Troon occupies a strip of land along the coast of the Firth of Clyde about 30 miles south-west of Glasgow, 6 miles north of Ayr, and immediately north of Prestwick Airport.
It is a small, lively town of about 10,000 inhabitants with another 5,000 in the adjacent residential areas of Barassie and Meadowgreen, and the village of Loans just a stones-throw inland.
Troon has good rail connections.
Despite this, most visitors arrive by road.
The A79 loops around the western end of the main runway of Prestwick
Airport and lay-bys offer excellent vantage points when the take-off/landing action is at the western end.
The B749 is a left turn off the A79, just a few hundred yards north of the Airport. This road enters Troon Southwoods. For fun, take the left fork at the junction one mile from the
dual carriageway and take care following the very long right bend passing some of Troon's grandest houses.
As you emerge from the woodland, to your left a stretch of the Lochgreen Golf
Course (a fine, long municipal links course which is open to visitors) runs parallel to the Portland Golf Course beyond the railway and, closer to the sea, the Royal Troon course.
Following the road, after a left turn at a T-junction, you cross the railway and can see the sea. Before the next X-road junction you will pass the (old) Portland clubhouse on your left.
Beyond the Clubhouse take the right-angled bend and now you are in the town and just a mile from the centre. From here the road runs parallel to the seashore and just 20 yards from the sand. After a couple of hundred yards you pass the South Beach Hotel on your right. The South Beach offers accommodation, and both Dining Room and Lounges open to non-residents.
A few hundred yards further and you pass
Now you are in Ayr Street, with premises on both sides which are fully described in our Town Centre Tour. The traffic lights are at The Cross, the centre of the shopping area and the meeting place of all of Troon.
You have arrived !!
The A759. If you come in to Troon through Loans, it is worth taking a few minutes to look around the village. At the Old Loans Inn, there's easy parking outside and a friendly welcome with good food and beverages inside. James D. Clark, the French Polisher, Furniture Restorer and Cabinet Maker who has an interesting stock of attractive items. The bright lights at the Texaco Filling Station signal petrol, etc 24 hours per day and they carry a range of non-car items in the shop. Right on the corner of the Troon Road you will see No 2 Troon Road, newly opened for b&b in 2006
From Loans, the A759 runs a mile or so flanked by greenbelt before it becomes Dundonald Road. The first junction is now controlled by traffic lights, if you turn right you enter Central Avenue which leads through to the Meadowgreen area. Sixty metres on, on the left, is Wilson Avenue which leads through to Fullarton Woods but, beware, you can't drive into the woods as there are bollards across the road at the top of Wilson Avenue. Another 100 metres on the left is the turning into Ottoline Drive which runs south along the edge of the Fullerton Woods, with the Lochgreen Golf Course on the other side. Down here you will find The Cherries B+B.
Then, on the right, you pass the Marr College Playing Fields followed by the second and seventeenth holes of the Darley Golf Course, with the Cemetery on the left. Now you are at the top of the railway bridge, though this spur of the railway line was taken away years ago. Looking hard right into the grounds of Marr College, left across the first hole of each of the three municipal golf courses and the Clubhouse, or straight ahead at the roofs, the church towers and spires, and across the water to Lady Isle and Arran.
Taking first left at the bottom of the hill you are in Harling Drive with the golf course on your left and 400 metres down on the right is Fairway View B+B.
Ignoring Harling Drive and driving straight ahead, you reach a mini-roundabout. If you take the left fork into St Meddan's Street you will soon reach the Ardneil Hotel, our "local" where we are regulars for a pint and our choice from an excellent range meals and desserts. Beside the hotel is the Ardneil Garage which operates a Daihatsu agency, a second-hand car yard, and a filling station open from 7am to 9pm. Looking down upon St Meddan's Street at this point is the Railway Station (Rail Connections). Take care here, the Station Approaches are now one-way but occasionally someone forgets. The sea is clearly in sight and if you drive to the end of the road you are right at one of the town car parks and just a few yards from the shops and the Cross.
Driving straight through the mini-roundabout takes you past Portland Park (home of the local football team) at which point Dundonald Road is renamed Portland Street. The Police and Fire Stations are on your left and the Q8 Garage and Filling Station is on the right.
From here it is just a couple of hundred yards, through the main shopping area, to the Cross.
The B746. The road into the town from the north passes through Meadowgreen (not long since that area was all fields), over the railway into Barassie, and then hard left, running close to the north beach (plenty of car parking on the grass) and the sea.
All roads lead to the Cross !!!! ................................Well, perhaps not quite.
In a couple of weeks we will put up a Parking Map of places where you can leave the car.
Prestwick Airport is only four miles away and Glasgow Airport just 45 minutes. If you plan to arrive by rail or air, In-com Taxis operate a reliable Meeting & Greeting service.
There are only three roads in/out of Troon
- the B746 from the north, through Barassie
- the A759 from the east, via Loans village
- the B749 from the south.
Turning right here, you will enter Bentinck Drive and may drive north to the town centre.
Skipping the turn into Bentinck Drive and driving or walking beyond the Portland , you immediately pass the Royal Troon Golf Clubhouse (on your left). There is a public car park at this south end of the promenade. Most of the year it is free and close-by there is a dog exercise area. You need to be aware that from May to the end of September dogs are not allowed on the beach.
- the Portland Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) on your right
- the Library, again on the right, overlooking a municipal garden which is usually worth a look
- the Municipal Chambers on your left
- the Parish Church of Scotland (Presbyterian) on your left.
The road along Barassie front is about two miles, at the end of which take left at the mini-roundabout, overlooked by the new indoor swimming pool. Then turn right at the traffic lights and you are in the town centre and heading for the Cross.
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