Old Ticket Office

History and location

The Old Ferry Ticket Office is located at the former ferry slipway at South Kessock in Inverness. The building was formerly used as the ticket office for the old roll-on, roll-off Kessock Ferry which linked Inverness and the Black Isle before the construction of the Kessock Bridge in 1982.
After the ferry service ceased, the building was subsequently used as an informal base for visitors and local people interested in nature and the local environment before being closed for refurbishment works in 2009.

The Ticket Office is fondly remembered by local people: by older folk as the place you would once have bought your ticket for the Ferry for a trip across to the Black Isle; but also, later in its existence, as a welcoming, informal 'place to go with the kids' when it was used as a base for informal environmental education activities for South Kessock and Merkinch.

The refurbishment work has now been completed and the building has been transformed into a multi use space housing displays, information, educational resources, space for Highland Council Ranger accommodation and toilet facilities. As well as the exhibitions, the building will house local archives, a logbook recording wildlife sightings, a projector and screen and a space for workshops, meetings and educational activities.
This provides the foundation for a broader usage of the building, with local schools, Highland Council Rangers, BTCV (British Trust for Conservation Volunteers) etc. all playing their part. The result will provide a greater range of activities on offer there for the public, with the same friendly atmosphere as previously enjoyed.

The Ticket Office will provide a focal point for learning in and through the natural environment of Merkinch Local Nature Reserve.

The building will be open to the public from Saturday 26th June, opening hours are from 2.00 to 4.00pm Mondays to Saturdays. A small car park is located at the turning-circle nearby with plenty of unrestricted on-street parking elsewhere, and is served by the regular No 14 bus linking South Kessock with the centre of town.

The Ticket Office is leased to Merkinch Community Council and is run by a team of local volunteers, assisted by Merkinch Partnership Project Officer Anne Sutherland.