Mallaig and the Harry Potter Train

After getting an up-close and personal introduction to Scotland while walking the West Highland Way, I wasn’t quite ready to leave. For the second part of my vacation, I decided to play tourist and see some of the sights around the highlands. Since I was already in Fort William I couldn’t pass up the chance to take the train to the coastal town of Mallaig where I would get to pass over the Harry Potter-famous Glenfinnan viaduct.

There are two options for the train to Mallaig, the ScotRail train or the Jacobite steam train. The ScotRail is the regular train that makes routine runs between Glasgow and Mallaig with many stops in between including Fort William. The Jacobite train is the old-fashioned steam train with options for 1st class seating and a special Harry Potter car with a personal guide to tell you about all things Harry Potter.

I opted for the ScotRail train as it travels the same route over the Glenfinnan viaduct and costs half the price of the Jacobite. I did get to see the Jacobite train in both Fort William and Mallaig and it is definitely a beautiful train! I’ve ridden on a steam train before so I didn’t really see the need to for this particular trip but if you haven’t had the experience or you’re a big Harry Potter fan, definitely go for the Jacobite.

I bought my round-trip train ticket on the ScotRail website and headed to the train station just a few minutes walk from my Airbnb. There was a large crowd of people waiting to board the Jacobite train and a growing number waiting for our train to Mallaig. Once our train arrived, I quickly tried to get a seat on the left side of the train so I would be able to see the Glenfinnan viaduct from my seat.

The ride to Mallaig took about an hour and twenty minutes with several stops along the way. About the halfway point is when we went over the viaduct which is just spectacular! The scenery is stunning and so GREEN. Photos do not come close to doing it justice especially when taking them through a dirty train window with glare. Maybe the Jacobite train has cleaner windows or the ability to open them to get a better shot.

The closer we got to the coast, the most inspiring the scenery became with glimpses of the water. We arrived in Mallaig about noon which gave me 2.5 hours to have lunch and explore before my return trip to Fort William.

Mallaig is a very small seaport town that is popular with tourists. I’m sure the crowds were less this year due to the pandemic but you could tell when a train arrived by the wave of tourists flooding the streets. From the train station, it’s only a block to the main square and boat dock. There are several restaurants and shops in and around the few blocks that make up the city center.

My first stop was for lunch at The Tea Garden Cafe where I had to have the fish and chips. Then I walked around the town to take in the sights. There are many B&Bs around and you could probably get a better sense of the town in the evening once the tourists had left but from what I understand, it is quite pricey to stay there. Most shops had some kind of Harry Potter souvenirs, of course. I spent some time walking along the dock looking at all the boats in varying stages of upkeep. It was interesting to see all that was going on.

Soon enough, it was time to head to the train for the journey back to Fort William. For me, two hours was plenty of time to see Mallaig although I’m sure I missed a few things. I had read about a short hike you could do that went up and around the town on the surrounding hills but that was not in the cards for me to do that day. I tried to visit the town’s museum but it appeared to be closed. All being said, Mallaig is a quaint old sea town that has become quite a tourist destination thanks to Harry Potter. It was a great way to spend the day and the train ride, even on the ScotRail train, just made it even more spectacular.