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    Scotland’s Weather: 10 Best Forecasting Websites

    7 min read

    By Ben Thorburn, Head of Marketing
    More by Ben

    General Weather Forecasts for Scotland

    ‘If you don’t like it, wait 5 minutes’. That’s the Scotland weather forecast that might raise a smile.

    But the truth is that Scottish weather varies a lot depending on where you are in Scotland. Here at Wilderness, we rely on a few Scotland weather forecasts to help us plan our adventures.

    There’s no such as thing as bad weather, just the wrong equipment. (I’m reeling out the weather cliches I know!). But that’s definitely our philosophy.  So whether you are walking, road cyclingsea kayaking or mountain biking in Scotland, it’s good to be prepared. See below for our favourite and most-trusted Scotland weather forecast services.

    Scotland Weather Forecast Websites

    Here are a few key websites we use for a Scotland weather forecast. I’ll break the forecasts down into categories; General weather forecasts for Scotland and also forecasts for Mountain and Marine areas.

    • The Weather Outlook – The Weather Outlook (TWO), provide accurate forecasting by postcode for either a 7 day or 16 day period. They also have an interesting blog where their lead forecaster Brian Gaze provides comment on the weather forecast.
    • NetWeather – A postcode or placename forecast that breaks down daily for 7 days and then has an outlook for the following 7 days. They also have a large, well used forum that goes into detailed discussion forum about Scottish weather forecast modelling. You do have to register but it will feed the inner weather geek in you.
    • Met Office – This is certainly one of the go-to places for weather information and should figure as one of your trusted sites in the quiver you check before exploring in Scotland. Recognises and remembers the place names you check the most and gives you a handy at a glance forecast or map view for the coming 5 days.
    • BBC Weather – You’re probably familiar with this website and we find it very useful to break down the weather that’s coming in across the course of the day. We don’t use it for mountain forecasts but it is certainly handy for low level activities. You also have the option to view the BBC forecasts as presented at the end of the news programmes.

    Mountain Weather Forecasts for Scotland

    Sunshine on the top of Suilven, North West Highlands.

    • Mountain Weather Information Service – This site is weather gold dust when planning a trip in the Scottish mountains. They have clear, printable forecasts for specific regions of Scotland and that highlight the key aspects of weather that will affect you when travelling through the hills.
    • Met Office Mountain Weather – Covering all mountain areas in Britain this set of forecasts give a retrospective animated view of how the weather has progressed over the last 6 hours, handy to see the fronts coming over. They also list hazards and will put a risk factor beside them – currently we have a high risk of ‘strong sunlight’…nice problem to have.
    • Weather2 – A great site for at-a-glance forecasting which compares the weather at base level with the weather up on the hills. It also has a paid for text service that delivers basic forecasts direct to your phone.

    Marine Weather Forecasts for Scotland

    scotland weather forecast

    Sun, sand and calm blue seas. Scottish weather at its best while Sea Kayaking in Arisaig on the west coast.

    • Weather Online – Provides a regional sailing forecast that requires some interpretation but is nevertheless detailed and can run an animated loop. The site also contains detailed forecasting for Scotland including, an overview, duration of sunshine and chance of precipitation.
    • Windfinder – Select the area you need for your forecast and you’ll be presented with some excellent visuals to help interpret the data and show when the wind will pick up throughout the day. In addition to wind info it also shows cloud cover, precipitation and temperature.
    • Met Office Inshore Forecast – Does what it says on the tin across all inshore waters and also comes in a print-friendly version.

    Our Holidays

    Meet the Author: Ben Thorburn

    “Ben is Head of Marketing at Wilderness Scotland and his love and enthusiasm for Scotland’s wild places is what he hopes rubs off and inspires people to visit such an incredible place. Outside of work he's found in his natural habitat; the mountains, whether skiing, on a mountain bike or walking.”

    View profileMore by Ben

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