The route opens with one of the finest starts of any British trail: the crossing of the Forth Road Bridge on a walkway 46 metres above the Firth of Forth, with the UNESCO-listed 1890 Forth Rail Bridge rising in red steel to the east and the Queensferry Crossing sweeping away to the west. It is exposed and often windy, but the views up and down the firth are exceptional. On the north side the path drops into North Queensferry, a village squeezed beneath the bridges with a harbour, pubs, cafés and the world's smallest working light tower.
From North Queensferry the trail works around Port Laing and into the Royal Burgh of Inverkeithing, following a mix of shared coastal cycleway, pavements and woodland paths. Beyond Inverkeithing Bay the route rounds Dalgety Bay, passing the atmospheric ruins of the 12th-century St Bridget's Kirk above the shore, where seals often haul out on the rocks below. Woodland and shoreline paths lead on past Braefoot Bay to Aberdour, a pretty village with galleries, a small harbour, a 12th-century castle and the sands of Silversands Bay.
A short, easy section on good paths beside the railway and shoreline, with wide views across the firth to Edinburgh and the Pentland Hills. The path skirts Hawkcraig Point before running through woodland and above the beach to reach Burntisland, a former shipbuilding port with a long sandy beach, cafés, shops and a station with direct trains back to Edinburgh.
Leave Burntisland along the coast and skirt Pettycur Bay, with its caravan park above the sands, before climbing to the harbour village of Kinghorn. There are short road sections here where the coastline is pinched by the railway and the A921, but the views across the water to Edinburgh, Inchkeith island and the Lothian shore are constant company. Kinghorn has a beachfront café, shops, pubs and a station.
One of the more attractive stretches of the southern coast. Open coastal path leads past the ruins of 16th-century Seafield Tower, where seals bask on the offshore rocks, then joins the long Kirkcaldy esplanade. Sections here run over rocky foreshore that can be slow going and are affected by high tide, so check tide times. Kirkcaldy — the 'Lang Toun' and birthplace of Adam Smith — has every facility, plus Pathhead Sands and the artillery fortress of Ravenscraig Castle at its northern end.
Beyond Ravenscraig Castle the path ducks through a rock tunnel into Dysart Harbour, one of the loveliest corners of the trail, with the restored Pan Ha' cottages and 16th-century St Serf's Tower. Climb past the Frances Colliery winding-gear memorial — a reminder of Fife's mining history — to the Wemyss family burial ground at Blair Point, then drop through the quiet village of West Wemyss. A short inland detour brings you to Coaltown of Wemyss, an 1890s mining village with a shop and the Earl David Hotel.
Return to the coast at the Wemyss caves, where more than fifty Pictish carvings dating back some 1,500 years survive beneath the ruins of 14th-century Macduff's Castle. The path then follows an old railway trackbed through Buckhaven and the industrial waterfront at Methil, crossing the Bawbee Bridge over the River Leven. It is a less scenic section than the East Neuk but historically fascinating, finishing on the Victorian promenade at Leven with its shops, cafés and wide beach.
An easy, level stretch across Leven Links and the edge of Lundin Links golf course, with sand underfoot for much of the way and views out to the Bass Rock on clear days. The section ends at Lower Largo, a charming village of terraced cottages beneath a railway viaduct and the birthplace of Alexander Selkirk, the castaway who inspired Robinson Crusoe — his statue stands on the site of his family home.
A varied and rewarding section. The path traverses the wildflower-rich Dumbarnie Links Nature Reserve, then climbs over Kincraig Hill on a steep, stepped route with WWII bunkers and superb views along the firth — there is a low-tide alternative along the Elie Chain Walk for the adventurous, though it should only be attempted by the well prepared. Descend to the broad sands of Earlsferry and follow the shore to Elie, one of Fife's prettiest harbour villages, with the Ship Inn on the beach.
Leaving Elie the trail passes the Lady's Tower and the ruins of Ardross and Newark castles, though a signed roadside diversion bypasses a badly eroded coastal stretch. Rejoining the shore you reach the restored windmill and old salt pans at St Monans, then the Old Kirk, built in 1362 and standing closer to the sea than any other church in Scotland. The village harbour is still a working one, with a good pub and chip shop.
The heart of the East Neuk, and for many walkers the finest few miles of the trail. Level coastal paths and village streets link St Monans to Pittenweem, with its busy fish market, harbour and St Fillan's Cave, then continue to Anstruther. Here you will find the Scottish Fisheries Museum, boat trips to the Isle of May seabird colony and the celebrated Anstruther Fish Bar. Facilities are plentiful throughout.
Continue through Cellardyke, where the old harbour and drying poles recall the herring era, then onto grassy clifftop paths with the North Sea below. The weathered sandstone arches of the Caiplie Caves — used by hermits and pilgrims — make a memorable stop. The section ends at Crail, one of Scotland's oldest Royal Burghs and probably the most photographed harbour in the country, with cobbled streets, galleries and a lobster hut on the harbour wall.
A wilder, quieter section around the corner of Fife. The path passes Kilminning Coast Nature Reserve and rounds Fife Ness, the easternmost point of the county, with its squat lighthouse, bird observatory and the cave where King Constantine I was reputedly slain in 874. Beyond, the trail crosses Balcomie and Kingsbarns golf links and the wide sands of Cambo before turning inland to Kingsbarns village, with its community-owned inn. Facilities are limited along the way, so carry food and water.
A superb final approach to St Andrews. Rocky shoreline leads past Babbet Ness before the route turns inland along the wooded den of Kenly Water, returning to the coast at Buddo Rock, a dramatic sandstone arch. Undulating clifftops with stone steps pass the Rock and Spindle, a striking sea stack of radiating basalt columns, then cross the Castle Course to East Sands. Cross the harbour lock gate and climb past the soaring ruins of the 12th-century cathedral and the clifftop castle to finish on The Scores, in the heart of the university town.
The longest and most varied day of the trail, though almost entirely flat. Pass the famous 18th green of the Old Course and follow the cyclepath beside the A91 to Guardbridge and the Eden Estuary Nature Reserve, outstanding for wading birds. Continue through Leuchars village, past Earlshall Castle and over boardwalked moorland into Tentsmuir Forest, home to red squirrels, roe deer and a large seal colony at Tentsmuir Point. Forest tracks pass WWII anti-tank defences before reaching Tayport, then a disused railway line opens up wide views across the Firth of Tay to Dundee and the Sidlaw Hills, finishing at Newport on Tay.
