By plane
In the Outer Hebrides, there are airports in Stornoway in Lewis, Benbecula and Barra. These airports provide direct flights to Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness. The airport in Barra is one of the most spectacular in the world, with planes landing on a three-mile beach at low tide, but this does mean that the flight times vary with the tide.
By ship
Caledonian MacBrayne (http://www.calmac.co.uk/) is the national ferry service. Citylink coaches generally connect with the ferries on the mainland. Details for Summer 2006:
Ullapool to Stornoway Mon-Sat 2 per day, taking 2 hours 45 minutes.
Uig on Skye to Tarbert Harris Mon-Sat 1 or 2 per day taking 1 hour 40 minutes.
Uig on Skye to Lochmaddy on North Uist Mon-Sun 1 or 2 per day taking 1 hour 45 minutes.
Oban to Castlebay on Barra daily, taking 5+ hours.
Oban to Lochboisdale on South Uist 4 per week, taking 5+ hours.