Fort William is a funny little town. When I first arrived here off a train from Glasgow over six years ago, I was so surprised how much there was to do in such a little place. There are so many great places to grab your outdoor gear and everything you'll need for your next adventure (it is the Outdoor Capital of the UK, of course!)
It might not look pretty from the road side but Fort William High St is one to write home about. Unlike most other high streets in the UK, it is not plagued with big chain brands with a few boarded up windows in between. It is a high street full of life. It is full of wonderful independent businesses and has a good balance of all the different things I think make up a great local high street.
One thing I've always felt Fort William lacked, however, was a really great bake shop. This, however, has changed in more recent years with the new addition of Rain Bakery. Opening in Spring 2021, Rain serves delicious baked homemade baked goods, from breads to pastries to cakes. I've been to Rain a couple of times now and it is honestly one of my favourite places in the Highlands to find delicious treats.
We arrived at Rain at lunch time, which was a pretty busy time to arrive but thankfully we were able to grab a table and buy a couple of sandwiches, a few sweet treats and a coffee each. I enjoyed an absolutely incredible sandwich with grilled halloumi, sweetcorn fritter, sweet chilli mayonaise and smashed peas on their wonderful house sourdough. It takes your regular sandwiches to a whole new level.
One of the things Rain Bakery is most renowned for is their homemade pastries. By the time we arrived, a lot of their pastries and cakes had already sold out for the day. However, we did manage to grab an almond croissant and a creme brûlée doughnut. Both were so delicious! If you are looking for a sweet treat, I would highly recommend either of these two. I am still thinking about how wonderful they were weeks after our trip.
After lunch, we headed a little further down the High Street to another one of my favourite spots in Fort William, The Highland Bookshop. I still remember the day last year when I spotted this little independent bookshop and decided to pop in. I was not disappointed! The Highland Bookshop features a wonderful collection of curated books to browse and buy. One of the things I love most about this bookshop is their selection of Scottish books. They have so many books about Scotland, whether that's books about the local history of the area, travel books about various parts of Scotland, as well as fiction books set in Scotland and OS maps of areas surrounding Fort William. It is a fantastic place to stop if you are interested in learning more about Scotland whilst you're at home. We bought the Bad Girl Bakery cookbook which has been a real source of baking inspiration to us both at home and in my job over the last few weeks.
If you are travelling through Fort William any time soon, I highly recommend stopping off and having a wander around Fort William High Street. It's so great to see so many small, local businesses doing so well in Fort William and I love being able to support these small businesses whilst exploring this little Highland town. Other highlights that we didn't manage to explore on this trip include the Highland Cinema, a little Highland Soap Co shop, a nice vegan cafe called The Wildcat and plenty of great gift shops. It is a wonderful balance of lots of independent businesses making a lovely place to explore and browse.
Could this be Scotland's best high street?
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