Book Now

Fly salmon fishing on the River Thurso

Thanks to our location overlooking the productive River Thurso, the Ulbster Arms Hotel has long been a popular fishing hotel. We organise salmon fishing on the river, and our services include ghillie hire, rod and reel hire and transport to and from the beat. In the hotel grounds, we have dedicated areas to make your stay as enjoyable as possible. Our Ghillie’s Room provides a comfortable meeting point for ghillies and guests, our Rods Room allows for safe storage, and our Drying Room is available for drying wet clothing overnight. Our fishing services are open to hotel guests and visitors.

Book Now

Man holding a fish on a River Thurso fishing trip

Try your hand at making a record-breaking catch

The River Thurso is one of the best salmon rivers in Scotland. It enjoys a long productive season, from 11th January to 5th October. Fish can be caught every month, but the main spring run starts in March and continues through to early June. Given the right conditions, the fishing in May and June can be very productive. Our grilse run usually starts in mid-May and runs through to the end of August, with a peak in the middle of July. In September we see a smaller run of larger summer salmon enter the river.

On average, the river produces over 1000 salmon per year and fishing is by fly only. Since the cessation of netting in 2005, the catch has been rising. In the last few years there have been record catches made. The Thurso is fed from a loch, but unlike many other rivers, we can control the water flowing out of the loch. In this way, we are able to maintain the level of the river at a good fishing height for about three weeks, once the loch is full. There are 12 daily rotating beats, each fishing 2 rods.

Book Now

An angler’s paradise

We offer a range of services and facilities at the Ulbster Arms to make your fishing trip convenient and enjoyable:

Fishing Services

If you’d like some guidance, you may wish to hire one of our knowledgeable ghillies for the day. You’ll meet your ghillie at the hotel in the morning and they will accompany you on your fishing trip, providing expert knowledge, tips and advice. We also offer a wide range of high-tech tackle for hire, including rods, reels and lines. In addition, we can provide transport to and from the beats on your fishing day, which you must book in advance.

The Ghillie’s Room

The Ghillie’s Room is the meeting point for ghillies and guests on any given morning during the season, and the senior ghillie can also be found here most mornings. Along with comfortable seating and hot drinks facilities, you can also find useful snippets of information and regular updates from our team of ghillies on current conditions and tactics on the river.

The Rod Room

Having a safe rod room is essential to any fishing trip, and at the Ulbster Arms all fishing guests have exclusive access to this spacious room. The rod room is large enough to accommodate up to 48 rods.

The Drying Room

There’s nothing worse than putting on damp, cold clothing to start your day. Our drying room is spacious and will comfortably dry any wet clothing overnight. While generally used by our fishing guests, all hotel guests are welcome to use our drying room. It has proved popular with runners, cyclists and watersports enthusiasts.

Book Now

Book your fishing day with us today

To book your fishing day with us, please contact us here. You can find out more about our salmon fishing services on the River Thurso website.

Book Now

Accommodation

Discover our hotel rooms at Ulbster Arms Hotel and Lodges …

Find Out More

Special Offers

See our special offers here and book your deal today…

Find Out More

Book Now

Testimonials

2nd night of NC500 and were blessed to find this hotel. Lovely , clean , good service, lovely meal. Wonderful atmosphere, beautiful decor, really enjoyed our overnight stay, would love to come back and spend more time there. Would highly recommend this hotel

Fly salmon fishing on the River Thurso

Try your hand at making a record-breaking catch