Port Askaig () is a port village on the east coast of the island of

Islay Islay ( ; , ) is the southernmost island of the Inner Hebrides of Scotland. Known as "The Queen of the Hebrides", it lies in Argyll and Bute just south west of Jura, Scotland, Jura and around north of the Northern Irish coast. The island's cap ...

, in

Argyll and Bute Argyll and Bute (; , ) is one of 32 unitary authority, unitary council areas of Scotland, council areas in Scotland and a lieutenancy areas of Scotland, lieutenancy area. The current lord-lieutenant for Argyll and Bute is Jane Margaret MacLeod ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

. The village lies on the Sound of Islay (Caol Ìle) across from Jura.

Economy

Port Askaig has a hotel, a petrol station and shop next to the port but has very few households. In 2014, it was rated one of the most attractive

postcode A postal code (also known locally in various English-speaking countries throughout the world as a postcode, post code, PIN or ZIP Code) is a series of letters or numerical digit, digits or both, sometimes including spaces or punctuation, inclu ...

areas to live in Scotland.

Whisky

Port Askaig is also the name of a Scotch whisky range, bottled by Elixir Distillers. The producing distillery is not officially identified but the whiskies are marketed as Islay single malts. The distilleries Caol Ila, Ardnahoe and Bunnahabhain are all located to the north of the port.

Transport

Water

Port Askaig serves as the main port of Islay, sharing passenger services to the Scottish mainland with

Port Ellen Port Ellen () is a small town on the island of Islay, in Argyll, Scotland. The town is named after the wife of its founder, Walter Frederick Campbell. Its previous name, ''Leòdamas'', is derived from Old Norse meaning "Leòd's Harbour". Port E ...

. It also has a regular service to Feolin, Jura across the Sound of Islay, and in the summer there is also a weekly service via

Colonsay Colonsay (; ; ) is an island in the Inner Hebrides of Scotland, located north of Islay and south of Isle of Mull, Mull. The ancestral home of Clan Macfie and the Colonsay branch of Clan MacNeil, it is in the council area of Argyll and Bute and ...

Oban Oban ( ; meaning ''The Little Bay'') is a resort town within the Argyll and Bute council area of Scotland. Despite its small size, it is the largest town between Helensburgh and Fort William, Highland, Fort William. During the tourist seaso ...

. Port Askaig has been a port for landing passengers and goods to Islay for centuries. Ships which sailed out from West Loch Tarbert on the

Kintyre Peninsula Kintyre (, ) is a peninsula in western Scotland, in the southwest of Argyll and Bute. The peninsula stretches about , from the Mull of Kintyre in the south to East and West Loch Tarbert in the north. The region immediately north of Kintyre is ...

have called in at Port Askaig since the 18th century and a steamer service from

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

was the running as early as 1825. Port Askaig is the base of the Islay

RNLI The Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) is the largest of the lifeboat services operating around the coasts of the United Kingdom, Ireland, the Channel Islands, and the Isle of Man, as well as on some inland waterways. Founded in 1824 ...

lifeboat which is called out ten to twelve times a year.

Port development

Between 2003 and 2009 Port Askaig was the site of a £13.7 million civil engineering project. The work included a new linkspan and other berthing facilities for mainland ferries, new facilities for the Jura ferry, and new car parks and waiting rooms. The redeveloped port was officially re-opened on 10 September 2009 by the

Princess Royal Princess Royal is a substantive title, title customarily (but not automatically) awarded by British monarchs to their eldest daughters. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal famil ...

Road

Port Askaig is situated at the northern end of the Islay section of the A846, which continues south-west to Bowmore, south-east to Port Ellen and finally east to Ardbeg.

Music

Port Askaig is memorialised in the classic 6/8 bagpipe pipe march ''Leaving Port Askaig''.

References

External links

Canmore - Islay, Port Askaig, General site recordCanmore - Port Askaig, Harbour, Islay site recordCanmore - Islay, Port Askaig, Dunlossit House site record
{{Islay Villages in Islay