This one-of-a-kind exclusive whisky experience combines the best of both worlds – the delightful taste of Scotch whisky and a comfortable, upscale hotel with all the amenities you could wish for. While I don’t have a whisky bucket list (or any bucket list) per se, a stay at the Isle of Raasay Distillery is a fun experience and an absolute must for any whisky fan! Don’t get me wrong – I have a home in a whisky village on a whisky island and I’ve stayed at hotels with famous whisky bars before. But staying on site at a distillery (with a delicious restaurant) was a truly unique and wonderful experience!

1. Whisky Distilleries with Accommodations in Scotland

Before I go about telling you all about my stay at the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel, I’ve done a bit of research on the matter and there are a handful of Scottish distilleries with accommodations that can be rented out. In Scotland, you’ll find:

• Bowmore Distillery has Bowmore Cottages and the Harbour Inn, in the same village, adjacent to the distillery. Some units like the Maltman’s Cottage, were formerly staff cottages;
• Glenmorangie Distillery has Glenmorangie House – a luxury boutique hotel with rooms and cottages, located about 10 miles away from the distillery.
• Ardbeg Distillery has the Seaview Cottage, which is located on distillery grounds in a separate area from production. Currently the website says its not available for booking, so not sure if Ardbeg has any sneaky plans!
• Dornoch Distillery was started on the grounds of the Dornoch Castle Hotel, so it kind of deserves a place on this list… (it’s funny, they market this as one of the only hotels in the UK with a distillery, as opposed to the way I am marketing this post as one of the only distilleries with a hotel! I think it’s an interesting distinction)
• Springbank Distillery in Campbeltown has The Still Guesthouse as part of their 3-day Eat, Sleep, Dram, Repeat retreats. The guesthouse is not onsite, but 3 minutes walk away from Springbank Distillery. I’ve not been, but a whisky writer I follow has, so check out his review!

There are a few lists online that would also include whisky hotels in Scotland like:

• the Jura Distillery / the Jura Hotel, which is next door. But, the hotel isn’t owned by the same company as the distillery, so just being next door doesn’t count!
• the Craigellachie Hotel in Aberlour (Speyside) or the Fife Arms in Braemar – both are considered as a whisky tasting hotel with vast and memorable whisky bars. So does that make them a whisky hotel in Scotland? Maybe… but also, maybe not.

All of the above would be great for any whisky tasting weekend breaks. However, all of my research has led me to this conclusion:

Of all the Scottish distilleries with accommodations, the Isle of Raasay Distillery is the only whisky distillery with a hotel on site in Scotland. You can walk from your room over to the production side for your tour without needing to brave temperamental Scottish weather. The restaurant and bar (with Raasay whisky of course!) are just located downstairs from your room.

This was confirmed by the Isle of Raasay Distillery, as well!

2. Introducing the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel

The Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel is housed in Borodale House, a former Victorian villa on Raasay. The hotel includes six en-suite rooms, a restaurant, and a bar and lounge to enjoy. Of course, Borodale House is also home to the Isle of Raasay Distillery (opened in 2017) and houses its 1 spirit still and 1 wash still. Currently, this yields 188,000 liters per annum of peated and unpeated spirit annually, so not a very big operation! In their signature single malt release, Isle of Raasay whisky is lightly peated with rich dark fruit flavors and bottled on site at 46.4% ABV.

The Borodale House Restaurant, available to overnight guests and visitors alike, sources its produce as locally as it can, with their culinary highlights including Raasay venison and fresh seafood from its shores. The dining room has uninterrupted views of the Cuillin Mountains over on Skye, so look forward to stunning views over breakfast and dinner!

Separating the hotel section and production is the bar and tasting area, with a lush living wall leading you into production, marking the boundaries. The bar serves Isle of Raasay whiskies and gin, as well as beer from Cuillin Brewery. When I visited, the only food option at the bar was the charcuterie platter, but it seems they’ve expanded to a full (and quite delicious looking) bar menu. From a quick inspection of the menu online, I spotted oysters, fried squid, langoustines and venison burgers. All local to Raasay or Skye, no doubt.

For those staying at the hotel, there is also a resident’s lounge for you to enjoy a quiet dram. It’s perfect for an after dinner drink before retiring to your room upstairs.

Let’s not forget about the whisky at the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel

Whisky is the main reason you’re here, is it not? Guests to the hotel get a complimentary distillery tour for their stay. You’ll get one dram (single cask release) or a gin for the normal tour. For those on the Winter Whisky Retreat, you get upgraded to Whisky, Gin, and Chocolate Tour and Tasting. You’ll get the Raasay Single Malt, a single cask release, and the gin to pair with chocolates from the Glenshiel Chocolate Company.

For those super whisky nerds, there is a variety of other tours and tastings you can take. The first two of these include the “normal production tour” plus an extra!

• Distillery and Bottling Warehouse Tour – You’ll truly get to witness the whole production cycle through to bottling, and sample 2 Raasay drams and the gin.

• Dunnage Cask Warehouse Tour – Pop behind the scenes into the dunnage warehouse, with an exclusive tasting of their Na Sia range, straight from the cask! After 6 cask strength whiskies, you’ll be glad you’re staying at the hotel!

• Cask Strength Tasting – a tasting featuring the Na Sia range, 6 whiskies both peated and unpeated, at cask strength no less!

Explore Isle of Raasay whiskies

3. My Stay at a Whisky Distillery – the Room

I visited the Isle of Raasay Distillery and stayed as part of their Winter Whisky Retreat promotion. Now for 280 GBP per room, the package included the following for two persons:

• accommodation in one of their luxury rooms
• welcome drink in the lounge (Isle of Raasay G&T or dram)
• whisky production tour with whisky and gin tasting, paired with chocolate
• pre-dinner cocktail and canape
• 3-course tasting menu, with mountain views of Skye
• Scottish breakfast in the morning.

The 2023/2024 Winter Whisky Retreat Promotion is valid from November 1, 2023 to March 31, 2024

Even for one person, it was a great deal. And so when my travel plans were derailed and I suddenly found myself with an extra day in the north, I jumped on it and made a slight detour to Raasay!

For me, it was a Small Double Room, with a partial Cuillin view. The room was draped in tweed, wool, and extremely cozy furnishings. Although it was cold and there was snow on the mountains in the distance, the room was so comfortable and warm!

In terms of amenities, there was a TV on the wall, a tea and coffee tray with Raasay Gin and Raspberry shortbread biscuits from Isle of Skye Baking Co expertly stationed at the window reading nook, and of course, a bottle of Isle of Raasay single malt whisky, just in case! The coffee comes from Caora Dhubh, a local Skye coffee roaster, and is a welcome addition to the cozy room.

The bathroom was petite, but included a lush terry cloth robe, the perfect rain shower and handmade soap from Isle of Skye Soap Co.

Unlike other hotels, do note that the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel is not staffed after hours. There is of course emergency phone numbers should you require assistance in the evening hours.

4. Food and Drink at the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel

In my humble opinion, food can make or break any hotel stay… which is why I’m so pleased that the food at the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel is absolutely delicious, and I’m sure there is more excitement to come from the kitchen there!

The Borodale House Restaurant offers lunch and dinner to the public and guests alike, and for those staying at the hotel, it’s also where you’ll have breakfast. For me, it was a full Scottish with locally sourced ingredients, that included haggis, black pudding, bacon, egg, mushrooms, and a tattie scone.

Dinner was a slightly more lavish affair, as you do, with a 3-course tasting menu included in the Winter Retreat package.

For me, it was:

• Torched Burrata with beetroot, walnut and shallots – (a Lannie rule in life, always get the burrata!)
• Parmesan Gnocchi with mushroom, thyme, cherry tomatoes, and hazelnut
• Whipped Chocolate Delice with Raasay single malt (of course!), toasted nuts, and vanilla.

There are also drams for you to order to wrap up the meal, choosing from:

• Isle of Raasay Single Malt
• Distillery Exclusive Sherry Release
• Na Sia Single Cask Series
• Isle of Raasay Inaugural Release

A really wonderful 3-course meal, a Distillery Exclusive dram in the resident’s lounge, and that’s me sorted for the evening!

5. Things to do on Raasay

Despite being a small island, there are a number of things to do during your stay at the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel. Personally, Raasay is one of those islands that I bask in its quiet moments and lush nature. My springtime walks around Raasay were sunny and brisk, filled with fairytale-like melodic birdsong. If I weren’t in my big puffy coat, with my beanie and wool scarf, I’d practically be Aurora singing and dancing with animals in the forest. (Sleeping Beauty reference anyone?)

– Explore Inverarish (Gaelic: Inbhir Àrais)

It didn’t take me long to walk from the distillery to Inverarish, the main settlement on Raasay. The walk was quiet, except for the birds chirping loudly. It was a brisk and bright spring day, with views of the Cuillin Mountains on Skye for most of the walk. I later learned that homes in the village don’t have full addresses, but rather are just referred to by number, i.e. “My grandparents live in 26,” etc. Not having full addresses is something an American can’t comprehend, but it seems to work on the wee isle of Raasay.

Be sure to stop by the Community Store for snacks and souvenirs, as well as the Raasay Gallery for local crafts.

– Be charmed at the Raasay Walled Garden

One of the more spectacular things about Raasay is its small, quiet woodland feel. A morning stroll out over to Raasay House walled garden is one place to enjoy the greenery and birdsong. Take advantage of the picnic tables located in the garden for a quiet moment. In the summer months, there is a fresh produce and flower honesty stall for all your local grows!

– Take a hike

If the weather is nice, hike up to Dun Caan, Raasay’s highest point (443 meters) and Raasay’s only extinct volcano. Upgrade to AllTrails+ before you head out, for up to date weather and ground conditions. This would have been useful during my hike up there last summer, when the weather was better. The wind raged so aggressively that we gave up part way through!

– Find the Mermaids and take a selfie

There are a pair of mermaids at the Battery overlooking the pier where the ferry arrives, which could be overlooked if you’re not paying attention. It’s a nice welcome which wasn’t really intended as such. According to local stories, the mermaids were built in the 1840s, intended to be placed along the entryway to Raasay House. Either they were to heavy to be moved along the road, or too ugly (as one story goes), they were left at the Battery at Clachan.

You’ll have to excuse the awkward angle of the selfie!

– Calum’s Road

Although I haven’t made it to the north of Raasay, I would highly recommend a little road trip up to the northern side of the island for a drive on Calum’s Road. Following the Highland Clearances in the 1800s, many of the residents of Raasay lived in the north of the island, which made access to the ferry port connection to Skye in the south very challenging.

Locals had been petitioning the council to build a road connecting Arnish in the north to the rest of Raasay to no avail. From the days of petitioning to when Calum finally took matters into his own hands, the population of the northern part of Raasay had declined from 100 to 2, leaving only Calum and his wife.

Finally, in the 1960s, one spring morning, Calum MacLeod packed a pick, an axe, a shovel, and his lunch box into his wheelbarrow, and began to slowly carve out his own road. He continued to do so for the next 20 years and eventually (and miraculously), built out Calum’s Road. The original motivation for the road was to make the journey easier for Calum’s daughter, who was away to school on Skye. But really, it served as a stunning example of the ingenuity and determination of locals in small communities, when the world seemed to have moved on or forgotten.

This is probably the top of my next visit to Raasay, to pay tribute to such an incredible spirit and determination!

If you’re looking for more ideas, there’s also:

• a wildlife cruise of the Sound of Raasay, where you may see puffins, dolphins, whales, sea eagles, orcas and more!
• The Raasay House – the other hotel on Raasay! Not only are there rooms to stay in, but also a delightful restaurant for lunch and dinner. They also have a variety of outdoor activities that you can arrange there, including archery, loch kayaking and sailing!
• or, just coorie up in your room or in the residents lounge with a dram and a book and call it a day!

6. Parting Thoughts on my stay at the Isle of Raasay Whisky Hotel

It may sound silly as a unique selling point – going to a whisky distillery for a tour and tasting, and then wandering up to your lovely, comfortable room for a rest and maybe a nap, but it is truly wonderful. Hands up if you’ve ever done a whisky tour or tasting and immediately wanted a nap afterwards! The winter whisky retreat fulfills that requirement!

Not only that, but the bar downstairs has an incredible view of the mountains for your cocktails and sundowner. Enjoy the view with your free pre-dinner drinks, before moseying over to the restaurant for a delicious 3-course tasting menu made with local produce. Chef’s kiss perfect!

For whisky fans, this is a lovely treat with wonderful hospitality and delicious food. Plus, Raasay is more of a niche whisky, not super well known, so it’s great to explore new whiskies and expressions.

Overall, it was a really fun stay that had everything that I look for in a mini-break in Scotland. Especially during the dark winter months, going on this winter whisky retreat was such a treat! Delicious food, incredible whisky, a charming small island to explore, and a warm and cozy atmosphere. In all honesty, what more could you ask for? It’s the perfect thing to break you out of the winter blues!

For more information on booking a winter whisky retreat to stay at the Raasay whisky distillery, visit the Raasay Whisky hotel website.

Until your next whisky adventure, I bid you adieu!

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7. How to get to the Isle of Raasay Distillery Hotel

Arriving to Raasay requires a short 25 minute ferry from Sconser (Isle of Skye) on CalMac Ferries. Don’t worry, you don’t need to book anything in advance, as this service is a Turn up and Go. An adult return ticket is 4.20 GBP, and to add your car, it’s an additional 14 GBP.

The distillery is located 0.4 miles from the ferry port, an easy 8 minute walk if you’re coming over on foot.

For those without a car, Raasay can be reached by train, then bus, then ferry. Inverness, the capital of the Highlands, would be your best starting point. The easiest way would be:

• Arrive to Inverness via Scotrail;
  • Glasgow to Inverness by train takes about 3+ hours, and costs 13.50 GBP one way, when bought in advance;
  • Edinburgh to Inverness by train also takes about 3 hours, and costs 19.80 GBP one way, when bought in advance.
  • Or, if you’re coming from London, consider taking the overnight sleeper train to arrive in Inverness around 8:45 am! (This does not have great connections to the bus, which leaves at 8:30 am, but at least I’m giving you options!)
• Connect to Sconser via Citylink bus 917 from Inverness. Check the times, as there are a few nonstop services with 0 changes, so be sure to book those. If you book a return ticket in advance, it costs 39.80 GBP, the same cost as a single ticket! (💡Expert tip)
• After you arrive to Sconser, it’s just a quick 25 minute ferry ride and a 10 minute walk to the distillery!

And there you have it, getting to Raasay on public transportation! Easy peasy!

– Hotel recommendations in Inverness

If you need a luxury hotel in Inverness to hang your hat for the evening before setting off toward Raasay, I can definitely recommend:

• Ness Walk – a 5-star luxury hotel on the banks of the River Ness

• or the Kingsmills Hotel – a 4-star luxury spa hotel, overlooking the Inverness Golf Club.

Please note that some products or referrals in this post are affiliate links (in green) and if you go through them to make a purchase or booking, I will earn a commission. I share these product and booking links because they are related to the post and not because of the commission I receive from your purchases. The decision is yours whether to click through and make a purchase through these links.

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Lannie

Lannie is a perpetual wanderer and loves to share her travel adventures and the food she eats along the way with everyone.  She works during the day while bouncing around the world and dreams about new places and faces at night!  She has a home on the magical Isle of Islay in Scotland, where the whisky flows freely and happily.

Click on the blue icons below to follow her on social media!

lanniesfoodandtravel.com/index.php/about-me/

In years past, I never really gave “visiting islands” a second thought when choosing a holiday destination. It wasn’t until a former friend told me that he had a goal of visiting an island every year. The irony that we were having this discussion on Singapore, an island where we both lived at the time, was not lost on me.

For me, I was just in love with island life – the culture, the food, the feel. Previously, that applied to more tropical islands, as I lived for a few years between Singapore and Thailand, visiting Thai, Indonesian, Malaysian, and Polynesian islands that I could.

In the years that followed, my love for island life extended itself to Scotland. While Scottish islands definitely have a different feel than the tropical islands I was used to, the vibe of Scottish island life still got me hooked! Having bought a place on the Scottish Isle of Islay in early 2021, the things that I love about island life still ring true. Something that Scottish islands have in excess than other island communities I’ve visited previously, the warm sense of hospitality toward visitors!

Just a little side note before I continue on to the Scottish Islands Passport. The US National Park Service also has a similar National Park Passport, which is a physical book you can take around to each National Park. Each National Park has a stamping station, where you can stamp the date of your visit, with a unique national park design. There are also supplementary info and sticker sheets you can buy to give more details on the National Park itself. Many moons ago, when my family exclusively vacationed in US National Parks, my mom and my sister each got a National Park Passport. Me? I was too cool for school and didn’t want one.

Do I have a world of regrets of not getting one? Of course I do.

Luckily for all those people who are too cool for school now, the Scottish Islands Passport is a digital app, so any regrets are easily rectified! But before I get too far along, allow me to introduce the Scottish Islands Passport

1. Scottish Islands Passport: an intro

The Scottish Islands Passport is a project funded by the Scottish Government, the Highlands and Islands Transport Partnership (HITRANS), Shetland’s Transport Partnership (ZetTrans), and a number of rural development programs. Of the 800+ Scottish islands, 72 islands were selected for inclusion into the Scottish Islands Passport.

Why not include all 800+ Scottish Islands?

Well, the majority of Scottish islands are uninhabited. Of the 72 islands included in the Scottish Islands Passport, they all (first) inhabited. You can’t really get a passport stamped if there is no one there to stamp it! (Ok, in a digital world, you can, but still).

Not only was being populated a criteria, there were two other points for selection:

– easy access by regular public (or low-cost) transport;
– welcoming to visitors from all walks of life.

Scottish Islands Passport – Our Islands

So, being inhabited, easy access via public / low-cost transport, and welcoming of all visitors. Sounds like the kind of islands I would visit!

2. The Scottish Islands Passport App

The Scottish Islands Passport is a digital passport, as opposed to a physical one. Feel free to download the app from Google Play or Apple’s App Store.

There are a few main features of the app:

• Explore a geographic area – If you know you’re looking for Northern Isles (i.e. Shetland or Orkney), or islands in a different direction, you can explore the islands via a pinned map section;
• Discover your perfect island – input all the things you want to achieve for your island getaway and out pops out the islands which you may enoy! various inputs include: history/heritage, food and drink (me!!), outdoor activities, nature or arts/music. You can even include whether you are looking for family friendly activities or festival-type events. What you’ll get is a list of tentative ideas for Scottish islands holidays.
• When you’ve chosen the island, you can find a variety of ideas for your Scottish islands holidays. It will share what the island is famous for, some insider tips, references for accommodations and useful guides on how to get to the island.
• On the “Experiences” tab for each island, is a running list of local island businesses, things to see and do, places to eat and any local festivals the island may have!
• Create a photo journal of your favorite memories on your trip and share later!
• and then of course, the Passport.

Just a few screen shots to show you the interface. But if you didn’t notice above, who wants to go to the Barra and Vatersay Potato Competition during the potato festival?? COUNT ME IN!

3. How to collect passport stamps for Scottish islands

When you visit Scottish Islands, some locations will have a QR code for you to scan to add your passport. If you forget to scan the QR code, or if you want to record your previous scottish islands, there is the option to do that as well!

Each of the passport stamps are designed to represent an important part of the island’s culture. Look at how beautiful Orkney and Jura’s stamps are!

Under the tab of stamp story, you can read about what the stamp represesnts in both Gaelic and English.

You can view your full passport on the Passport tab on the bottom. Each of teh passports are arranged in section by island groups. For me, I’ve been to:

• 4 of 18 South Western Isles (Colonsay, Islay, Jura, Mull)
• 1 of 22 North Western Isles (Skye)
• 2 of 32 Northern Isles (Mainland Orkney and South Ronaldsay)

4. Parting Thoughts

Generally, I think the Scottish Islands Passport is a really fun idea! Personally for me, I’m always looking for new islands to explore. It can help those indecisive folks who can’t choose one island, or even those who are looking for a new festival to celebrate. Watch out Barra next August – I’m comin for the potato festival!

The Scottish Islands Passport app is free to download so why not give it a download and start planning your next island adventure! Download here from Google Play or Apple’s App Store.

If you’re looking for different ideas for Scottish island adventures, I’ve written about a few:

• the Isle of Islay – my home, and a dominant force in the scotch whisky world;
• Colonsay – nearby, with lots of walks and incredible seafood and gin;
• Orkney Islands – which I did as a wee day trip from John o’Groates, but should really be a holiday unto itself;
• go on a seafood adventure in Scotland, following my expertly curated list of best seafood spots;
• the Isle of Skye – home of stunning landscapes and where fairies tend to hide;
• a west coast and Treshnish Isles puffin adventure with famed Scottish photographer, Bryan Millar Walker.

Or, if you’d like to take a small-group tour to the islands, check out Rabbie’s – they are highly recommended! Some of their island offerings include:

• Outer Hebrides & Skye – 6 day tour, seeing Loch Ness, Callanish standing stones, Skye and Lewis and Harris (and more!) from 465£;
• Orkney Islands & NC500 – 5 day tour, seeing Orkney, Culloden, and driving along the North Coast 500, from 379£;
• Iona, Mull & the Isle of Skye – 5 day tour, with Fingal’s Cave, the Iona Abbey, and Glencoe among its main sites, from 415£;
• or my home – Islay and the Whisky Coast – a 4 day tour, from 335£

And check out my friend Kay’s blog, The Chaotic Scot. Scottish islands accessible by public transport are her thing! So far she’s visited 62 Scottish islands. Incredible!

Lastly, be sure you’re prepared for the weather. If you love Scotland, you’ll have to love its weather too.

In Scotland, there is no such thing as bad weather – only the wrong clothes.

Billy Connolly, Scottish legend

• From my experience, the best casual shoes for Scotland weather are AllBirds Rain Repellent series (UK), and honestly, I wear my AllBirds Mizzles everywhere in Scotland.
• For those AllBirds fans in the US, get a free pair of socks when you use my link – just add the socks to your cart, and it will be subtracted at checkout!

And with that little nugget of preparedness, I bid you adieu!

Lannie

Lannie is a perpetual wanderer and loves to share her travel adventures and the food she eats along the way with everyone.  She works during the day while bouncing around the world and dreams about new places and faces at night!  She has a home on the magical Isle of Islay in Scotland, where the whisky flows freely and happily.

Click on the blue icons below to follow her on social media!

lanniesfoodandtravel.com/index.php/about-me/

I would suggest making reservations, especially if you travel to Skye during the peak tourism months of April – September (ish). 

Even though I was visiting during the off season, I made a 6:30 dinner reservation to make sure I could eat at this amazing restaurant, especially since it was so close to where I was staying.  If you stay at The Three Chimneys hotel, they automatically give you dinner reservations during your stay.  The hotel portion looks lovely from the photos online.

I arrived at the restaurant at 6:20.  There is a small parking lot across from the restaurant.  I imagine that lot would get full very fast, and the overflow parking is merely parking on the side of the road, which I am always loathe to do, for fear of parking badly and having another car hit me.  I digress. 

When I arrived at the restaurant, it was completely empty.  I was literally the only person there.  The wait staff were extremely friendly, and I asked them if it was normal for the restaurant to be this empty.  Apparently people in the UK enjoy later dinners, and the waiter said by 7:30 or 8 pm, the place would be completely full.  And sure enough, it was.

There are two dinner menu options, the dinner tasting menu (3 courses for £69) and the Skye Land and Sea tasting menu (8 courses for £98).  The restaurant requests that the diners at the table order the same tasting menu, probably to alleviate timing issues of one person having three courses and the other having eight.  But, why eat three courses when you can easily have eight?  So obviously, I selected the Land and Sea menu. Everything on that menu was either caught in the loch (lake) outside of the restaurant or farmed on Skye or in the Scottish Highlands.

Bread

First, they brought me some bread and butter.  Full disclosure, even though I told myself I wouldn’t eat all the bread, I really couldn’t help myself.  Foreshadowing: that was my mistake and I should try harder in the future not to stuff myself on bread and butter.

Two different types of sourdough bread and a rye + dark ale bread. There were two flavors of butter – the left was a claret or carrot butter (sorry, I really didn’t hear, but my first guess was claret. but I can’t be certain). the butter on the right was a delicious seaweed butter. Both were actually delicious, but I still couldn’t figure out what the first butter was.

1st course: Dunvegan Langoustine

Langoustine from the loch, with smoked cod roe, and a variety of carrots (dehydrated, pickled, and crisped). Side note, you’ll remember that langoustine is a favorite in Icelandic cuisine.

2nd course: Dunvegan Crab

Foam from the roasted Dunvegan crab with horseradish, dunvegan crab with salt baked turnip, and almonds. Delicious!!

3rd course: Sconser Scallops

Roasted scallop, on pork belly, with celery and grapefruit. with shrimp chip crumbles on top

4th course: Halibut

Seaweed wrapped miso halibut, with mussels, cockerels, and a fried oyster, on leek. This was probably my least favorite course, mostly because of the giant leek that the mussel was sitting on.  I didn’t feel that it worked very well, and I don’t know – the leek flavor was a little too much for me.

5th course: Mallard Duck

Roasted duck, topped with coriander seeds. rhubarb and spring onions, on the side For me, there was a bit too many coriander seeds on top, but then again, I am the type of person that thinks there is too many coriander seeds in Italian sausage.

6th course: Skye Red Deer

Skye red deer, with roasted beet root, with ash sprinkled on top. a side of haunch hot pot (not pictured).

This was my least favorite plating – it makes a great photo, but it felt morbid, with the beetroot sauce splattered on the plate and the ash sprinkled all over.  I’m not sure if my photo does it justice, but it felt like a vampire fantasy on a plate.

7th course: Lemon Cream

First dessert course – pistachio bread, with lemon cream sorbet, goat curd mousse, and burnt yogurt.

8th course: Baked Apple

Final course – second dessert – donut, with baked apple slices with java pepper crumble and cider cream.

I am usually one to finish everything on my plate, even if I am too full.  But the above donut hole wasn’t anything particularly special, and after one bite, I decided to leave it be.  The java crumble, however, was a surprisingly delicious peppery addition to the baked apple. Nice touch, Three Chimneys!

Parting Thoughts my dinner at Three Chimneys Skye

Although I was completely bursting by the end of the 8th course, the waitress came by with a box of chocolates.  We both looked at each other, her seeing me miserably full, and began to laugh.  But she told me, she understood, but I really had to try some of these chocolates.  Her personal recommendation was the chocolate truffle and the sea salt caramel chocolate. 

And although I thought I was so full that I could not bear it, it turns out there is always room for chocolate. 

All in all, Three Chimneys offered a very unique and delicious tasting menu – the Tastes of the Land and Skye. It’s a wonderful introduction to local wildlife in Scottish cuisine.  Definitely don’t eat too much of the delicious bread that they give you in the beginning, and you may stand a chance.

For other fine dining experiences in Scotland, be sure to check out:

• Monachyle Mhor – spearheaded by Chef Tom Lewis, tucked away in the Trossachs;
• Inver – Chef Pam Brunton’s Michelin Green Star winning dining experience in the heart of Argyll on the west coast.

Restaurant Information for the Three Chimneys Skye

Three Chimneys | map
Colbost, Dunvegan, Colbost,
Isle of Skye IV55 8ZT, United Kingdom
Phone: +44 1470 511258
Reservations Required

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Lannie

Lannie is a perpetual wanderer and loves to share her travel adventures and the food she eats along the way with everyone.  She works during the day while bouncing around the world and dreams about new places and faces at night!  She has a home on the magical Isle of Islay in Scotland, where the whisky flows freely and happily.

Click on the blue icons below to follow her on social media!

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1. Fairy Glens

On my last day at the Spoons, after check out, I ventured out to the Fairy Glens, which is near the town of Uig.  It was about a half hour drive from the Spoons, onto a different peninsula of Skye (called the Trotternish Peninsula). 

I’ve been to some pretty obscure places. However, considering the Fairy Glens are one of the more famous places on Skye, I expected… at the very least, a sign post.  Marie, from the Spoons, warned me that there was limited parking. She pointed out the small road to turn onto, off of the main road (A87).  Just as you’re entering in the town of Uig, there is a small turn off, on your right.  If you’ve pass the Uig Hotel, you’ve gone too far.  It’s genuinely a small turn and a small road, with absolutely no signs.  As you drive along, there are a few (very few) farm houses and lots and lots of sheep.

The only way you know that you’ve arrived at the fairy glens, is this small pond off to the side of the road.  There’s no marker or sign, but the pond is the sign.  It was frozen over in the winter time and luckily there was one car parked there, which meant at least someone is attempting the same thing as me.

There were no signs on which way to go, but I figured just go up.  There was also kind of a path, but not really.

The story is that fairies dwell in the area, and still live in the hills to this day.  Although there isn’t a specific fairy tale (pun intended) that tells the story of the fairies in the area, it’s common knowledge that this is where they live.  After hiking upwards not more than 10 minutes, I came across these large concentric circles of stone, which I’ll be honest – I still don’t know what they are or what they mean.  But I assume that I had arrived at the fairy glens.

Here is a 360 degree video of the fairy glens area, with the howling wind for a soundtrack.  The lack of steadiness is because I am constantly repositioning my feet for security, as the wind keeps blowing at me and making me lose my footing.

Watch this video on YouTube.

2. Fairy Pools

There is another place in Skye, where the fairies bathe. Personally, it seems a far distance to bathe from the Fairy Glens where they live.  Located on the Duirinish peninsula, the Fairy Pools are a series of waterfalls, near a forest, at the base of the Cuillin Mountains.  Unlike the glens, there is a large parking lot for tourists to the Fairy Pools. However, there is no sign to point you in the direction of the Fairy Pools. You’ll have to walk across the street, and towards the river to start your journey.

There is a big path (above) from the road down a hill towards the river or creek.  You do have to cross the waters sometimes, but there are very large rocks in place for you to cross safely.  Just be careful of slipping, and if you are like me and carrying a backpack, you’re not as light on your feet when you need to jump across sometimes.  No, don’t worry, I didn’t fall, but I definitely landed shorter than where I expected to, once or twice.  haha

I don’t know if there is a specific fairy pool (online guides say you need to walk about 20 minutes before reaching it), but there were several small waterfalls, which were mostly all frozen over.  In most places the water was frozen or semi-frozen, given the unusually frigid temperatures.  But there was no wind, so it was generally a very relaxing and brisk hike.  Some incline on the way up to see more waterfalls, but not too bad.  The more exhausting incline was on the way back up to the parking lot.

Conclusion on the world of fairies on Skye

So, as you can see, the fairies on Skye live a very magical life in a magical place.  I tend to think of fairies as warm weather creatures, so I can’t imagine they were fairing very well in the freezing temperatures.  But hopefully they survived this unusual frigid weather, as I did, and hopefully spring is just around the corner!

Until next time, the fairies wish you a wonderful day!

Lannie

Lannie is a perpetual wanderer and loves to share her travel adventures and the food she eats along the way with everyone.  She works during the day while bouncing around the world and dreams about new places and faces at night!  She has a home on the magical Isle of Islay in Scotland, where the whisky flows freely and happily.

Click on the blue icons below to follow her on social media!

lanniesfoodandtravel.com/index.php/about-me/

In Scotland, there is no such thing as bad weather…only the wrong clothes.

I must be the luckiest gal alive to be in Europe during the freak “Beast from the East” winter storm.  Snow in Edinburgh crippling the whole city, but I’m not in Edinburgh.  I’m on the Isle of Skye, where temperatures have fallen below freezing for the first time since 2010!  But I am lucky because… I have all of my winter gear from Iceland.  So THANK YOU giant North Face coat and Sorel snow boots!  

1. The Spoons on Skye

My original plan for Skye was to go hiking and work on my essays.  The first day on Skye, windchill was 13°F | -10.5°C.  So hiking?  No thank you.  But I did manage to get some work done, in the coziest, most amazing place I stayed at!  The Spoons on Skye is a “luxury self catering” guesthouse, which to Americans, really just means it is a vacation rental, not a bed and breakfast. 

My stay at the Spoons on Skye was absolutely amazing, and big bonus, they do leave some food for you in the refrigerator for when you arrive (i.e. eggs, delicious bacon, juice, milk, yogurt, granola, and some tomatoes).  It’s actually a huge plus having those provisions, because everything in Skye is close, but takes a long time to get to. 

Portree, the main town on the island, is only a few miles away, but takes about 20 minutes driving to get there… mostly because of potholes and windy roads.  It’s not a single track road, like other roads on the island.  In order to buy anything, you have to go into town.  And when it is cold as it’s been in years on Skye, one is thankful to have some food at home before having to go out and buy more provisions.

And, through much trial and error, I finally figured out how to layer logs in the wood burning stove, and start a fire!  Which is SO COZY when it’s freezing outside.

Isn’t Spoons on Skye the most gorgeous place ever?

Anyone looking for an amazing, cozy, homey and super lovely place to stay, look no further than the Spoons on Skye! It’s extremely highly recommended by yours truly!

Eventually, I did end up venturing outward on the second day.  Hiking in the cold is fine, but hiking when there’s monstrous wind and the cold, can be tough.  Also, since I just got over my Jerusalem illness, I didn’t want to overdo it physically.

2. Hiking the Old Man of Storr

Hiking the Old Man of Storr was something that I knew I had to do on Skye. The Old Man of Storr is a rock formation, located a few miles north of Portree. 

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There is a small parking space, but most people just park up the road from there, since the parking space really only accommodates less than 8 cars (my educated guess).  There is one sign at the beginning and then a gate and the path up. 

It’s fairly steep on the way up, and that’s not to be underestimated.  It was supposed to be 40 minutes (one way) up to visit the Old Man.  I don’t know what pace that equates to, but going at a steep incline, I was taking several breaks “for the view” but also to catch my breath.  haha.  I passed through 3 more gates, and I still didn’t arrive at the Old Man.  Apparently during this time, I had gone up 52 floors, according to my phone.  And not wanting to overdo it, I gave up and started the much funner descent.

3. Visit to Portree

After my exhausting hike, I decided to stop by Portree and take a look around town.  It’s the biggest town on the island, and to be honest, the rest of the places on Skye that you can see on Google Maps are not towns.  They’re maybe a small grouping of houses (probably less than 10), maybe one post office that might double as a store, and likely no restaurants to speak of.  But Portree was a big town, with hotels, a grocery store, shops, restaurants*, and a harbor. 

*There is a little caveat with the restaurants, because most are not open in the off season.  And even then, the ones that are open close during afternoon hours between lunch and dinner, so there is very limited hours of service.

A visit to town isn’t complete without a stop at the co-op, or small grocery store, to stock up on goods.  Bought enough stuff to cook an amazing soup that kept me warm the rest of the day.

Stay tuned, for my next entry on my trip to the Fairy Glens and my road trip around the Trotternish Peninsula!  But for now, I need to pack, as I’m leaving Belfast for Dublin!

Lannie

Lannie is a perpetual wanderer and loves to share her travel adventures and the food she eats along the way with everyone.  She works during the day while bouncing around the world and dreams about new places and faces at night!  She has a home on the magical Isle of Islay in Scotland, where the whisky flows freely and happily.

Click on the blue icons below to follow her on social media!

lanniesfoodandtravel.com/index.php/about-me/