Lamlash is located in the southern half of the island, some three miles to the south of Brodick and five miles to the north of Whiting Bay. It is on the eastern side and sits on a bay facing the Holy Isle and the Firth of Clyde.

In common with the rest of the island the village's main industry is tourism. The only secondary school and only hospital in Arran are also located in Lamlash, as are local government offices.

According to Glasgow's Department of Naval Architecture and Marine Engineering, Lamlash has a good natural harbour offering very good shelter. It has accommodated the Royal Navy Home Fleet and Atlantic Fleet.[citation needed] Local campaigners hope to establish a Marine Protected Area in the bay.

Lamlash has an RNLI Lifeboat station with a B class Atlantic 75 lifeboat, covering the inshore waters around the coast of Arran.

Shiskine is a small village on the Isle of Arran in the Firth of Clyde, Scotland. Sitting further up the "Shiskine Valley" from the village of Blackwaterfoot, the village takes its name from a corruption of the Gaelic for "marshy place". Much of the area was essentially a swamp years ago, but now comprises farm land.

The village has its own primary school and local church and the Balmichael Visitor Centre is just to the north of the village. There is also an ancient stone circle close by to the village, purportedly of Pictish origin. Shiskine is close to the peaks of Ben Nuis and Ben Bharrain.

The island has three endemic species of tree, the Arran Whitebeams. These trees are the Scottish or Arran Whitebeam (Sorbus arranensis), the Bastard Mountain Ash or Cut-leaved Whitebeam (Sorbus pseudofennica) and the Catacol Whitebeam (Sorbus pseudomeinichii). If rarity is measured by numbers alone they are amongst the most endangered tree species in the world. They are protected in Glen Diomhan off Glen Catacol, at the north end of the island by a partly fenced off National Nature Reserve, and are monitored by staff from Scottish Natural Heritage. Only 236 Sorbus pseudofennica and 283 Sorbus arranensis were recorded as mature trees in 1980. They are typically trees of the mountain slopes, close to the tree line. However, they will grow at lower altitudes, and are being preserved within Brodick Country Park.

Over 200 species of bird have been recorded on Arran including including Black Guillemot, Eider, Peregrine Falcon and the Golden Eagle. In 1981 there were 28 Ptarmigan on Arran, but in 2009 it was reported that extensive surveys had been unable to record any. Similarly, the Red-billed Chough no longer breeds on the island.

Red Deer are numerous on the northern hills, and there are populations of Red Squirrel, Badger, Otter, Adder and Common Lizard. Offshore there are Harbour Porpoises, Basking Sharks and various species of dolphin.