The Waterside Hotel

A spectacular spot on the stunning Ayrshire coast

- RACHEL MCCONACHIE

AS the roads narrow west of Glasgow, the scenery gets greener, the hills higher and finally you reach the wild west coast.

The Waterside Hotel in West Kilbride has one of the best locations on that stretch, looking out over a pretty beach to the gorgeous Isle of Arran.

When we visited, we had all kinds of weather. But that didn't bother us. The view from our room showcased the drama as dark skies made way for blue and the rains passed through or just missed us, a fantastic spectacle from the comfort of our spacious deluxe double.

We waited for a dry spell to venture out on to the beach from the hotel gardens and found a footpath that runs all the way to the pretty town of West Kilbride.

The views along the coast and across to Arran were so distracting we often forgot to appreciate the beaches we were walking alongside.