Orkney - June 2026

A quick get away with Theo and Sian (Rhys’ parents) for Rhys’ 30th birthday to north Scotland, started with an early Heathrow departure. This was made somewhat stressful by Sam scanning Rhys’ boarding pass at the gate and getting the whole of Heathrow’s security system messed up. Apart from that the flight was smooth and after picking up the rental from Inverness airport we all headed North.

The drive set the key themes for the holiday, first that Sam would try and buy every large stuffed animal. The second that Sam would use every opportunity to go rock hunting. The third that there would be plenty whisky distillery visits and finally that the scenes and people would be breath-taking.

The first stop was Dalmore farm shop where Sam immediately made friends with the local donkeys and tried to buy a massive stuffed penguin. After breakfast we headed up the A9 to Glenmorangie distillery where we spent some time in the visitor centre and shop before Sam found her first beach of the holiday on the Dornoch Firth. The next stop was Dunrobin Castle but we decided we did not have enough time to justify the cost of entry so a short walk around the gardens was all we did. Instead we went just a little further up the road to Bora heritage centre where we had a lovely lunch followed by a trip to Clynelish and Bora distilleries although both were closed to visitors on the day.

We continued up the A9 to Scrabster where Sam had some more quality time on a beach rock hunting before we boarded our ferry to Orkney. We’d been on a ferry before to Islay and we expecting similar but the sea and waves had other ideas forcing Sam to spend most of it downstairs trying to keep her lunch down. However, an hour and a half later we were on dry land and 20 minutes later we arrived at the Kirkwall Hotel which was to be our base for the next few days. ‍

The next day was Rhys’ 30th Birthday and it started with a lovely breakfast at old local cafe before rushing to get a transport to Scapa distillery. We were then taken on a distillery tour by Adrian who was entertaining the whole way before starting on cask strength whiskies just as the clock struck 12. The perfect way to celebrate a 30th birthday was that one of the cask whiskies was 30 years old. The result of the strong start to the day and the previous day’s adventures meant that an afternoon nap was in order.

Given a long nap, longer days and good weather we then decided to head down the road to the Churchill barriers and specifically the Italian chapel which was built and decorated by PoWs in WW2. We then went for a short walk to Skail as there was still time to burn before the birthday dinner. The dinner was back at the hotel and was delicious and well portioned. To end off a perfect birthday the local fiddle and accordion band were practising upstairs in the hotel so we sat and listened to them for a while before heading to bed.

The next morning we set off for Brough of Birsay. The morning plan was puffins, and puffins we saw! The weather was a bit less kind with a strong icy wind blowing over the little island. The scenes continued to be breath-taking and seeing puffins for the first time really drove home how different and special the place is. The other birdlife was also very impressive, although the multiple stoat traps on the island indicated how delicate the ecosystem is.

With the puffin success under our belt we spent the next couple hours exploring Kirkwall itself. This included the local shops and impressive cathedral before being picked up by another transport and taken to Highland Park distillery where we would be given a tour and cask tasting by Matthew. The tour was similar but different and again highly entertaining. The whisky was also delicious. Feeling rather festive we then went to yet another wonderful dinner this time at the Storehouse.

Orkney is well known for its naval history, most famously the sinking of the HMS Royal Oak by a U-boat in WW2 (the first sinking of a battleship by a U-boat). However, we found it had history back more than 5000 years. So, on Saturday with the assistance of local guide Graham we toured the island visiting old cairn’s (burial sites), standing stones similar to stone henge and the very impressive ancient village of Scara Brae.

The historical tour was excellent but our time on Orkney was done. Fortunately the ferry was more bearable on the way back for Sam and yet another delicious dinner this time at Stannergill distillery back on the mainland meant ending our short stay on Orkney in the best way. After dinner we headed to our cute BnB in Tain a further hour down the road and closer to inverness where Sam and Rhys would be flying home the next day from.

The next day we woke up and wandered down to Inverness and walked around the old castle before having a nice breakfast and heading to the airport to check in for our flight back down to Heathrow. In classic Rhys and Sam fashion the flight was heavily delayed due to a small plane crashing on the runway meaning we got back to Bath very late on the Sunday before work on Monday.

“The food highlight of the trip was a challenge because of how good it all was but most probably was the Scottish whisky fudge”