Sights in Highlands & Northern Islands
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Cairngorm Reindeer Centre
The warden here will take you on a tour to see and feed Britain’s only herd of reindeer, who are very tame and will even eat out of your hand. Walks take place at 11am, plus another at 2.30pm from May to September, and 3.30pm Monday to Friday in July and August.
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Brough of Birsay
At low tide (check tide times at the shop in Earl’s Palace) you can walk out to this windswept island, site of extensive Norse ruins, including a number of longhouses and the 12th-century St Peter’s Church. There’s also a replica of a Pictish stone which was found here, carved with an eagle and human figures. St Magnus was buried here after his murder on Egilsay in 1117, and the island was long a place of pilgrimage. The attractive lighthouse has fantastic views along the coast.
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A
An Lanntair Art Centre
The modern, purpose-built An Lanntair Art Centre, complete with art gallery, theatre, cinema and restaurant, is the centre of the town’s cultural life; it hosts changing exhibitions of contemporary art and is a good source of information on cultural events.
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B
Pier Arts Centre
Resplendently redesigned, this gallery has really rejuvenated the Orkney modern-art scene with its sleek lines and upbeat attitude. It’s worth a look as much for the architecture as its high-quality collection of 20th-century British art and the changing exhibitions.
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Noltland Castle
A half-mile west of Pierowall stand the ruins of this tower house, built by Gilbert Balfour, aide to Mary, Queen of Scots. The castle bristles with shot holes, part of the defences of the deceitful Balfour, who plotted to murder Cardinal Beaton and, after being exiled, the king of Sweden.
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Calanais Visitor Centre
This visitor centre is a tour de force of discreet design. Inside is a small exhibition that speculates on the origins and purpose of the stones, and an excellent cafe.
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C
Earl's Palace & Bishop's Palace
These two ruined palaces are worth poking around. The more intriguing, the Earl’s Palace, was once known as the finest example of French Renaissance architecture in Scotland. One room features an interesting history of its builder, Earl Patrick Stewart, who was executed in Edinburgh for treason. He started construction in about 1600, but ran out of money and it was never completed.
The Bishop’s Palace was built in the mid-12th century to provide comfortable lodgings for Bishop William the Old. There’s a good view of the cathedral from the tower, and a plaque showing the different phases of the cathedral’s construction.
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Orkney Wine Company
The Orkney Wine Company produces handmade wines made from berries, flowers and vegetables, all naturally fermented. Get stuck into some strawberry-rhubarb wine or carrot-and-malt-whisky liqueur – unusual flavours but surprisingly addictive.
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Trumland House
Undergoing extensive restoration at the time of research, this is probably the largest private house in Orkney. The grounds, with their thicket of native trees, are worth a stroll – you enter the walled garden through a medieval gate.
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D
Museum nan Eilean
This museum strings together a loose history of the Outer Hebrides from the earliest human settlements some 9000 years ago to the 20th century, exploring traditional island life and the changes inflicted by progress and technology.
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Loch Ness Centre & Exhibition
This Nessie-themed attraction adopts a scientific approach that allows you to weigh the evidence for yourself. Exhibits include the original equipment – sonar survey vessels, miniature submarines, cameras and sediment coring tools – used in various monster hunts, as well as original photographs and film footage of sightings. You'll find out about hoaxes and optical illusions, as well as learning a lot about the ecology of Loch Ness – is there enough food in the loch to support even one 'monster', let alone a breeding population?
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St Columba’s Church
The roofless ruin of the 14th-century St Columba’s Church, 4 miles east of town on the Eye peninsula, features the grave slabs of Roderick McLeod, 7th clan chief (around 1498), and his daughter (1503).
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E
Inverness Museum & Art Gallery
Inverness Museum & Art Gallery has wildlife dioramas, geological displays, period rooms with historic weapons, Pictish stones and contemporary Highland arts and crafts.
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F
RSPB Loch Garten Osprey Centre
The ospreys migrate here each spring from Africa and nest in a tall pine tree – you can watch from a hide as the birds feed their young. The centre is signposted about 2 miles east of the village.
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Orkney Fossil & Vintage Centre
The Orkney Fossil & Vintage Centre has a quirky collection of household and farming relics, 360-million-year-old Devonian fish fossils found locally and galleries devoted to the world wars, including a display on the Churchill Barriers. There's an excellent coffee shop here. It's on the left half a mile after crossing to Burray, coming from Kirkwall.
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G
Victorian Market
If the rain comes down, you could opt for a spot of retail therapy in the Victorian Market, a shopping mall that dates from the 1890s and has rather more charm than its modern equivalents.
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Longhope Lifeboat Museum
At the southern tip of Hoy, near the causeway to South Walls, Longhope’s former lifeboat station houses a small museum centred on one of the old boats itself (the modern lifeboat is moored afloat off Longhope village). If it's not open, call the caretaker to have a look.
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Beinn Eighe Visitor Centre
The Beinn Eighe Visitor Centre, a mile northwest of Kinlochewe, has interactive displays (good for kids) on local geography, ecology, flora and fauna. Provides information on walking routes, and sells maps and natural history books.
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Doune Broch Centre
The tiny, turf-roofed Doune Broch Centre has interpretative displays and exhibitions about the history of the Dun Carloway broch and the life of the people who lived there.
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Dunbeath Heritage Centre
This heritage centre has a stone carved with runic graffiti, and a display on the work of Neil Gunn, whose wonderful novels evoke the Caithness of his boyhood.
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Orkney Faerie Museum & Gallery
Set in a converted old crofthouse, Orkney Faerie Museum & Gallery showcases Orcadian folklore and legend with tales of faeries, wee folk, trows and mermaids.
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Lewis Loom Centre
This centre houses an exhibition on the history of Harris Tweed; the 40-minute guided tour (£2.50 extra) includes spinning and weaving demonstrations.
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Glencoe Folk Museum
This small, thatched museum houses a varied collection of military memorabilia, farm equipment, and tools of the woodworking, blacksmithing and slate-quarrying trades.
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Talisker Distillery
Skye's only distillery produces smooth, sweet and smoky Talisker single-malt whisky; the guided tour includes a free dram.
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Westray Heritage Centre
This has displays on local history, nature dioramas, and archaeological finds, including the famous 5000-year-old ‘Westray Wife’. The sandstone figurine is the oldest depiction of the human form yet found in Scotland.
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