The Best Munros Near Aberdeen

Aberdeen is better placed for Munro bagging than many of its residents realise. The eastern Cairngorms, Royal Deeside and the Angus glens all lie within a comfortable drive, giving the Granite City access to some of Scotland's grandest and quietest mountains — including one of the most iconic hills in the country. Here are the best Munros near Aberdeen, roughly by driving distance.

The closest and most iconic: Lochnagar

Lochnagar (1,155m) is the obvious choice and the finest hill within easy reach of Aberdeen — around 90 minutes' drive to the Spittal of Glenmuick car park near Ballater. This magnificent mountain, immortalised by Byron and by the then Prince of Wales's children's book, wraps around a dark corrie loch beneath a wall of granite cliffs. The path is good and the walking straightforward, though it's a full day. Its neighbours (including the White Mounth Munros) can be linked for a bigger round. If you climb one Munro from Aberdeen, make it this.

Royal Deeside and the eastern Cairngorms

• Mount Keen (939m). Scotland's most easterly Munro, reached from Glen Tanar or Glen Esk — a rounded, benign whaleback on good tracks, roughly an hour and a half from the city. A great introduction to the area.
• Ben Avon and Beinn a' Bhùird. Two vast, remote plateau Munros above upper Deeside — huge days on wild, granite-tor country, best for fit walkers happy with a long walk-in.
• The Glen Shee Munros. An hour and a half or so west via Braemar, the Glenshee ski centre gives the easiest multi-Munro days in Scotland (The Cairnwell, Càrn Aosda and Càrn a' Gheòidh) plus the Glas Maol group across the road.

The Angus glens

South-west of the city, the Angus glens (Glen Clova, Glen Doll, Glen Esk) open into the southern Cairngorms and hold fine Munros such as Driesh and Mayar — a popular pair from Glen Doll, ideal for a first proper hill day — and the remote Glas Maol group. These glens are quieter than the honeypots further west and make excellent, less-crowded days out from Aberdeen.

Bigger trips west

For the high heart of the Cairngorms — Ben Macdui, Cairn Gorm, Braeriach and Cairn Toul — you're looking at around two hours to Aviemore or the Linn of Dee, better suited to a weekend than a day trip. These are the biggest, most serious mountains in the region, with arctic plateau terrain where navigation is everything.

Using Aberdeen as a base

Aberdeen works well for hills to its west and south-west: pick Deeside for the grandest days (Lochnagar, Ben Avon), the Angus glens for quieter outings, and Glen Shee for easy multi-Munro rounds. A car makes all the difference — public transport into these glens is limited — and Ballater or Braemar make good forward bases if you want to shorten the morning drive. For hills from the other Highland gateway, see our guide to the best Munros near Inverness.

Related guides

• How to climb Lochnagar — the full route from Glenmuick
• Munro bagging in the Cairngorms
• The best Munros near Inverness
• Munros tracking app — offline maps and routes for every hill near Aberdeen