What is this 5-day itinerary?
Five days is the fit pace on the Great Glen Way. You still leave the canal for a night at Spean Bridge, and you still sleep at South Laggan. The night you give up is Fort Augustus: the old railway and the towpath fill the morning, the village is lunch, and the steep ground is the afternoon. Inverness stays a day of its own after the longer Loch Ness walk.
Read the Great Glen Way guide for the whole trail.
Will this 5-day split work for you?
- Fit walkers. The canal start stays, and Fort Augustus becomes lunch rather than a night.
- People happy to climb out of Fort Augustus at the end of the Loch Oich day, not the next morning.
- A first long walk fits the 6-day better, because that plan keeps the climb short.
Fitness & effort
You need to be comfortable on a day that is already long before the steep bit starts. Loch Oich is easy underfoot, and the climb out of Fort Augustus comes after it, on the same afternoon. The next day is still a full walk above Loch Ness, and the day after that is the long one into Inverness. There is no rest built in. If the idea of that climb at the end of the day is the problem, take the six-day and meet it in the morning.
Your 5-day route on the map
Wind behind you
Fort William to Inverness in 5 days
Fort William to Inverness, so the prevailing wind is behind you and the canal comes first.
| Day | Stage | Distance | Overnight / destination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 | Fort William → Spean Bridge | 10.5 mi (16.8 km) | The Old Laundry (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 2 | Spean Bridge → South Laggan | 11.9 mi (19.1 km) | The Great Glen Hostel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 3 | South Laggan → Invermoriston | 17.4 mi (28.1 km) | Glenmoriston Arms (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 4 | Invermoriston → Drumnadrochit | 15.5 mi (24.9 km) | Loch Ness Drumnadrochit Hotel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 5 Longest | Drumnadrochit → Inverness | 18.7 mi (30.1 km) | Great Glen Way Finish |
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Day 1
Fort William to Spean Bridge
10.5 mi (16.8 km) ↑ 80 m (250 ft) ↓ 60 m (200 ft)
The canal day stays split, so the long walking can come later. You leave under Ben Nevis, climb Neptune's Staircase, and follow the towpath to Gairlochy. Few beds and no shop there, so the night is Spean Bridge, 4.5 miles (7.2 km) off the Way, and some beds collect by car. Book it early. Tomorrow is Loch Lochy, and the day after that is the one this plan makes harder.
Example stay The Old Laundry (opens in a new tab)
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Day 2
Spean Bridge to South Laggan
11.9 mi (19.1 km) ↑ 610 m (2,000 ft) ↓ 600 m (1,950 ft)
The forest track beside Loch Lochy, with the hydro diversion still in place until about 2030, adding 600 m. You need this night. Tomorrow joins Loch Oich to the climb, so arrive with something left in your legs. The finish is an A road with a 60 mph limit and no footpath, and the beds are few, so this is the other night to book first. Invergarry has the shop, and it is not on this plan.
Example stay The Great Glen Hostel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 3
South Laggan to Invermoriston
17.4 mi (28.1 km) ↑ 1,040 m (3,400 ft) ↓ 930 m (3,050 ft)
This is the day the six-day refuses to make. Loch Oich and the canal bring you into Fort Augustus for lunch, and the climb out of the village is the afternoon, not the next morning. The low route stays in the forest. The high route is the steep one, with views over Loch Ness. Start with food, and do not treat the village as a place to linger. You finish at Invermoriston.
Example stay Glenmoriston Arms (opens in a new tab)
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Day 4
Invermoriston to Drumnadrochit
15.5 mi (24.9 km) ↑ 1,060 m (3,500 ft) ↓ 1,160 m (3,800 ft)
You reach the longer Loch Ness day the morning after that climb, so it is the second hard day in a row. High route or low. The high route still reaches 420 m and passes the View-Catcher, and a path halfway along drops to beds at Altsigh if you need them. The new path into the village has replaced almost all of the old road. Sleep here. Inverness is still a full day, and it starts on the A82.
Example stay Loch Ness Drumnadrochit Hotel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 5 Longest
Drumnadrochit to Inverness
18.7 mi (30.1 km) ↑ 680 m (2,250 ft) ↓ 690 m (2,250 ft)
The same finish as the six-day, reached after two long days rather than after a short climb and one Loch Ness day. The first mile is pavement beside the A82, mostly at 60 mph, then the woods. The high route reaches 434 m, the highest point on the Way, and Abriachan has only a few beds, so you walk through. Carry food from the village. The castle, the Ness Islands, and the river are the end.
Finish Great Glen Way Finish
Cross-check: official routes page . The stage pages are the cross-check. This plan joins Laggan Locks to Fort Augustus with Fort Augustus to Invermoriston. Distances on the cards are from our trail geometry. The climb on each card comes from the track file, which runs higher than the published totals for the glen.
Toward Fort William
Inverness to Fort William in 5 days
The same nights, starting in Inverness. The climbs out of Drumnadrochit, Invermoriston, and Fort Augustus become descents.
| Day | Stage | Distance | Overnight / destination |
|---|---|---|---|
| Day 1 Longest | Inverness → Drumnadrochit | 18.7 mi (30.1 km) | Loch Ness Drumnadrochit Hotel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 2 | Drumnadrochit → Invermoriston | 15.5 mi (24.9 km) | Glenmoriston Arms (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 3 | Invermoriston → South Laggan | 17.4 mi (28.1 km) | The Great Glen Hostel (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 4 | South Laggan → Spean Bridge | 11.9 mi (19.1 km) | The Old Laundry (opens in a new tab) |
| Day 5 | Spean Bridge → Fort William | 10.5 mi (16.8 km) | Fort William |
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Day 1 Longest
Inverness to Drumnadrochit
18.7 mi (30.1 km) ↑ 690 m (2,250 ft) ↓ 680 m (2,250 ft)
The castle, the river, and the Ness Islands are the start. The high route still reaches 434 m, in the Abriachan woods, and Abriachan is a pass-through. The day ends with the steep drop and that mile of pavement beside the A82.
Example stay Loch Ness Drumnadrochit Hotel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 2
Drumnadrochit to Invermoriston
15.5 mi (24.9 km) ↑ 1,160 m (3,800 ft) ↓ 1,060 m (3,500 ft)
The new path comes first, with one short stretch still on the public road. Then you climb the high or low route, so 420 m is a pull rather than a descent. The View-Catcher sits near the end of the day.
Example stay Glenmoriston Arms (opens in a new tab)
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Day 3
Invermoriston to South Laggan
17.4 mi (28.1 km) ↑ 930 m (3,050 ft) ↓ 1,040 m (3,400 ft)
The high or low route comes first, and you drop into Fort Augustus before the canal. Loch Oich and the old railway fill the rest of the walk. The finish is the A road, with no footpath.
Example stay The Great Glen Hostel (opens in a new tab)
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Day 4
South Laggan to Spean Bridge
11.9 mi (19.1 km) ↑ 600 m (1,950 ft) ↓ 610 m (2,000 ft)
The A road comes first, then the forest track leads back along Loch Lochy. The diversion is still there until about 2030. At Gairlochy you leave the Way, so the off-route miles are the end of the day.
Example stay The Old Laundry (opens in a new tab)
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Day 5
Spean Bridge to Fort William
10.5 mi (16.8 km) ↑ 60 m (200 ft) ↓ 80 m (250 ft)
The morning is the 4.5 miles back to the canal at Gairlochy. Then the towpath runs downhill through Neptune's Staircase. Ben Nevis is ahead as you come into town.
Finish Fort William
5-day itinerary FAQ
What do I give up on the five-day?
The night in Fort Augustus. Loch Oich is the morning, the village is lunch, and the climb out of it is the same afternoon. On the six-day that climb is its own short morning. The canal, Spean Bridge, South Laggan, and the walk into Inverness stay.
Which day should I respect?
South Laggan to Invermoriston. The ground to Fort Augustus is the easy towpath and the old railway, and the steep bit is waiting at the end of it. Eat in the village, then climb. The next two days are still long, so do not arrive at Invermoriston empty.
Do the thin nights change?
No. Spean Bridge and South Laggan are still the nights to book first. Invermoriston is a smaller village than Fort Augustus, so book it too once those two are held. Fort Augustus is lunch, not a bed, on this plan.
Can I download a GPX for the 5-day Great Glen Way?
Yes. Open this itinerary in the planner (free, no account). Download a full-route GPX or per-day files for Garmin, Komoot, or your phone. You can export the preset unchanged or edit overnight stops first.
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This 5-day itinerary is ready as it stands. Open it in the planner to keep these stops, or change where you sleep, then download the GPX for your watch or phone.
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