Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
58.0km²
Area
126km
Coastline
383m
Highest point
Heaval
1,174
People
14°C
Warmest sea
August
800km
To the mainland
When to go to Barra
Good all year round.
The sea is warmest in August (14 °C) and coolest in March (8 °C). The water never reaches 21 °C: bring a wetsuit.
Averages 1991–2020. Sea: NOAA OISST, the water within 35 km of the coast. Air, rain and sun: NASA POWER. Best months weigh warm afternoons (23–30 °C), sea of 24 °C or more and few wet days.
Island in Outer Hebrides, Scotland, UK
Barra is an island in United Kingdom. It belongs to Outer Hebrides. It covers 58.0 km², with 126 km of coastline. Its highest point, Heaval, rises to 383 m. About 1,174 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 800 km away.
Getting there
- Barra Airport (BRR)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at INV airport (Inverness)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- FerriesArdmhor, Barra - Eriskay, Kisimul Castle, Barra - Tiree, Oban - Castlebay
- 800 km from the mainlanddistance to the nearest continental coast
Plan the trip
Ferries, stays and things to do
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
On the island
What you find on Barra.
- 13beachesTangasdale Beach, Tràigh Cille Bharra, Big Beach and 10 more
- 5ferry terminalsCastlebay, Castlebay Ferry Terminal, Àird Mhòr and 2 more
- 2marinasCastlebay, Castlebay Marina
- 22named peaksHeaval, Heabhal North Top, Hartaval and 19 more
- 180ruins and archaeological sitesDun Ban, broch site, Dun an t-Sleibh, broch site, Dun Na Cille, dun site and 177 more
- 1waymarked walking routesHebridean Way (Hiking)
- 5campsitesScurrival Campsite, Croft 183, Wavecrest Campsite and 2 more
- 7hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 8restaurants, cafés and bars
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit, inside the island's outline. A low number may only mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Cross-checked with our atlases
Barra in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Barra, each with its own numbers.
1beachCoastya
15mountainsPeakyas
Highest point
383m
Heaval
prominence 383 m · according to Peakyas
Beach with the warmest sea
14.1°C
Isle of Barra Beach
sea in the warmest month · according to Coastya
15 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Heavalprominence 383 m383m
- Beinn Tangabhal332m
- Ben Cliad
- Grianan
- Beinn Òb
- Hartabhal
- Beinn na Mòine
- Cadha Mòr
7 more on PeakyasOpen Peakyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 75 m above the sea. 93 % of it is below 200 m.
- 48 %0–50 m
- 45 %50–200 m
- 7 %200–500 m
Share of the island's area in each altitude band, from the Copernicus DEM (30 m, read at 30–240 m on large islands).
Size, for real
Next to islands you may know.
5 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Barra1,078 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 9 |
| Night low (°C) | 7 | 6 | 6 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 13 | 11 | 9 | 8 |
| Sea (°C) | 9 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 11 | 10 |
| Rain (mm) | 154 | 112 | 104 | 72 | 82 | 84 | 100 | 117 | 110 | 148 | 143 | 154 |
| Wet days | 23 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 16 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 22 | 23 | 23 |
| Sun h/day | 0.3 | 1.6 | 3.4 | 5.8 | 7.0 | 6.1 | 5.3 | 4.6 | 3.3 | 2.0 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 39 | 36 | 32 | 27 | 25 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 29 | 33 | 36 | 37 |
Averages 1991–2020 for the ~55 km NASA POWER cell over the island; the sea from NOAA OISST.
Recent years
Warmer and cooler years at sea.
Each month's sea temperature compared with its 1991–2020 average, in degrees.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | +0.1 | −0.1 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.4 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.1 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.2 |
| 2021 | −0.3 | −0.3 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.1 | −0.1 | +1.2 | +1.0 | +0.5 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.2 |
| 2022 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +0.5 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.9 | +0.4 | +1.1 | +1.0 |
| 2023 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +2.2 | +1.4 | +1.3 | +1.1 | +0.9 | +0.9 | +0.4 |
| 2024 | +0.6 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +1.3 | −0.4 | −0.3 | −0.5 | ±0.0 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.4 |
| 2025 | +1.0 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +1.3 | +1.8 | +0.5 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.9 | +0.6 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
South Uist
United Kingdom305 km²620 m33 km away
BenbeculaUnited Kingdom76 km²124 m52 km away
Isle of SkyeUnited Kingdom1,628 km²993 m81 km away
TireeUnited Kingdom79 km²141 m64 km away
North UistUnited Kingdom298 km²334 m69 km away
CannaUnited Kingdom11 km²208 m56 km away
RùmUnited Kingdom107 km²812 m68 km away
EiggUnited Kingdom30 km²393 m79 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q223212) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Outline | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Sea temperature | NOAA OISST v2.1 · 1991–2020 |
| Climate | NASA POWER · 1991–2020 |
| Relief, 3D model | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Beaches, ports, lighthouses, trails | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Towns | GeoNames · CC BY 4.0 |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
| Beaches, mountains, lakes and waterfalls | Coastya, Peakyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; NOAA OISST |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
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