Satellite: Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 by EOX (CC BY 4.0). Outline and points © OpenStreetMap contributors / Natural Earth. North up.
In numbers
75.7km²
Area
149km
Coastline
124m
Highest point
Ruaval
1,303
People
14°C
Warmest sea
August
771km
To the mainland
When to go to Benbecula
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 of the Outer Hebrides, Scotland, UK
Benbecula is an island in United Kingdom. It belongs to Outer Hebrides. It covers 75.7 km², with 149 km of coastline. Its highest point, Ruaval, rises to 124 m. About 1,303 people live on it. The nearest mainland is 771 km away.
Getting there
- Benbecula Airport (BEB)airport on the island, with scheduled flightsCar hire at INV airport (Inverness)Discover Cars · Affiliate link↗
- 771 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 Benbecula.
- 17beachesCulla Bay, Oitir Mhòr and 15 more
- 7named peaksRueval, Stiaraval, Cnoc Miogaig and 4 more
- 1castles and fortsBorve Castle
- 449ruins and archaeological sitesRAF Borve Castle WWII CHB radar station, Ord House, Àiridh na h-Aon Oidhche and 446 more
- 1waymarked walking routesHebridean Way (Hiking)
- 1campsitesShellbay Caravan & Camping Park
- 10hotels, guesthouses and apartments
- 2restaurants, 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
Benbecula in our other atlases
Everything Coastya, Peakyas, Lakeyas and Cascadyas know about what lies inside Benbecula, each with its own numbers.
2mountainsPeakyas
1lakeLakeyas
Highest point
124m
Ruaval
prominence 124 m · according to Peakyas
Largest lake
0.16km²
Loch Fada
according to Lakeyas
Warmest lake
17.4°C
Loch Fada
surface water, warmest month · according to Lakeyas
2 mountains
on Peakyas, the mountain atlas
- Ruavalprominence 124 m124m
- Stiaravalprominence 40 m56m
1 lakes
on Lakeyas, the lake atlas
- Loch Fada0.16km²
Lakeyas is coming soonOpen Lakeyas ↗
The shape of the land.
On average the island stands 9 m above the sea. 100 % of it is below 200 m.
- 99 %0–50 m
- <1 %50–200 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.
10 km
All outlines drawn to the same scale (Natural Earth and OpenStreetMap).
Towns on the island
- Benbecula1,219 people
Month by month
The weather on the island.
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Afternoon high (°C) | 8 | 8 | 8 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 14 | 14 | 14 | 12 | 10 | 9 |
| Night low (°C) | 6 | 6 | 6 | 7 | 9 | 11 | 13 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 9 | 7 |
| Sea (°C) | 9 | 8 | 8 | 8 | 10 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 13 | 12 | 11 | 10 |
| Rain (mm) | 151 | 109 | 101 | 72 | 81 | 82 | 102 | 115 | 112 | 143 | 138 | 149 |
| Wet days | 23 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 15 | 16 | 19 | 20 | 19 | 22 | 23 | 23 |
| Sun h/day | 0.2 | 1.5 | 3.4 | 5.8 | 7.1 | 6.2 | 5.3 | 4.6 | 3.3 | 1.9 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| Wind (km/h) | 38 | 36 | 32 | 27 | 25 | 23 | 23 | 25 | 30 | 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 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.4 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.2 | ±0.0 | +0.2 | +0.2 |
| 2021 | ±0.0 | −0.2 | +0.2 | +0.2 | +0.1 | +0.1 | +1.3 | +0.9 | +0.5 | +0.1 | +0.3 | +0.2 |
| 2022 | +0.3 | +0.4 | +0.7 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.7 | ±0.0 | +0.3 | +0.9 | +0.4 | +1.0 | +1.0 |
| 2023 | +0.7 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +1.1 | +1.0 | +2.0 | +1.4 | +1.4 | +1.2 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.3 |
| 2024 | +0.5 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +0.8 | +1.4 | −0.2 | −0.2 | −0.4 | +0.1 | −0.1 | +0.2 | +0.3 |
| 2025 | +0.8 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +1.5 | +1.8 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +0.8 | +0.7 | +0.9 | +1.0 | +0.6 |
+1 warmer than usual −1 cooler than usual
Photos
Seen by visitors.
Nearby
More islands nearby.
North Uist
United Kingdom298 km²334 m17 km away
South UistUnited Kingdom305 km²620 m20 km away
Isle of SkyeUnited Kingdom1,628 km²993 m62 km away
BarraUnited Kingdom58 km²383 m52 km away
CannaUnited Kingdom11 km²208 m63 km away
RùmUnited Kingdom107 km²812 m77 km away
Lewis and HarrisUnited Kingdom2,138 km²714 m97 km away
Isle of RaasayUnited Kingdom62 km²443 m77 km awayAbout these numbers
| Names, area, population | Wikidata (Q755739) · 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 | Peakyas, Lakeyas — Wikidata · CC0; © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL; GeoNames · CC BY 4.0; HydroLAKES (Messager et al. 2016) · CC BY 4.0, LakeTEMP (Korver et al. 2024) · CC BY 4.0 |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers or canyons?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, month by month, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Coming soonVisit mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Coming soonVisit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.You are here
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit