Logs
Scotland’s west coast and the east coast of Northern Ireland boast a diverse collection of historic and intriguing gardens which are home to vast collections of plants from around the world. Many were laid out to complement grand houses or castles, whilst others are hidden gems, all are inspiring and waiting to be explored.
Tuesday 26th May
Passengers embark in Oban before the ship slips south to anchor overnight off Crinan, at the southern end of the canal that has threaded boats through Knapdale since 1801.
⚓ Overnight anchorage: off Crinan
Wednesday 27th May
A morning visit to Arduaine Gardens, perched on a promontory above Loch Melfort and sheltered enough by the Gulf Stream to grow rhododendrons, magnolias and tree ferns that would struggle anywhere else on this latitude.
The afternoon brings Ardmaddy Castle Gardens — a walled garden of unusual ambition for this corner of Argyll, with kitchen garden, woodland walks and views across the tidal strand to the islands beyond.
The evening concludes with the Captain’s Welcome Reception on the Skye Deck.
⚓ Overnight anchorage: off Arduaine
Thursday 28th May
A morning call at the Isle of Gigha, one of the most intimate of the Hebridean islands and home to Achamore Gardens, where a remarkable collection of rhododendrons and azaleas has been assembled in a sheltered woodland setting.
The afternoon is a scenic passage round the Mull of Kintyre — the headland that feels like the edge of something — past the great granite plug of Ailsa Craig rising from the Firth of Clyde, on passage south towards Carleton Bay.
⚓ Overnight anchorage: Carleton Bay
Friday 29th May
The morning is spent at Loch Ryan Port, gateway to Logan Botanic Garden — an outpost of the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and one of the most exotic gardens in Britain. The mild climate allows tree ferns, cabbage palms and southern hemisphere rarities to grow in the open air.
The afternoon brings Glenwhan Garden and Arboretum, carved from moorland above Luce Bay with commanding views to the Mull of Galloway and, on clear days, to Ireland.
⚓ Overnight anchorage: off Bangor Marina, Northern Ireland
Saturday 30th May
A full day ashore at Bangor. The morning takes guests to Rowallane Garden (National Trust), a plantsman’s garden of great distinction set around a rocky drumlin landscape in County Down.
Lunch is at the Montalto Estate before an afternoon in the Montalto Gardens — a contemporary walled garden and parkland that offers a striking contrast to the older designed landscapes visited earlier in the week.
⚓ Overnight anchorage: off Bangor, Northern Ireland
Sunday 31st May
A quiet morning at sea, with Gareth Austin giving his second illustrated talk in the Tire Lounge.
The afternoon brings a call at Ballycastle on the North Antrim coast, where guests visit Benvarden Garden — a private walled garden on the River Bush, formal in structure but richly planted, and rarely open to visitors.
⚓ Overnight anchorage: off Port Ellen, Islay
Monday 1st June
A scenic morning passage northwards through familiar Hebridean waters, before arriving at Oban in the afternoon for a final garden visit: Ardchattan Priory, a working garden on the shores of Loch Etive built around the ruins of a 13th-century Valliscaulian priory — one of only three ever founded in Scotland.
The evening returns to Oban for the Captain’s Farewell Gala Dinner.
⚓ Overnight berth: Oban
Tuesday 2nd June
The cruise concludes in Oban, where passengers disembark after a week tracing some of the finest garden landscapes on Scotland’s Atlantic edge.
