Girvan sits on the east shore of the Firth of Clyde, where the Water of Girvan meets the sea, roughly 21 miles south of Ayr and 30 miles north of the Irish ferries at Cairnryan. It is the largest town in the old district of Carrick, with a population of a little over 6,000, and it has been a burgh since Charles II granted its charter in 1668.
For visitors, the appeal is a rare combination. The town has a proper working harbour with fishing boats and a boatyard, a long sandy beach with a traditional promenade, a boating pond and play areas, and a compact town centre of independent shops, bakeries, chip shops and pubs. Look west from almost anywhere and the horizon is filled by Ailsa Craig, the 1,100-foot volcanic plug whose granite is cut into the world's curling stones. Look north and you see the jagged skyline of Arran; on a clear evening the Mull of Kintyre appears beyond it.
Why base yourself in Girvan
Girvan is the natural base for the southern half of the Ayrshire coast. Turnberry and its famous links are 6 miles north, Culzean Castle 11, and Robert Burns' Alloway about 35 minutes away. South lies the wild Carrick coast of Lendalfoot, Bennane Head and Ballantrae, and inland the road climbs into Galloway Forest Park, the UK's first Dark Sky Park. You can play a championship links in the morning, walk a deserted shingle beach after lunch and watch gannets dive off a boat by evening.
Prices in Girvan are noticeably gentler than in Ayr or Troon, the town is on the Glasgow–Stranraer railway, and the A77 runs straight through it, so getting here without a car is realistic. It is also a sensible stopover if you are crossing to Northern Ireland from Cairnryan.
What the town is like
Dalrymple Street, the A77 as it passes through, is the main shopping street; the red sandstone McKechnie Institute and the castellated Stumpy Tower are its landmarks. A block west is the harbour, with Knockcushan Street running alongside it — this is where you'll find the chip shops, the Harbour Bar and the boats for Ailsa Craig. Beyond the harbour the promenade and beach run south for about a mile to Ainslie Park. Girvan is flat and small enough to walk everywhere; the railway station is a ten-minute walk from the harbour.
