pick one of the free campsites below that are on hotel property, you’ll have access to amenities like showers and restrooms. If you do decide to wildcamp, read the Scottish Outdoor Access Code and recreate responsibly.
I hiked the West Highland Way in September 2019. I’ve done my best to update this post with 2023 prices where applicable. As always, be sure to check the most recent prices because inevitably they will increase every year.
Day 0: Travel Day
Transportation
Glasgow Airport Express bus from airport: £8.50
*Nov 2023 update: £10
Accommodation
Euro Hostel Glasgow: £23.50 per person per night
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both
*Nov 2023 update: This hostel closed down on Dec 1, 2023. Alternative hostel options in Glasgow can be found here. The best rated is Glasgow Youth Hostel for $30 (but it’s a 30 minute walk from Glasgow Central Station). The cheapest is Clyde Hostel (20 min) at $13.34. Safestay Charing Cross (15 min) is in the middle at about $15-20. Merchant City Inn (10 min) and Revolver Hotel (11 min) are the closest to Glasgow Central Station.
International hikers will want to fly into Glasgow and then take the train to Milngavie to begin the West Highland Way. I budgeted some time to get over jet lag and shop for camp food in Glasgow before moving on to Milngavie, and I’m very glad I did! It was fun to explore Glasgow in general, but I also bought an extremely necessary waterproof jacket there before beginning my hike. The Euro Hostel was perfectly fine, I have no complaints. I didn’t spend much time hanging out inside the hostel, except the morning of my train to Milngavie I took advantage of the breakfast buffet at their Mint & Lime Bar. I met other West Highland Way hikers fueling up at breakfast too.
Day 0: Rest Day
Accommodation
Euro Hostel Glasgow: £23.50 per person per night
*Nov 2023 update: See update from previous day.
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both
Day 1: Milngavie to Drymen
Transportation
Train from Glasgow Central to Milngavie: $5.09
*Nov 2023 update: $5.43
Accommodation
Drymen Camping: £7 per adult per night
*Nov 2023 update: £12 per adult per night
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both
TripAdvisor
It was easy to find Drymen Camping just to the side of the road about 1.3 miles prior to Drymen; there is no need to go off-trail to find it. You can pitch your tent as soon as you arrive and eventually someone will come around to collect the fee. There’s a large covered barn where I hung my tent up to dry for awhile the next morning before packing it up and continuing on, and there are horses onsite that really make the property look cozy. Plenty of other hikers were camping here the day I arrived.
Day 2: Drymen to Rowardennan
Accommodation
Lochan Maoil Dhuinne: £3 permit cost per tent
*Nov 2023 update: £4 permit cost per tent
Showers and toilets?: Neither
Lochan Maoil Dhuinne is one of my favorite campsites of all time. You’re not allowed to wildcamp in Trossachs National Park, but there is a designated section of the park where you can pitch a tent if you reserve a permit in advance. Be sure to print your permit and have a physical copy on hand when you arrive.
I pitched my tent on a secluded beach where I was surrounded by heather and shaded by trees as I watched Loch Lomond’s waves lap against the shore. One or two other campers set up nearby, but everyone kept a good distance to give each other privacy.
It was confusing trying to find the permitted area for tent camping. When you are emailed your permit, they will include instructions having to do with the landscape: “go down stone steps until you reach a shingly beach in a little bay with woodlands, continue over a small stream, take the path to the left down the steep hill through the trees…” A few landmarks looked like they could fit this criteria so I second guessed myself when I passed them up, but when I found the correct ones, there was no uncertainty.
There are other more developed campground options to choose from if you’re not interested in the permit area. TMBtent has a great series on all the possible campground options along the West Highland Way.
Day 3: Rowardennan to Inverarnan
Accommodation
Beinglas Farm: £8 for one adult
*Nov 2023 update: £12.50 for one adult (the rate is not “per person;” groups are slightly discounted)
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both
TripAdvisor
Beinglas Farm is one of the premiere West Highland Way campsites that almost every hiker seems to stop at. There is a whole restaurant onsite as well as a laundry facility and a drying area for your wet clothes. I’ve never seen drying rooms along any of the other treks I’ve done around the world, so I have a special place in my heart for the many West Highland Way accommodations that offer this extra luxury. I suppose it makes sense; if there’s any trail in the world where you need drying rooms, it’s this one. It rained almost every day for me.
Day 4: Inverarnan to Tyndrum
Accommodation
Strathfillan Wigwams: £8
*Nov 2023 update: Still £8 per adult per night
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both. Showers cost £1 for eight minutes.
TripAdvisor
Like many of the accommodations along the West Highland Way, there is an indoor lodging option at Strathfillan Wigwams as an alternative to tent camping. If you’re going to choose anywhere along the path to stay indoors and keep dry, the quirky wigwams at Strathfillan are a good place to splurge. They also have laundry facilities and a great little shop where you can buy unique snacks and specialty meats.
Day 5: Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy
Accommodation
Free camping behind Bridge of Orchy Hotel: $0
*Nov 2023 update: Still free
Showers and toilets?: Neither; dig a cathole in the wooded area. If you have a meal at Bridge of Orchy Hotel you could use their restroom.
TripAdvisor
From the trail you’ll approach the hotel first, but you want to pass by and walk over the footbridge to pitch your tent on the opposite side of the river. My feet were grateful when I soaked them in the cold water, but my stomach was even more grateful when I tried my first ever sticky toffee pudding at the hotel restaurant!
I noticed only a few other campers. I believe a lot of hikers continued further past Bridge of Orchy in order to wildcamp, because it’s only 7 miles to hike from Tyndrum to Bridge of Orchy. For me, the following day to Kings House was 12 miles, but those who wildcamped further afield from Bridge of Orchy shaved a few miles off of that. Some may have stopped to camp for free at Inverornan Hotel, which also has food options and is 3 miles past Bridge of Orchy.
Day 6: Bridge of Orchy to King’s House
Accommodation
Free camping behind Kingshouse Hotel: $0
*Nov 2023 update: Still free
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both (£1 for 5 minute shower)
TripAdvisor
Like Bridge of Orchy, Kingshouse Hotel is directly along the West Highland Way and impossible to miss. I shared the free campsite area behind Kingshouse Hotel with a good amount of other hikers, and the climber’s cafe/bar at the back of the hotel building was a popular spot. There is a bunkhouse in addition to the hotel itself, if you’re looking for a mid-range price somewhere between free and expensive. There is also a drying room, hallelujah!
Day 7: King’s House to Kinlochleven
Accommodation
MacDonald Hotel Campground: £10 for one adult
*Nov 2023 update: £15 for one adult (not “per person;” for example it’s £20 for two adults)
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both
TripAdvisor
The MacDonald Hotel campground is next to a pretty creek and is quite popular. It’s right in town so it doesn’t have much of a wilderness vibe. Once again, a drying room is available for your gear! There’s also a large restaurant where you can order a hearty burger.
The Blackwater Hostel also has a campground, though it fills up first because it’s smaller and it’s one of the first buildings you pass as you descend into Kinlochleven. If it’s full, you’ll have to keep walking further to reach MacDonald Hotel. I do think the MacDonald property is prettier than Blackwater, so the extra walking paid off.
Day 8: Kinlochleven to Fort William
Accommodation
Fort William Backpackers Hostel: £20.50 per person per night
*Nov 2023 update: £27.50 per person per night
Showers and toilets?: Yes to both
TripAdvisor
The Fort William Backpackers Hostel is extremely cozy, especially in the lounge! Once you arrive in Fort William and take your celebratory photos with the signs and statues marking the end of the trail, you’ll find yourself in a major shopping area where shops and restaurants line the streets. You’ll need to walk further back into a neighborhood to find the hostel, about a ten minute walk from the official end point of the West Highland Way. After checking in, head out for a celebratory pint!
Total Base Cost to Solo Hike and Tent Camp the West Highland Way
Summer 2019: £116.05 British Pounds or $145.89 USD (depending on current currency conversion rate)
*Nov 2023 update: £124.97 British Pounds or $157.83 USD (assuming you go for a hostel in the $20 range in Glasgow)
If you wildcamp along the entire West Highland Way (except in Trossachs), you’ll be able to get your costs down even lower than mine. However, considering it rained almost every single day of my trek, amenities like drying rooms and flushable toilets really kept my morale from plummeting.
The benefit of wildcamping, besides saving yourself $103.50, is the ability to get away from other campers and feel more independent and free in the wild scenery of Scotland. On my trip, though the environment did provide a window into the primordial, deep down I knew I wasn’t in “true” wilderness since towns and other hikers were never far away. That said, the West Highland Way is a great trekking adventure for people who enjoy the camaraderie of hiker culture, want the option to tent camp, and appreciate the mysterious, ethereal ambience of the ancient Scottish Highlands. Imagine all the secrets and forgotten histories they must hold!
🏨 Need a night away from the tent? Find budget hostels along the West Highland Way here.
🥾 Prefer to join a guided group tour instead of going it alone? Check out West Highland Way tours offered by Exodus Travels and Spirit Journeys Worldwide.
✈️ Coming to Scotland from abroad? Use an Airalo eSIM for affordable international cell data and don’t forget to protect your investment with travel insurance.
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Hi there! Thank you for this post I am finding it really helpful as I try to plan my own solo hike through here. Question: were you able to find places to eat every day? Or did you bring your own food to cook while you were camping?
So, if I were to hike in 2024, how much should I expect to spend as obviously the prices are higher than before, but as a regular, you might have the idea?
Hi Sheikh,
Today I went ahead and updated this post with the new prices (you may need to refresh browser cookies as a result), I hope that helps. It looks like they haven’t changed much. I’d still recommend using all the links to accommodations and trains that I provided throughout the post to double check for your exact dates though.
Happy hiking!
Once again I am blown away by how good value it can be to camp in Scotland. Even when there are drying rooms, the prices are pretty amazing along the West Highland way. It’s not often accomodation can be less than you’d pay for a single meal!
Also, I know you had the most soggy weather, but somehow your photos seem to glow. The light (especially when you have moody clouds/rainbows) is soooo pretty!
I do think the sogginess adds something magical to the photographs and also the in-person vibe and mood while there. It wouldn’t be Scotland without it! Although I’m surprised the Scottish people seem to be quite jolly in the face of all the moody landscapes. In the States, local populations often emulate the weather patterns in terms of their demeanor and changeability; like people in Oregon, Washington, and Alaska can be a little depressed lol. It’s where grunge music came from after all. I don’t get a depressed vibe from Scottish people at all.