The Magic of Isle of Skye Scotland
Isle of Skye is now one of my most favorite places on earth
I wish I could tell you that I spent more than 2ish days here
But I cannot, and that was a MISTAKE
Fortunately you can learn from my mistake, and I will explain to you why I would have liked more than two nights here.
(disclaimer, two days is enough to fall in love, so if that is all the time you have I definitely would recommend you do it!)
I suppose I did not know what I was getting myself into with Scotland. I did not realize I would come to love it so much and that there would be so many things to do in Scotland. I had researched the Isle of Skye a bit but I had no idea I would be this blown away! If so I would have allotted for more time.
So here is a run down of my Isle of Skye travel, how I spent my two days, and some tips for your visit!
Glasgow to Isle of Skye
I rented a car here from Glasgow and made the 4ish hour drive up to Isle of Skye via Fort William.
TIP: This is the last major town and best place to stock up on snacks and food for you time on Isle of Skye. Things can get pretty pricey the further north you go. If you are on a budget, like me, then I would buy snacks and items for lunches (a little cooler for lunch meat, cheese, etc would have been brilliant)
One the way to Isle of Skye the Eilean Donan Castle is worth a visit! The castle is set in a beautiful picture perfect place. I did not pay to go in, I found the view from the outside enough for me!
You will then cross a bridge into the Isle of Skye. You have made it, now this is where the magic really starts to happen!
The North of the Isle
As soon as you enter on the isle you will immediately we rewarded. It is just so beautiful! So scenic, and it changes with every turn.
TIP: You will pass the Sligachan Hotel which has a brewery and restaurant there. Make a pit stop there for a great brew and some good food!
The main 'town' on the island is Portree. Here you can find some small grocery stores as well as grab some fuel for the rest of the adventure! The North of the Isle has SO much to explore. You could spend days hiking and taking it all of its beauty. However here are the highlights!
The Old Man of Storr
A famous place to visit here, the Old Man of Storr is a huge pinnacle of rock created by a massive landslide years and years ago.
From the parking area it takes about 1hr 15 minutes to complete. This site is great for anyone, as you do not have to walk all the way up to get a great view. You can wander around the pinnacles and get all sorts of cool views of this magical massive site!!
The Quiraing Loop
MY FAVORITE.
With a view like that, how could it not be? This was the toughest hike I did during my short time in Skye, but it was so worth it. It is basically a loop around and up a ridge of a cliff. It took me (with my 101 photo stops) about 3 hours or so. It is 6.8km. The second part was the hardest as the path pretty much disappeared and it was pretty muddy and downhill. I slid into some mud a couple times.. but worth it!
Fairy Glen
From what I gather this spot is less known, but people have it wrong! It was a highlight for sure, and super unique. Its a short walk around some magical little hills. There is no parking lot, you have to park on the street and it is limited, so it's best to go early before anyone else is there.
I spent about an hour here wandering around the hills.. looking for fairies of course.
The West of the Isle
Neist Point
It was quite a small, curvy, one lane road to get out to this point.. my driving and patience skills were put to the test! However it landed me on yet another stunning sight on Isle of Skye! You could spend a little to a lot of time here walking around soaking it all in.
Dunvegan Castle
This is a castle that requires an entrance fee I believe, however it was closed the day I arrived. The castle is built on a rock over the Dunvegan Loch dating back to the 13th century and the MacLeod clan.
TIP: Drive a little past the entrance, park your car and hope over the fence to the property of the castle. Then you can walk around to get a better view of the castle as you cannot see it from the road. Here you can reach the water as well. A couple people were doing it.. so I guess its fine ;)
Fairy Pools
This is a place I wish I would have had time to go explore and look for more fairies, however I did not have time sadly. But I would add it to your list!
Isle of Skye Tips
When to go
The summer is the most popular as the weather is the best. However Isle of Skye is one of those places I would recommend you visit out of high season. I hear it gets SO crowded, and all accommodation books up weeks and weeks in advance. One of the accommodation owners told us there were authorities guarding the bridge during the summer to only let people in who already had accommodation booked as the Isle was getting way too crowded.
I went in fall, the month of October and it was LOVELY. Everything is better in fall anyways. I got some rain but never enough to deter me, and it rains there in the summer too so no avoiding the rain. I booked accommodation as I went and the roads were much less crowded. Speaking of the roads..
Driving
Much of the roads here are one land roads with pull outs appearing quite frequently. These pull outs allow you or the opposite car to pull over and let the other one pass. I CANNOT imagine the mess this would be in the summer with so many cars and small RV's everywhere. You have to go slow, be aware and cautious. The roads can be very curvy and windy allowing for little warning of another car coming the opposite way.
Even with little people on the Isle it still took quite some time to get through some of these roads. This is another reason why I would suggest off season to visit.
Don't let the roads scare you though. I had no problems and got the hang of it quite easily!
Where to stay
So many cute bed and breakfasts! I would highly suggest checking out Air bnb, there were some great deals. I stayed on a little sheep farm (one of many) and it was too cute.
The second night I stayed in a hostel that was great too. I did not have this luxury, but I would recommend booking in advance. The accommodation is quite pricey and booking ahead will give you a better chance of grabbing the cheaper accommodation!
Navigation
I did not have data in Scotland, however as always I used the maps.me app. You are able to download all of Scotland to use offline navigation. I simply pinned all the places I wanted to go and hit navigate when I was ready to explore each one. It was so beneficial here, especially since I did not have data to access google maps!
Sunset
Make sure to catch sunset, you can do so from each of the areas of the Isle. Instead of going a specific spot I simply just drove until I found a view I liked and pulled over.
Dress warm and for rain
No matter what season you go, bring your rain jacket, some good shoes, and layers!
I was so happy to tick Scotland off of my Bucketlist ! Click the bucketlist link for everything else I have checked off!
DISCLAIMER: These pictures honestly do Isle of Skye no justice
I guess you will just have to go an see for yourself. Let me know how you like it and if you have any questions!
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