Ultimate guide to visit Glenfinnan Viaduct
Everything you need to know about the Harry Potter train
This is probably one of the most famous places to visit for all the Harry Potter fans out there! Even if you’re not really a fan of the franchise, this is still a place you can’t miss while visiting Scotland, but it can be a real hassle to figure out the time shedule and where you need to be to see the train pass by.
We made a few mistakes while visiting this train and therefore, we came to this train for a total of 3 times (!) to get the perfect pictures. This wasted a bit of our time, but it was so worth it! Not to worry tho, this guide will give you all the information to not make the same mistakes as we did! So keep on reading!
You might also like: Ultimate 3 day itinerary to the Isle of Skye
For your information, all these pictures were taken in July 2022.
Table of Contents
What is the Glenfinnan viaduct?
The Glenfinnan Viaduct, located in Glenfinnan to the west of Fort William in Scotland, is a railway viaduct where the Jacobite Steam train passes on and is part of the route going from Fort William to Mallaig.
The viaduct was built between 1897 to 1901, but could already be used in 1898 for transporting materials. It’s made out of mass concrete and has 21 arches of 15 meters high. With a length of 380 meters, it’s the longest concrete railway bridge in Scotland.
The train features in several films and television series, but is mostly famous for being in four of the Harry Potter films. Fans from all over the world visit this viaduct still to this day to get the same magical feeling! With its fame came also danger, as fans go on or near the tracks which resulted in a few near misses with the train. Be responsible and don’t go near the tracks! It can be very dangerous!
There was a long-established legend involving this viaduct. It said that a horse with its cart had tumbled down inside a concrete pier. Apparantly, there were only two piers big enough where this accident could have happened, so by use of a fish-eye lens camera inserted into boreholes in 1987, there was no evidence found.
10 years later, the same method was used to, again, find that there was no evidence and that the piers were full of rubble. In 2001, they tried again, but this time they used scanning technology and surprisingly, they could see the remainings of a horse and the wreck of a cart underneath it. This implied that the cart loaded with rubble dragged the horse into the partially filled cavity.
How to get to the Glenfinnan viaduct?
The roads in Scotland are pretty good and well marked, so the easiest way to reach this viaduct is by car as we did. There is also a car park near the viaduct, but you need to make sure you’re on time as the parking can be quite full, especially when there is a train coming.
When we visited this place in the summer, we had the last parking spot and the train wasn’t coming for more than 30 minutes! That’s how busy it can get. A good thing to know is that there is a public toilet available at the parking, for free.
By car: You can find the parking lot near the visitors center. The parking is £3.50 for cars and £6.00 for minibuses and campers.
With public transport: There is a bus that goes from Fort William to Mallaig and it stops right next to the car parking. For the timetables, click here.
When is the best time to visit the Glenfinnan Viaduct?
The Jacobite Steam train only runs between April till October for the morning service and between May and September for the afternoon service. This means that this would be the best period to visit the Viaduct.
We were there in the middle of July and right in the middle of the high season. It was still the perfect moment in my opinion! The weather was perfect: not to warm or to cold and no rain. Although we were quite lucky as the summer doesn’t guarantee rain free months. But I feel like you can’t do wrong with which month you go. The only difference you get is the color of the surroundings with the summer or fall colors, but both has it’s charm!
How to reach the viewpoint for the Glenfinnan viaduct?
It’s pretty easy and self-explanatory on how to reach the viewpoint for the Glenfinnan viaduct. This short hike starts at the car park and there is a well-marked trail that leads you all the way to the viewpoint.
The trail starts with an arch that says ‘Footpath to viaduct’. After that, you just need to follow the marked trail all the way to the viaduct.
As you reach the left side of the viaduct, you need to see a gateway that’s closed. Just open the gate and go through it. Once you passed this point, you’re almost there. You just need to hike up a small but steep hill and choose a spot from where you will enjoy the passing of the train! This will take a total of 20 minutes to reach the viewpoint so calculate that time in!
When will the train pass by?
As I said before, the train only rides between April and October. The train is quite punctual which makes it easier to plan your trip to the viaduct.
The train leaves every day (except Saturday) from Fort William at 10:15 and at 12:50. These times can always chance so make sure you check there website.
The train will pass the viaduct 30 minutes later than the departing time at Fort William. So that means that the train would be at the viaduct for the morning service at around 10:45 and for the afternoon service at around 13:20.
Be aware that you need to be on time as it gets quite busy around these times! You don’t want to miss this train. You only get two chances to see the steam train pass on the viaduct per day!
I recommend you arrive at least 30 minutes before the train passes the viaduct. To make the trip totally stress free, come even earlier. That way, you have time to find yourself a good spot and be relaxed when the train comes!
The train also goes the other way around, from Mallaig to Fort William, but it’s less spectacular. The first time we went here, we read the timetable wrong and we stood at the good side, but the train came the other way around.
In my opinion, this is less impressive as the train gives less steam. We also saw once that it wasn’t a steam train but just a regular train. If you want to view the train from the other side, you need to take a different route from the parking. There is a sign that says which way you need to go.
The train departs Mallaig at 14:10 and 17:00 so will pass the viaduct around 15:30 and 18:20. Know that in autumn, it could already be dark when the last train passes by.
Riding along with the Jacobite Steam train
Instead of seeing the train, you can also ride along with it. We personally didn’t do it as we already driven with a different steam train in Germany in the Harz region. Another reason being that it costs a lot of money, but if it’s your first steam train ride, you definitely should do it!
The standard price for an adult is £57 and for a child under 16 is £33. You could also book a seat in first class where you get complimentary tea or coffee on each part of the journey, but the price is around £30 more and there is a minimum booking of two passengers. Just know that these prices are for a return trip as they don’t offer one way tickets.
It’s an expensive trip, but if you’re a true Harry Potter fan (or just a fan of beautiful surroundings), it’s a must do as it’s a once in a lifetime experience. It’s best to book this experience online, as it’s no guarantee that there are still tickets available. If there are still tickets, know that it’s cash only.
It takes around 2 hours to get from Fort William to Mallaig with the Jacobite Steam train. Just know that there is a one and a half hour stop in Mallaig, before it departs again. The whole ride with the steam train will take around 6 hours.
For the best view in the train, sit on the left side when departing from Fort William and on the right side when going back. The only thing you need to keep in mind is that you can’t choose your seating and you will be allocated automatic, so you need to hope for the best. You can still see the view from the standing areas, but they tend to get busy.
Some tips to photograph the steamtrain
We were here for 2 consecutive days to get the perfect picture of the train from a few different angles, so we have a few tips for you to get the best pictures with the least people in you picture! This viewpoint can get so busy during the summer, that it’s impossible to be there alone, but there are a few things you can do to crop the people out of your picture.
As you can see in the picture, most people stay on the path to watch the train. So my first tip for you is to get higher up! The higher you go, the less people there are and the better angle you will get. It sounds like a strange tip, as all the people below will be in your picture. That’s why you need to combine this with my other tip: use the plants that are in front of you to mask out all the people below you.
Also, if you have the time to wait on the next train, try different angles. We used the higher up method a few times, but Mel also wanted to have the train from a lower angle (standing where the other people were standing) and it was such a great picture!
Another thing you need to know is that the train purposely drives very slowly over the viaduct. They want the people on the train to get a good view and it helps that you get more time to shoot away! Just don’t forget to put your camera on burst mode and everything will be fine!
As we both wanted to focus on taking pictures instead of something else like video, but still didn’t want to miss an opportunity to get a video, I used a Phone Tripod Mount to put on my camera.
You just need to put it on your camera and put your phone on the tripod and you’re good to go! When you hear the train coming, you just put on the video and you still can take all the pictures you want! I did this with every train we took pictures of and the video came out really well.
The Tripod mount doesn’t cost a lot of money and is a great way to focus more on photography than on something else! We were both glad we brought it with us!
Other things to do near Glenfinnan Viaduct
You can explore the area a bit more. The viaduct, for example, gives you the perfect pictures. It’s also very impressive to see the viaduct from this close!
Fort William, where the Glenfinnan viaduct is closely located by, is a perfect starting point to explore the highlands and the Glencoe region. Maybe a bit furter down the road, but definitly not a place that you can miss. I’m talking about the Isle of Skye. This was one of my all time favorite places in Scotland.
Read about these places in the other blog posts for more inspiration:
- Top things to see in the Glencoe region (coming soon)
- 10 must visit places in the Isle of Skye
- 5 must see places in the north of Scotland (coming soon)
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Hello, I’m Ellen and welcome to this blog! I’m in love with exploring the world and hopefully I get to inspire you with these blog posts and pictures to feel the same. You will find detailed itineraries, hidden gems, tips and so much more!
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