Blackwater Hostel and Campsite

View prices & book 8.2 34 reviews
Around the site
Around the site
Level camping field
Grass pitches
Reception and hostel
Seating and washing-up area
Washing-up sink and vending machine
Drying room, vending machine and washing-up area
Drying room, vending machine and washing-up area
1/32
Level camping field
Grass pitches
Reception and hostel

  • Campsite on the West Highland Way between Glencoe and Fort William
  • Five minutes’ walk to Ice Factor; 20 minutes’ drive to Ballachulish
  • Vending machine, showers and drying room; pubs five minutes’ walk
A well-equipped campsite five minutes’ walk from the long-distance West Highland Way, Blackwater Hostel and Campsite is a very smart stop for walkers, climbers, mountain bikers, photographers… in fact anyone who wants to get out into Lochaber’s wild Highland scenery – whether for a night passing through or a longer stay to explore the region. Why so smart? Well, the mountain and River Leven views are spectacular, and the site is 15 minutes' drive from the coast at Ballachulish and located right next to Ice Factor bouldering and climbing centre in the middle of Kinlochleven. This may be a small village but it has all necessary amenities like a supermarket, fish and chip shop and three pubs offering hearty bar meals – thankfully within walking distance as the site doesn’t have a kitchen. Facilities, however, do include free showers with hand soap, shower gel and shampoo provided. There are toilets, power sockets for charging phones and two drying rooms with commercial dehumidifiers (always useful on the west coast of Scotland). A covered seating area has a vending machine for snacks, a washing-up sink and wifi connectivity so you can keep in touch with home. Dogs are welcome on site, but please keep them on a lead.

Site type

Tent sites 35
Open now
Opens March 19
Please note
  • At least one of the party members must be aged 16 or over.
  • No bachelor/bachelorette parties permitted via Pitchup.com.
  • The maximum tent size allowed is 2 x 2.4 metres. Regrettably, larger tents cannot be accommodated and will be turned away.

Languages spoken

English

Open from Thu, Mar 19 to

No availability here for your search criteria

Reviews

8.2

Overall rating from 34 Pitchup.com customers

  • 41%
    10
  • 17%
    9
  • 20%
    8
  • 5%
    7
  • 2%
    6
  • 0%
    5
  • 0%
    4
  • 2%
    3
  • 5%
    2
  • 2%
    1
Location
 9
Value for money
 8
Accommodation
 9
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 9
Child friendliness
 8
Cleanliness
 9
Wifi
 8
Hikers’ paradise

79% would recommend this site to a friend

76% would stay here again

What customers say

Great spot for hikers, especially West Highland Way. Lovely views, shops, pubs nearby. Clean facilities, hot showers, kitchen, drying room. Friendly staff. Beware of midges and mosquitoes. Strict tent size limits caused some booking problems.

Summary AI-generated from Pitchup.com customer reviews

Reviews page 1 of 4
Arrival date (latest first)

Personally I wouldn’t be returning on the basis of it being too busy.

Overall

3 out of 10
Location
 5
Value for money
 4
Facilities / Activities
 3
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 6
Wifi
 No rating
Alastair M. 3 reviews

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Drying rooms are good and toilets and shower blocks are fine.

Disliked Campsite far too cramped, feel like everyone was on top of each other from the camping area to the shed there was no room. Ground full of rocks which made it not ideal for tent pegs. This could be a great wee site if there wasn’t so many squeezed into a small area.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Favourite campsite of the West Highland Way!

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 No rating
Value for money
 No rating
Facilities / Activities
 No rating
Customer service
 No rating
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 No rating
Wifi
 No rating
Chloe S. 1 review

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Lovely welcome, beautiful pitch by the river and the sound of running water, loved that there was shampoo and body wash in the showers and a good space to change and store clothes while showering. Great that there is a kettle and microwave too, spacious drying rooms and a nice little covered area with picnic benches too. My favourite campsite of the whole West Highland Way!

Disliked A little crowded, lots of one man tents squeezed together!

Recommend to friends Visit again

It could be a really good site if they fixed the issues.

Overall

2 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 3
Facilities / Activities
 3
Customer service
 2
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 3
Wifi
 1
 Peter J. 1 review

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Convenient location in Kinglochleven.

Disliked Staff weren’t very helpful. We asked about laundry facilities and were told there weren’t any, only to be informed the next day there were.
The drying room was a dark damp room that didn’t have any heat to dry clothes.

Recommend to friends Visit again

From the manager: Hi Peter - As was explained at the time - laundry facilities are subject to availability depending on the time of day and how busy we are. It was also explained that the drying room is for drying outdoor wet weather gear only and it had been nothing but sunshine for a few days so the drying rom was not on.

Excellent friendly staff.. very informative..clean.. spacious site

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
ADRIAN M. 1 review

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Sorted an administrative request for me within an hour of sending them an email 💯👍. A nice quiet and relaxing overnight stay during my West Highland Way walk. Facilities are great.. Village is literally 5 minutes walk

Recommend to friends Visit again

Convenient stop on the WHW

Overall

7 out of 10
Location
 9
Value for money
 7
Facilities / Activities
 8
Customer service
 9
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 8
Wifi
 No rating
Paul J. 2 reviews

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked It was close to the WHW and reasonably priced. Would stay again.

Disliked Quite a large amount of the ground was slightly waterlogged (I get that’s it’s Scotland) and out of the site’s control. I didn’t like the communal showers (I prefer individual cubicles). Also quite a small site so the tents are close to each other.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Excellent location and setting.

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 9
Value for money
 9
Facilities / Activities
 9
Customer service
 7
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 9
Wifi
 No rating
Tuomas B. 3 reviews

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Excellent pitch location for anyone trekking the WHW.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Over priced. Limited pitchup, cramed into a very small space. H

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 2
Value for money
 1
Facilities / Activities
 5
Customer service
 5
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 5
Wifi
 5
Anonymous

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Nothing.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Nothing to be honest too much…

Overall

1 out of 10
Location
 4
Value for money
 1
Facilities / Activities
 5
Customer service
 1
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 1
Wifi
 1
 Usama h. 1 review

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Nothing to be honest too much mosquitoes and midges you cant even breath

Recommend to friends Visit again

Schöner, kleiner ruhiger Zeltplatz. Guter Ausgangspunkt…

Overall

9 out of 10
Location
 8
Value for money
 8
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Anonymous

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Schöner, kleiner ruhiger Zeltplatz. Guter Ausgangspunkt zum Wandern. Sanitäre Anlagen top!

Disliked Vielleicht aufgrund des Baches an der Zeltwiese waren abends und morgens sehr viele Mücken.

Recommend to friends Visit again

Location is excellent / nice size…

Overall

10 out of 10
Location
 10
Value for money
 10
Facilities / Activities
 10
Customer service
 10
Child friendliness
 No rating
Cleanliness
 10
Wifi
 No rating
Mark B. 1 review

Primitive grass tent campsite

Liked Location is excellent / nice size site / clean

Recommend to friends Visit again

Features

Dogs allowed

Leisure on park

Bar or club house Cycle hire Evening entertainment Fishing Fitness centre Indoor swimming pool Kids' club On-site restaurant/cafe Outdoor swimming pool Playground Recreation room/arcade TV room Takeout Tennis Watersports

Amenities on park

Bath available Composting toilet Dog park Drying room Free wifi Grocery store Ice pack freezing Internet access Laundromat Parent & baby washroom Payphone Pick-up from public transport Picnic table Portable toilet Pub toilets Restrooms Shower available Washing-up area Wifi

Groups welcome

Family friendly Motorcycle friendly Scouts welcome Single-sex groups welcome Student groups welcome

Rules

Barbecue grills allowed Barbecue provided Campfires allowed Commercial vehicles allowed Dogs allowed Dogs allowed all year

Themes

Budget/backpacker Hikers’ paradise Spectacular scenery Wildlife haven

Utilities

Charging facilities Dump station Electric car charging point(s) Propane/gas cylinders available Recycling available Renewable energy

Nearby amenities

Bar nearby Convenience store nearby Dog walk nearby Public transportation nearby

Type

Medium (26-50 sites)

Nearby leisure

Climbing nearby Cycle hire nearby Cycling nearby Fishing nearby Golf nearby Mountain biking nearby Restaurant nearby Watersports nearby

Location

Blackwater Hostel and Campsite

Lab Road

Kinlochleven

Highlands and Islands

Scotland

PH50 4SG

Directions

Timezone

Europe/London +0100 (GMT+01:00)

GPS

56.7144°N
4.96006°W

Nearest transport

Coach
34.8 km Pine Trees Leisure Park
45.5 km Hotel
Rail
14.8 km Fort William Rail Station
16.6 km Banavie Rail Station
17.3 km Corrour Rail Station
Ferry
14.8 km Fort William Ferry Landing
16.1 km Camusnagaul Ferry Landing
16.9 km Nether Lochaber Ferry Terminal
Airport
38.7 km Oban (North Connel) Airport

Please note: All distances on this page are calculated "as the crow flies" - please check actual distance depending on your mode of travel using the Get directions button above.

Local attractions

Keen walkers have a wealth of choices for their rambles, from the West Highland Way (five minutes’ walk) to the Glencoe Lochan Trail (20 minutes' drive), which follows family-friendly paths through forest. Landmarks to point your compass towards include Signal Rock (20 minutes), the popular viewpoint at The Meeting of Three Waters (25 minutes) and a testing trek up to Steall Waterfall (55 minutes), the second-highest falls in Scotland In summer, there is more hiking and cycling around Glencoe Mountain Resort (35 minutes’ drive), or you can head up to Fort William (40 minutes) to access the cycling and hiking trails of the Ben Nevis foothills. Meanwhile, for a physical challenge on rainy days, the indoor ice-climbing wall at Ice Factor (five minutes’ walk) keeps daredevils happy. Learn more about the dark secrets of the area at Glencoe Visitor Centre - National Trust for Scotland (20 minutes), and take some time admiring the views over Loch Leven at the Ballachulish Peninsula viewpoint (20 minutes’ drive).

Water quality at nearby bathing waters

Name Distance Type 2020201920182017
Ganavan 43.8 km Sea N/AExcellentExcellentExcellent

Data source: European Environment Agency

Must see

Glencoe Visitor Centre 11.6 km

West Highland Museum 14.7 km

Ben Nevis Distillery 15.1 km

Nevis Range Cable Cars 15.3 km

Treasures of the Earth 17.7 km

Cycle routes

Find local routes on the National Cycle Network - over 12,000 miles of cycling routes.

Other

Round Buachaille Etive Beag 5.7 km

Glen Nevis Gorge and Steall Waterfall 7.4 km

Glen Nevis - The Lower Falls to Steall Falls 7.7 km

The Lower Falls of Glen Nevis 7.7 km

Ben Nevis via the Mountain Track 11.6 km

Please note: All distances on this page are calculated "as the crow flies" - please check actual distance depending on your mode of travel using the Get directions button above.

Want to know more about camping in Highlands and Islands?

Frequently asked questions

  • Does Blackwater Hostel and Campsite have a swimming pool? No View all features
  • Is Blackwater Hostel and Campsite dog friendly? Yes View all features
  • What attractions are near Blackwater Hostel and Campsite? Keen walkers have a wealth of choices for their rambles, from the West Highland Way (five minutes’ walk) to the Glencoe Lochan Trail (20 minutes' drive), which follows family-friendly paths through forest. … Read more
  • When can I check in and check out of Blackwater Hostel and Campsite?
    RV, travel trailer and tent sites
    Arrive:  3 p.m. –  9 p.m.
    Depart by:  10:30 a.m.
    Read more
  • How much does it cost to stay at Blackwater Hostel and Campsite? From $55.59 (for 1 night, 2 adults) - prices may change depending on your dates and party.