This coast faces due west. Ailsa Craig sits ten miles out, Arran fills the northern horizon, and the sun goes down into the sea for most of the year — so a table with a view is worth planning for rather than hoping for.
The best of them
- Wildings, Maidens — the one to book. Dining rooms and a terrace on the harbour, with the sun going down over Arran. Ask for a window table.
- The Ropes, Maidens — the casual version of the same view, a terrace over the same harbour for pizza, cake and a drink.
- The Harbour Bar, Girvan — the beer garden on the inner harbour, which on a warm evening is hard to beat for a pint.
- Austins, Girvan — harbour-front windows and the best cooking in town.
- The Harbour Café side of Graziano's — window seats over the boats, and a fish supper in front of you.
- The Woodland Bay Hotel, two miles south of Girvan — bar and restaurant facing Ailsa Craig across the bay. A favourite with people catching the Cairnryan ferries.
- Trump Turnberry — the Ailsa Bar and the 1906 restaurant look over the links to the lighthouse and the Craig beyond. Dress smartly and expect the prices.
- Glenapp Castle, Ballantrae — sea glimpses through the trees, and the castle's own walk down to the shore afterwards.
- The Harbourside café, Dunure — on the quay beneath the castle, thirty minutes north, and the prettiest small harbour on the coast.
The cheapest sea view of all
A fish supper from Graziano's eaten in a promenade shelter, facing west, an hour before sunset. It costs a few pounds, the view is the same one the five-star hotel is charging for, and on the right evening nothing beats it.
Timing it
Check sunset times before booking — in midsummer the sun does not go down until well after ten, which is later than most kitchens serve, and in midwinter it is gone by four. Late April to early September is the window where dinner and sunset overlap comfortably. See Girvan for couples and photography.
