Wild, windswept, and wonderful – Staffa is one of the most delightful Scottish Islands I’ve visited. If you’re wondering how to get to Staffa to see the puffins that nest there – it’s a lot easier than you think. In this guide, I’m sharing the history of the island, my tips for visiting, and how to see the puffins on Staffa.
Welcome to one of the wildest islands off Scotland’s coast! Home to comical puffins, otherworldly rock formations, and mysterious sea caves, the trip to Staffa is worth the journey.
This tiny island is only 1/2 a mile long, and 1/4 mile wide, and you can easily explore it in just a couple of hours. There’s something I love about small, wild islands; maybe it’s because they can be explored easily, or because when you’re on a tiny remote island it forces you to slow down.
Whatever the reason, there is something magical about Staffa and I encourage you to visit the ‘pillar island’.
I visited Staffa while on my 3-Day tour to Mull and Iona with Rabbies. The trip to Staffa was optional, but how could I pass up seeing puffins and the legendary Fingal’s Cave?
How to get to Staffa
Staffa is located off the west coast of Scotland, tangled between many Scottish islands. It lies in the North Atlantic sea around 7 miles off the west coast of Mull and 6 miles north of Iona.
Staffa is a popular island to visit for anyone visiting Mull and to get to Staffa you often have to go via Mull.
Staffa, with Fingal’s Cave to the right of the photo
In fact, you can easily have an island-hopping adventure and visit Mull, Iona, Ulva, the Treshnish Isles, and Staffa, because all the islands are located closely together.
There are several boat tours that depart from different destinations to reach Staffa.
Map of Staffa and surrounding islands
How to reach Staffa from Mull
Staffa Trips, Staffa Tours and Turus Mara all provide tours from the Isle of Mull to Staffa.
- Staffa Trips departs from Fionnphort (£40 adult return).
- Staffa Tours departs from Tobermory (from £85 adult return) or Fionnphort (£40 adult return).
- Turus Mara departs from Oskamull (the ferry port to Ulva) and costs £40 return per adult.
You can book your tickets on their websites.
Read more: 10 islands you can visit from Oban
How to get to Staffa from Iona
You can also catch a ferry from the island of Iona to Staffa. This is a popular option for anyone who wants to also explore Iona, before the journey to Staffa.
- Staffa Trips and Staffa Tours are the two main companies that offer tours departing from Iona. Both cost £40 for one adult return.
How to get to Staffa from Edinburgh or Glasgow
The best way to get to Staffa from Edinburgh or Glasgow is by driving to Oban and catching the CalMac ferry across to Mull and catching a boat tour from there. Or you can do what I did and book a guided tour that departs from one of these cities.
I highly recommend Rabbies. I did the 3-day tour to Mull and Iona departing from Glasgow. Staffa was an option to add, and I had to pay for my ferry ticket with Staffa Trips additionally, which cost £40.
The Mull, Iona and Staffa tour with Rabbies
What I love about this tour with Rabbies was they organised everything for you. It was an easy way to experience these three islands without the hassle of planning multiple ferry times. My 3-day tour was also a very reasonable price, and I got to experience many other things on this tour.
It made visiting Mull, Iona, and Staffa super easy!
Need help planning an island-hopping adventure?
I’ve created the ultimate resource to help you plan your own trip- the Planning a Trip To Scotland course! Created by myself and Lonely Planet author Kay Gillispie, this course features 70+ videos covering every aspect of creating your itinerary and booking your trip, including a module which shows you how to travel the Scottish islands!
The Journey To Staffa
Staffa Trips (who I visited Staffa with) can fit 40 people on their ferry. The journey from Fionnphort took 45 minutes, passing along the breathtaking mountainous scenery of the west coast of Mull.
Our guides told us to look out for wildlife as we sailed north – wild animals you have the opportunity to spot from the ferry include:
- Dolphins
- Otters
- Seals (usually bathing on the smaller islands)
- Minke whale (if you’re lucky!)
There are also many different types of seabirds you can spot, including:
- Cormorants
- Guillemots
- Razorbills
- Black Guillemots
- Shearwaters
- Fulmars
- Gannets
- Eiders
- Turnstones
- Arctic Terns
- Great Skua
Most tours will pass by the towering basalt caves, including the Boat Cave and Fingal’s Cave, so you have the chance to see what they look like from the sea.
Ferries and boats land on Staffa near Am Buachaille, a tidal islet on the southeast side of the island which is surrounded by stunning curved basalt columns.
>> Read more: Best Birdwatching Sites in Scotland
Where To See The Isle of Staffa Puffins
Staffa provides a home to nesting puffins from May to the start of August.
The best place to see the Staffa puffins is on the east side of the island. Once you disembark the ferry you will walk up a steep staircase that rises above Clamshell Cave. The staircase contains around 40 steps, and listen out for the eerie calls of shags from their nests within the cave.
When you reach the top, follow the path to the right to walk anticlockwise around the island. It takes about 10 minutes to reach the Staffa puffins – you’ll know you’re in the right place when you see a pink marker (a buoy).
Sit down, relax and wait for the puffins to appear on the cliff! They are friendly, curious birds, and when they see humans around they will come up to say hello from a safe distance.
You will see the puffins dip into small holes in the side of the cliff, where their nests are located. Keep an eye out for puffins carrying small fish in their beaks to take to their pufflings.
I could have easily laid by the cliffs watching these comical birds all day, but we only had 1.5 hours to explore the island, so I begrudgingly walked back to the ferry.
Visiting Fingal’s Cave on Staffa
Fingals Cave, as viewed from the ferry
Fingal’s Cave is a sea cave and designated Site of Special Scientific Interest.
It’s distinguishable by the tall, black columns of basalt rock that look so carefully crafted you might believe they were carved by Gods.
Thomas Pennant, a Welsh naturalist and writer at the time, wrote when he visited Staffa: ‘’Compared to this, what are the cathedrals and places built by men?’’
Some of the basalt columns are curved and twisted into dramatic formations, If you look down at the columns you’ll notice they are the shape of a hexagon.
The same volcanic activity is what formed the Giant’s Causeway in Northern Ireland.
The cave is named after legendary Irish hero Fhinn McCoul (known as Fingal in Scotland), who is said to have defended the Hebrides from Viking raids during the 3rd century.
Interestingly, it’s unknown if he ever visited the cave on Staffa that was named in his honour!
There are also several other caves on Staffa. There’s the Boat Cave, McKinnon’s Cave (or Cormorants Cave), located on the west side of the island. The west side is harder to access by boat.
Scotland Travel Tip
You can also see puffins on the Isle of May.
Tips For Visiting Staffa
- Puffins nest on Staffa from late April to early August. Make sure you plan to visit within this timeframe if you want to see puffins.
- Bring a warm, waterproof jacket with you. It can get windy on Staffa.
- Bring a pair of binoculars with you. This will make wildlife spotting from the ferry and from the island a whole lot easier!
- Don’t get too close to the puffin’s nests- it’s easy to accidentally step on a nest and cause damage.
Do you have a question about visiting Staffa? Pop it below and I’ll do my best to answer it for you!
MY BEST TRAVEL TIPS FOR SCOTLAND
Here is a list of travel resources that I always use that save me time and money. For more tips check out my ultimate guide on planning a trip to Scotland.
💜 Planning: If you’re on a budget I highly recommend grabbing my Ultimate Scotland Travel Planning Bundle. It includes an ebook, digital travel planner, and cheat sheets for planning your trip.
💜 Planning a Trip to Scotland Course: If you are looking for help to plan your trip from start to finish, my Planning A Trip To Scotland course is my absolute best resource for creating your itinerary! It includes 70+ videos about every aspect of planning a trip to Scotland.
💜 Booking flights: I use Skyscanner when researching and booking my flights as I find them to have the best deals. I also use Google Flights to compare flights I’ve found on Skyscanner. I always book direct with the airline.
💜 Accommodation: I use Booking.com when booking my accommodation in Scotland. I also have a list of my recommended accommodation in Scotland here.
💜 Travel insurance: I always recommend booking travel insurance for any trip you take. Personally, I use CoverMore– I used to sell this insurance when I was a travel agent and dealt with claims on behalf of my customers frequently and they were really easy to deal with. World Nomads is also another high-quality insurance provider I recommend.
💜 Tours and Activities: I use GetYourGuide whenever I can to book tours and activities. I also recommend purchasing the Explorer Pass if you plan on visiting a few attractions.
💜 Transport: When hiring a car in the UK I always use Celtic Legend. You can save 10% off your car rental by using the referral code WAYFARINGKIWI when you ask for a quote. For train times and bookings I use Scotrail (Scotland’s main network) and I also compare prices with Trainline. For bus travel, I use Megabus for cheap fares.
💜 What to pack: The weather is changeable in Scotland and you can sometimes have four seasons in one day! I’ve written this comprehensive packing list for Scotland that will tell you everything you need to pack, whether you’re travelling from abroad or living locally and you’re planning a day trip to Scotland.
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