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A view looking up to the summit of Ben Lomond with a bright blue sky and white streaky clouds in the background. Lower down, a layer of cloud lies on top of the lower peaks.
Loch Lomond, The Trossachs, Stirling & Forth Valley

Ben Lomond

Getting here

​Ben Lomond is accessed from Rowardennan, on the east shore of Loch Lomond.
Address Ben Lomond Ardess Lodge Rowardennan by Drymen G63 0AR OS Ref: NS359986

Take the Balmaha road (B837) north from Drymen and continue for 12 miles.

Public transport: The nearest bus stop is 7 miles away in Balmaha, from where the 309 bus links to Drymen and Balloch.

During the summer months there is a limited waterbus service directly to Rowardennan from Luss or Tarbet, both of which are on the bus routes following the A82 north from Glasgow.

Contact information

Telephone: 01360 870224

Get directions

Provided by Google Maps

Opening times

Ben Lomond

Current period 1 Jan–31 Dec, open daily

Entry prices

Ben Lomond
Adult
Free
Family
Free
One adult family
Free
Concession
Free

Members go free

At all Trust places, admission is free for members.

Join us today

Planning your visit

The nearby hotel and youth hostel both serve breakfast and evening meals, but there’s no local shop – so please ensure you arrive well provisioned for the day!

Please note drones are a disturbance to wildlife, particularly at bird nesting time, and are highly annoying for other visitors. They are also dangerous if flown above people. Drones should not be flown at Ben Lomond without permission of the National Trust for Scotland. Please telephone 01360 870224 in advance of your intended visit.

Please see our drop-down Facilities below for helpful information about planning your visit.

For more information about planning your visit, please see our frequently asked questions.

Facilities & access

  • There’s a small ramp into the lobby of the ranger centre.
  • The main access track along the loch shore is rough and more suitable for buggies than wheelchairs.

We have an ongoing programme of accessible content development. Detailed accessibility guides for the most visited Trust places are available on our Accessibility pages as well as links to useful resources.

We’d love you to visit the Euan’s Guide website to review the accessibility of Trust places and tell us (and others) what’s good and where we need to do better.

Disabled parking is available at Ardess Lodge and can be arranged in advance.

Dogs are welcome in the area. However, following frequent disturbance to grazing livestock and to wildlife, it is now requested that dogs are kept on a lead at all times.

Parking is provided by Forestry and Land Scotland.

It costs £2 for one hour and £5 for one day.

Picnics

See our mountain walks and low-level walks highlights for more information.

There are portable toilets at Rowardennan car park.

Ben Lomond is a great place for scenic hill walks, enjoying nature and delving into history.

Whether you’re looking to conquer the heights or explore the woods and shoreline, there’s something for you at Ben Lomond. The Ardess Hidden History Trail starts around 700m north of the car park and is a great low-level walk for all ages and levels of fitness, providing an interesting insight to the human history of the area. You’ll also see the replica cruck-framed building – an example of the type of building you’d have found in this area several hundred years ago. The trail takes in some of the rich variety of natural woodland, where wildflowers abound and many species of birds can be seen, depending on the time of year.

If you’re heading for the summit, check our Ben Lomond walk guide for recommended equipment to help keep you safe and make the most of the experience. The guide also gives the meanings for the local Gaelic names, including mysterious locations such as Faery Hill and the Bog of the Horses. The views at the summit stretch from Ben Nevis in the north to the Galloway hills in the south, and from the Ochil hills in the east to the islands of Mull, Jura and Arran in the west.