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/

For a little history, the Orkney Islands have been inhabited since prehistoric times by Norsemen and Vikings and were historically part of Norway. However, in 1468, Norwegian King Christian I pledged Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands as marriage dowry to wed the daughter of Scotland’s James III. King Christian never paid the money, and both Orkney Islands and Shetland Islands have been part of the Scottish crown ever since. The flag of the Orkney Islands (adopted in 2007), is blue, yellow, and red, and pays homage to the island’s Scottish and Norwegian heritage. You’ll see it in a few photos below.

Day trip to Orkney Islands with John o’Groats Ferries

If you’re pressed for time like I always am, a day trip, courtesy of John o’Groats Ferries, is a great option. The ferry company operates tours during the year only from May/June to August/September.  Otherwise, the North Sea is too choppy and I’d imagine extremely miserable to suffer through.  The 45-minute journey was already bumpy. The North Sea was absolutely raging the day that I went.

John o’Groats Ferries used to offer several day tours, which depart from both Inverness or John o’Groats. I took the Maxi Day Tour, leaving John o’Groats at 8:45 am and returning after 7 pm. For an adult, the tour costs 79 GBP (roughly $110 USD), as of 20 April 2021. It’s a full day group tour, with English-speaking guides.

There is ample room at the harbor for parking, and after checking with the office, they told me to just go straight to the harbor. There was already a line of people queuing up.

Expert tip, you should stand aside and watch for a little bit before queuing up, to take note where the waves crash over the walls and completely drench the area underneath it. Especially if it’s a windy and choppy day on the sea.

The sea drenched several people before they even got on the ferry. The air temperature that day (mind you, it was in June) was around 37 degrees Fahrenheit (less than 3 degrees Celsius). I can only imagine that the water temperature was frigid also.

Boarding was a simple process, and I don’t believe they actually checked my ticket at all. Once I boarded, the ferry ride was mostly uneventful, except that those who got seasick, got really seasick. I mentioned it before, but the water and thus the journey is really choppy. Also, since the ferry does not go at particularly fast speeds, the rocking of the boat was more pronounced. Unfortunately, there were several passengers who fell ill.

Let your Day Trip to Orkney Islands begin!

We arrived in Burwick, a village and the harbor of the island of South Ronaldsay, in the Orkney Islands. Three different charter buses were waiting for us, to take us onto the various tours you signed up for. Mine was the Maxi Tour, which saw the most sights and was the longest in length.

After piling into our respective buses, we were off. From there, we drove from South Ronaldsay island, to Burray, to Glims Holm, to Lamb Holm, onto mainland Orkney. All of these listed are separate islands, connected by the Churchill Barriers. The Churchill Barriers are man-made causeways, originally built during WWII to protect Scapa Flow. It’s now become the main road that connects South Ronaldsay island to the Mainland, where the airport and capital of Kirkhall are.

1. Kirkwall, capital of the Orkney Islands

Our first stop on the Orkney Island tours is Kirkwall, the capital of Orkney. We had over an hour to walk around and see the sights. It’s a nice town, with St. Magnus Church being its main landmark. There is a small, but interesting, Orkney Museum, across the way from St. Magnus. Neither the church nor the museum take too long to wander through, but it’s worth the stroll.

A brief glimpse into the Orkney Museum:

Take two rights after you exit the Orkney Museum, and there is a charming little secret garden.

If it were a nice day, it’d be the perfect place to sit with a cup of coffee and a chat. But alas. Kirkwall was cold and windy and my focus there was keeping warm.

One thing I want to point out is Cafe Lolz. Although our tour guide recommended a different cafe in town (The Reel, located next to the church), I popped in and didn’t see the pastries I wanted. Literally, out the door of the Reel, and onto a small street called The Strynd, you’ll arrive at Cafe Lolz. For pastry and dessert lovers, it is a must!

If you keep going down the Broad Street, to the north, there is a lovely, artisanal grocery shop at the end, called the Brig Larder. You can buy things like gin-flavored Orkney cheese or a little crab salad for later.  The Maxi tour does return to Kirkwall toward the end of the day, but you’ll need to rush in order to get back to this shop before it closes at 5:30 pm.  I suggest that you try.

Once you return to John o’Groats, the only place left open for dinner is the Seaview Hotel.  And if you just ate there the night before, like I did, you may not want it two nights in a row.  That crab salad that I impulse purchased came in really handy for dinner later that evening.

2. Stromness, home of great explorers and seamen

After Kirkwall, we moved on to Stromness, which is also located on Mainland Orkney.  Stromness was home to many great explorers, including John Rae, an Orcadian doctor and surgeon, who discovered the final section of the Northwest Passage. Although Rae completed several, successful arctic expeditions, he was ultimately known for finding the fate of Captain Sir John Franklin’s arctic expedition, which was said to have ended in death and cannibalism.

Scandal followed Rae’s claim of cannibalism in the Franklin expedition. Subsequently, Rae was shunned by society. From 2004, Orkney and Shetland MPs began introducing motions into Parliament to recognize his contributions in completing the Northwest Passage. In 2013, a statue was unveiled in Stromness, and finally in 2014, a plaque was installed in Westminster Abbey.

Back at the Maxi Tour, Stromness is the lunch stop. There is ample time to grab a bit of food and to walk around the town.  I thoroughly enjoyed walking around Stromness – every house and garden I came across was just so charming and lovely.  For lunch, the guide recommended  the Ferry Inn, a place for a nice fish soup, i.e. Cullen skink.  And on a windy, rainy day, that and a cuppa tea is really all you need.  There is a section of the restaurant that’s for those visiting on the day tour, and they were really quick with the service, as well.  You’ll definitely run into many people from your own tour or the morning’s ferry.  

I hope you’re enjoying this day trip to te Orkney Islands so far. Because I’ll tell you – I definitely am!

3. Mainland Orkney’s prehistoric sites

After lunch, was Skara Brae – a neolithic settlement, older than Stonehenge!  (and also a UNESCO World Heritage site!) The combined ticket to Skara Brae (and Skaill House) is not included in the Maxi Tour costs, but at 9 GBP in the high season (and 7 GBP in the low season), it was worth it.  Skara Brae is generally considered the best preserved Neolithic settlement. At 5000 years old, it’s older than both Stonehenge and the Egyptian pyramids! Tickets to Skaill House are included from April to October. It’s a warm and welcome relief from the cold and howling winds of Skara Brae!

From Skara Brae, there were two quick stops to the Ring of Brodgar and the Standing Stones of Stenness. In 1999, UNESCO designated both neolithic monuments as World Heritage sites. For the Ring of Brodgar, you are only allowed around the perimeter of the stones. You can walk among the stones at the Standing Stones. That’s how you can distinguish one from the other in my below photos.

Any Outlander fans out there? No day trip to Orkney Islands is complete without a visit to the standing stones. Unfortunately, these standing stones did not transport me back to the 1700s into the arms of a man named Jamie Fraser.

From there, it was back to to Kirkwall and I hauled over to the Brig Larder to pick up my cheeses and crab salad.  A gentle reminder: buy dinner in Kirkwall before heading back to mainland Scotland!

4. The Italian Chapel on Lambholm

The last stop on your day trip to Orkney Islands is the Italian Chapel on Lambholm, a tiny island connected to the Mainland via the Churchill Barriers. Built in the 1940s by Italian POWs and scrap materials, the Italian Chapel is also a story of unrequited love. The chapel designer’s “heart” is inlaid with the tiles on the floor. Spoiler alert, they do not reunite.

The cost to enter the chapel is 3 GBP for adults (free for those under 12).

From the Italian Chapel, we traverse through the islands of Glimps Holm and Burray to finally reach the port at Burwick on South Ronaldsay, where we started our Orkney Tour.

Parting thoughts on my Day Trip to Orkney Islands

By the time we reached the shores of mainland Britain, and John o’Groats, it was near 7:30 pm. As I mentioned previously, only the Seaview Hotel will be open for dinner, so hopefully you have food back at your lodging or you’ve followed my advice for a little dinner to go from Kirkwall! It was an exhausting day, made doubly more exhausting from an “unseasonably cold” summer season up in the north.

But all in all, I really enjoyed my Orkney Island tour. It was a really great day trip and offers a glimpse into a different kinda Scottish life! If you’re in John o’Groats, you can take a day trip to Orkney Islands just like I did!

Looking for additional resources on a trip to Orkney?

• If you want to spend more time on Orkney with a small-group tour, Rabbie’s comes highly recommended! They offer 5-day Orkney tours from Edinburgh (379£) and 3-day Orkney tours from Inverness (215£)!
• Check out these blogs from my delightful blogging friends:
  • An Orcadian Abroad – tips and tales for Orkney Islands from Clazz, a local Orcadian!
  • AbFab Travels – a motorhome road trip of Orkney with Jane, including a visit to the Highland Park Distillery! It’s not Scotland, without some whisky!

Info for your Orkney Islands Tour

John o’Groats Ferries
From John o’Groats, Daily from 8:45 am
1 May to 30 September 2022
Adults: 79 GBP | $99 USD

From Inverness, (normally) daily from 7:15 am
Currently not offered. Please check with John o’Groats Ferries

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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/