Only 17 of the 70 Orkney Islands are inhabited, and the most breathtaking coasts stretch wherever cliffs of 300-meter high are buried in white sandy beaches. On the islands, the highest concentration of prehistoric monuments is located in Europe - evidence of ancient cultures.
The Orkney Islands include the island of Maynland, the largest island of the archipelago, with the cities of Kirkwall and Stromness, a group of northern islands, the largest of which are North Ronaldsay, Westray, Papa Westray, Eday ( Eday); and a group of southern islands - Scapa Flow, Hoy, Burray, South Ronaldsay.
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How to get to Orkney Islands
In Kirkwall there is an airport where flights from Aberdeen, Edinburgh, Glasgow and Inverness are carried out with a transfer in London Heathrow, Birmingham, Manchester and Belfast. Twice a day, flights from Shetland airport to Siburg are performed in Kirkwall.
Search for air tickets to Birmingham (the nearest airport to the Orkney Islands) is
On ferries
Scottish Citylink has regular communication between Inverness and Skraster (cost 16 pounds, travel time 3 hours), from where ferries depart for Stromness. Buses from Glasgow, Edinburgh and London, following in Inverness, depart on such a schedule to catch the bus to Skraster.
John o'Groats Ferries organizes the communication between Inverness and Kirkwall, which includes a bus from Inverness to John o'Groats, a ferry to Burwick and a bus to Kirkwall. One-way ticket costs 30 pounds (round trip back to 42 pounds), travel time is 5 hours, transportation is carried out only in the summer months.
Northlink Ferries will organize a ferry service from Skraster to Stromness (round-trip ticket costs 26-30 pounds, car transportation - 82-90 pounds, travel time 1 hour 30 minutes). There are direct ferries from Aberdeen to Kirkwall (round-trip ticket costs 32-50 pounds, car transportation - 126-172 pounds, travel time 7:15) and Lerwick in Shetland Islands. From Lerwick to Kirkwall, 2-3 flights a week are performed, whereas from Aberdeen to Kirkwall is a daily message.
Pentland Ferries offers more economical transportation prices. Ferries depart from the port of Gills Bay, located 5 km west of John O'Grots, and follow up to St. Margaret's Hope in the Orkney Islands (fare 12 pounds, travel time 1 hour).
Transport
The company Orkney Ferries organizes regular communication between the islands of Mainland, Hoi An, Flotta and the northern Orkney Islands. The office of the company is located in the street Shore St in Kirkwall.
In the summer, John o'Groats Ferries provides a link between John-o'Grots and Barwick on the southern tip of South Ronaldsey Island. Carrier "Causeway Coaches" will take tourists to the village of St. Margaret's Hoop on the island of South Ronaldsey.
Orkney Coaches provides public transport services on the islands of Mainland and South Ronaldsey. Travel "Day Rover" for 6 pounds and "3-Day Rover" for 15 pounds can significantly save money by traveling to the islands.
There are several car rental locations on the island of Mainland: Orkney Car Hire on Junction Rd in Kirkwall and Norman Brass Car Hire on the North End Rd in Stromness. You can also rent a bike in Kirkwall at Cycle Orkney at Tankerness Lane and in Stromnes at Orkney Cycle Hire on Dundas St for £ 6-10 a day.
Climate
The Orkney Islands are dominated by a cool temperate climate, surprisingly mild and stable for such northern latitudes due to the influence of the Gulf Stream. The average annual temperature is + 8 ° C - in winter the temperature drops to + 4 ° C, in summer it rises to + 12 ° C. Winds are a key feature of the climate of the Orkney Islands (even in summer).
Orkney Islands are very popular with tourists due to the longitude of the day - in the summer the sun rises at 03:00 and sits at 22:00. But the winter nights are very long - the sun appears on the horizon at 09:00, and at 15:00 sits down. At this time of year you can see the aurora.
Shopping
In the Orkney Islands, many professional artists and artisans work, creating their own unique masterpieces. On the islands you can buy silverware and other jewelry, tapestries, prints, glassware, ceramics, knitwear and textiles, modern traditional furniture, musical instruments. Small rural studios and workshops are scattered all over the islands, where you can see the manufacturing process and purchase hand-made goods.
On the Isle of Maneland in the Fursbreck Pottery in the village of Harray, you can buy pottery, and in Belgarth Bodhrans in Stromness - bjurans (a variety of tambourines), and in Orkneyinga Silversmiths in the village of Berseay (Birsay) - jewelry. In Hume Sweet Hume, in the village of Peierwall (Pierowall), that on the island of Westray you can buy traditional sweaters.
Cuisine and restaurants of the islands of Orkney
The landscape of Orkney is characterized by a large number of fields, because on the islands are located, perhaps, the best agricultural land in Scotland. Here, the best Scottish beef and mutton are grown, of which excellent sausages and pies are prepared. The islands also boast delicious seafood - lobsters, crabs, scallops and a variety of fish, and delicacies are considered "megrim", a dish from a special kind of shellfish, and "spoots."
In addition to restaurants, bars and cafes, the so-called tea restaurants are popular on the islands, where they prepare a takeaway meal. In the teahouses you should taste local bread "bannock" and jam from rhubarb. A popular dish is fish with French fries and local patties.
Local cuisine can be enjoyed at the Captain's Galley restaurant in the port of Skraster. In Kirkuall well prepared in restaurants at hotels - Albert Hotel, Ayre Hotel, Orkney Hotel and others. In Stromness - in the Royal Hotel and Stromness Hotel. On North Ronaldsey Island - in the North Ronaldsay Bird Observatory and Haff Yok Café.
Entertainment, excursions and attractions of the Orkney Islands
Monuments of the Neolithic in the Orkney Islands (Meißhau, Steness megaliths, Ring of Broadhau and Scara-Brey) are included in the UNESCO World Heritage List:
- cromlech "Ring of Broadhar" is located on the island of Maynland on a narrow isthmus between the lakes of Stennis and Harrey, 1, 2 km from megaliths of Stennes.
- Mayshau is a funerary cairn, a structure in the form of a pile of conical-shaped stones, and is one of the largest tombs on the Orkney Islands. Located on the island of Maynland.
- the settlement of Skara-Brey is located near Skale Bay on the west coast of the island of Mayland.
- NEP OF HOWAR - Neolithic settlement on the island of Papa Westray.
- Dwarven-Stein is a megalithic tomb of the 2nd millennium BC. e., located in the glacial valley on the island of Hoi An.
- The settlement of Barnhouse is located on the shore of Lake Harrey on the island of Maynland, not far from the megaliths of Steness.
Also of interest is the "Tomb of the Eagles," which was first explored in 1958 by Ronald Simison, who found here more than 16,000 human and bird bones. The tomb is on a rocky cliff in Isbister on South Ronaldsey Island.