Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

UK travel

Welcome to our UK travel forum where you can get advice on everything from holidays to exotic destinations, to tips on London travel.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Anyone been to Orkney?

39 replies

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 16:49

Thoughts?

I'd love to go and see the wildlife and the ancient settlements like Skara Brae.

Does anyone have any recommendations of things to do/see or places to stay?

Are there shops?! Will have to Google.

Thanks!

OP posts:

MistletoeRegrets · 30/12/2023 16:53

Are there shops?

It’s been a long week. No one has the energy for this sort of nonsense this evening …

umberellaonesie · 30/12/2023 16:57

Great place to visit we went in May
Lots of shops even a supermarket
You have to book everything in advance, so all restaurant bookings and any ticketed sites/ events. It is very busy with cruise ships and tourists.
We drove and had a great week. Lots of wildlife, lots of great walks and lots of history

RedSnail · 30/12/2023 16:58

What kind of shops? It’s not somewhere you go for the shopping but there is a Tesco in Kirkwall. Rent a house or airbnb place, somewhere with cooking facilities.

twigolsenisabrat · 30/12/2023 17:02

Lots of wildlife, coast walks, brochs to visit, boat trips etc. Plenty of shops in Kirkwall and Stromness and others dotted about, lots of independent one as well. Artistic place so lots of art galleries. Kirkwall has a cathedral.

Just google stuff - WW2 history stuff all around, Italian chapel, churchill barriers etc.

Can be very busy, especially in school holidays & when cruise ships are in.

DelphiniumBlue · 30/12/2023 17:03

We went a couple of years ago, and stayed here, which is a lovely B&B with hosts who can't do enough for you, they'll sort packed lunches, and they know the islands very well so are great for advice, like what days cruise ships are expected and how to time your itinerary accordingly.
We went to Skara Brae which is as fab as you would expect - but check opening hours and days - they do evening tours where you can actually go into the houses but these are not available all year round , I think they finish early August.
There are shops, including supermarkets, and if you can take a car or hire one you'll be able to get about more easily. There are lots of archaeological sites, and you can go and visit these while digs are in progress. You'll probably want to see Maes Howe and the Broch of Gurness, but honestly, there are so many amazing places to see.

Home: Straigona Bed & Breakfast, Orkney

https://www.straigona.co.uk/

Malarandras · 30/12/2023 17:08

Maeshowe is a must see. And of course there are shops, it’s Scotland not the middle of Greenland..

Flora56 · 30/12/2023 17:08

Orkney is great.

There are plenty shops. Big supermarkets (Tesco and Lidl) in Kirkwall. Smaller isles have smaller shops.

We’ve stayed in a few air bnbs outside of summer months. But in summer we stayed at one of those places with camping pods, near South Ronaldsay.

Eating out isn’t something we’ve done much but we did go to an amazing pizza restaurant on Sanday and there was brilliant pizza in Evie too.

We’ve never pre-booked attractions but only been once during high season. Easter and October were lovely times to be there.

Butchyrestingface · 30/12/2023 17:10

Are there shops?! Will have to Google.

No. Everyone runs arounds scalping the native haggi for food and wearing the pelts of stray sassanach tourists.

Celia24 · 30/12/2023 17:10

If you are interested in distillery tours you must book. Highland Park definitely and the other is Scara Brae which is on the beach.

Loads to do. The settlements yes and there's also a small zoo and cafe which is great. Kirkwall Museum is worth a visit too.

Original poster

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 17:11

MistletoeRegrets · 30/12/2023 16:53

Are there shops?

It’s been a long week. No one has the energy for this sort of nonsense this evening …

Omg, I did say I was going to Google! Having been to Mull, which is not full of supermarkets, I wanted to check what Orkney was like for shops...

There's no need to post if you're just going to be snarky.

OP posts:

Original poster

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 17:13

Oh God. Shouldn't have mentioned the shagging shops.

Does anyone have recommendations for self catering places to stay? Preferably on the mainland.

It looks like it's going to be deciding which places to see out of the many!

And I didn't think about cruise ships. Bizarrely, I wasn't expecting it to be busy...

OP posts:

Original poster

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 17:13

Thanks for the helpful responses.

OP posts:

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 30/12/2023 17:18

There's a sizeable CoOp as you come off the ferry, and a Tesco in Kirkwall.

We went for a week summer 22, and loved it. Whilst much of the southern part of the uk was baking in a heatwave, we were enjoying a temperate 16-18 degrees. Very windy too.

Skara Brae was amazing, history buff DS was beside himself. Archaeology at every turn.

whatchagonnado · 30/12/2023 17:20

It's a wonderful place -l lots to see.
But my friend who lives there says it's now one of the busiest cruise ship stops in Europe

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 30/12/2023 17:21

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 17:13

Oh God. Shouldn't have mentioned the shagging shops.

Does anyone have recommendations for self catering places to stay? Preferably on the mainland.

It looks like it's going to be deciding which places to see out of the many!

And I didn't think about cruise ships. Bizarrely, I wasn't expecting it to be busy...

It was packed when we went.

It may be a long way away from much of the uk, but it's also a popular holiday destination with a lot of Northern European countries. Loads of Dutch and German cars when we went.

anothernamechangeagainsndagain · 30/12/2023 17:22

It gets pretty busy, the ferry's get full early on too (already on sale) but do remember it's likely to spring/autumn weather wise than summer, so it's walking trousers, fleeces and stout boots country ... don't forget binoculars and download the bird identification app, you won't recognise many of them!

coolkatt · 30/12/2023 17:22

its basically 3476bc up there. horrible place. people are terrible, proper cave dwellers. nothing to do but sit in caves eat fish draw on walls and look towards the mainland and pine for shops. you will hate it. try Blackpool.

PamelaParis · 30/12/2023 17:24

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 17:11

Omg, I did say I was going to Google! Having been to Mull, which is not full of supermarkets, I wanted to check what Orkney was like for shops...

There's no need to post if you're just going to be snarky.

Show quote history

You probably should have googled first!

caringcarer · 30/12/2023 17:39

I had my honeymoon touring around Scottish Castles. I went to Orkney for a day saw Skara Brea and it was really interesting. They have a good gift shop. They have some standing stones a bit like Stonehenge. I bought some gorgeous fudge. I remember we enjoyed it but it was very windy and cold in July.

Original poster

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 19:02

We're thinking about going in May - should that be quieter than summer?! The bird life should be god then too.

OP posts:

Original poster

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 19:03

What time of year did you go, @IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads ?

OP posts:

StraigonaBB · 30/12/2023 19:06

I own the recommended B&B below. If you check out FB page Orkney Information UK you can ask all the questions you want. There are lists of Self Catering and B&B's on there too. Mind on that if you stay in a SC you won't get tips of where to go when and the hidden gems... Oh, and we think we had the best summer in the UK this year! 😊

IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads · 30/12/2023 19:45

hellsBells246 · 30/12/2023 19:03

What time of year did you go, @IbizaToTheNorfolkBroads ?

August

MrsAmaretto · 30/12/2023 20:29

It’s a great place to visit but can get very busy due to cruise ships and its proximity to the Scottish mainland. You need to book anccommoadation asap if going March- Oct. I think that the population is about 25k but the busiest day in the summer saw nearly 100k visitors!

Weepingskies · 30/12/2023 20:39

We’ve been to Orkney three times now and absolutely loved it every time, both with and without children. There’s so much to see, amazing historic sites, beautiful countryside and wildlife. Plenty of lovely tea rooms to visit (I love a cup of tea and a piece of cake somewhere with a nice view!) and everyone we met was so friendly. It was a bit chillier than I had expected (my foolishness entirely!) but we were fine once we’d bought some woolly hats at Tesco (this was in august). We stayed here https://www.orkney-cottages.co.uk/slide_show_corkaquina/corkaquina.html and loved it - really helpful owners, stunning views and very comfortable as well as very reasonably priced even in peak season. Basically Orkney is my favourite place ever!

Orkney Cottages Overscapa

https://www.orkney-cottages.co.uk/slide_show_corkaquina/corkaquina.html

Flip

1 2