Troon has two personalities and both are worth the drive. It is one of the great golf addresses in Britain, and it is a straightforward, well-kept seaside town with two long sandy beaches, a marina, a working fish market and an esplanade made for walking off a lunch. It is the furthest north of our places near Girvan, at 45 minutes up the A77, which makes it a day out rather than an afternoon.
Golf
Royal Troon hosted its tenth Open in 2024, won by Xander Schauffele, and its Old Course contains both the shortest hole in Open golf, the Postage Stamp, and one of the hardest closing stretches anywhere. The club's Portland Course is the second eighteen. Alongside them, Troon Links — Lochgreen, Darley and Fullarton — are three public courses run by Golf South Ayrshire: Lochgreen the longest, Darley among the toughest in Ayrshire with small greens and gorse-lined fairways, Fullarton short and forgiving and good for beginners. Just north, Kilmarnock (Barassie) is an Open final qualifying venue.
The beaches
South Beach curves into a sheltered bay below the town, backed by dunes and a promenade with plenty of seating, a play park and cafés; there are rock pools at the southern end and Royal Troon's links beyond. Barassie, north of the harbour, is the more open of the two, with big views to Arran, Lady Isle and Ailsa Craig. Both carry Scotland Beach Awards, and the water here is popular for open-water swimming, paddleboarding and surfing.
The harbour, the marina and the Ballast Bank
Troon's harbour began as a small fishing port, became the Ailsa Shipyard, and is now a mix of working fish market and marina. Ayrshire's fish market lands here and supplies the town's fishmongers and restaurants — the seafood in Troon is the real thing, not a tourist claim. Troon Yacht Haven fills the sheltered water with masts and has waterfront restaurants looking over it.
The Ballast Bank is the odd, wonderful one: a great man-made hill beside the harbour, built up from 1840 out of the stone ballast dumped by ships that arrived empty to collect Ayrshire coal. You can walk up it or along the sea wall beneath, and the view from the top takes in Arran, Ailsa Craig and the whole bay.
Walks and families
Fullarton Woods, inland from the front, is mature native woodland with a network of accessible paths, a play park and toilets by the car park, and the Fullarton Fairy Trail — fairy doors and little houses hidden through the trees, which small children take extremely seriously. The Smugglers' Trail is a six-mile route from South Beach along the Wrack Road, across Royal Troon's links, past Crosbie Kirk and through Fullarton Woods to Dundonald Castle, and makes a good half-day with a bus back. On the front there is a play park, a skate park and, in summer, crazy golf.
The Arran ferry
This one changes, so treat any timetable you read as provisional. Arran sailings have historically run from Ardrossan, but Troon has taken the service at various times — because of berth problems at Ardrossan, during harbour upgrade works, and as the designated port for some of the newer vessels. In 2026 both ports have been in use, with Troon–Brodick running to its own timetable and Ardrossan closed for harbour works for a spell in the autumn. The Troon crossing takes about 80 minutes against roughly 55 from Ardrossan.
Two practical warnings if you are planning an Arran day trip from Girvan: Troon station is not at the ferry terminal, so foot passengers need to allow time to get between them, and when the chartered catamaran is on the route it cannot take motorhomes over six metres or anything towing a caravan. Check CalMac for the current port, vessel and timetable before you build a day around it.
Getting there
About 31 miles and 45 minutes from Girvan on the A77. By train it is roughly an hour via Ayr, and Troon station is a few minutes from the Main Street and about ten from South Beach. Prestwick is six miles south and pairs well with it.
