Outer Hebrides

The Outer Hebrides was everything I’d hoped for and more! Travel specialists, McKinlay Kidd, put the itinerary together for us. We flew from Glasgow to Barra, landing on the beach, which was a spectacular experience! Once on terra firma, we picked up our hire car and drove to our first hotel, The Castlebay , for a couple of nights. From there, we took a ferry to Eriskay, then drove up to North Uist, to our next hotel, Hamersay House for a further two night stay. Another ferry trip took us to Leverburgh and the Isle of Harris, where we spent three nights at the Hotel Hebrides. Hubby and friend, Ted, spent a day visiting St Kilda, more than 40 miles northwest of North Uist in the North Atlantic Ocean. Uninhabited since 1030, It contains the westernmost islands of the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, is a World Heritage site and is home to colonies of gannets, puffins, and fulmars. Our journey ended in Stornaway, where we flew back to Glasgow and then on to our respective homes.

Throughout the adventure, we were overwhelmed by the beauty of the islands, each one different from the others. The beaches are among the most stunning I’ve ever seen and rival those in the Caribbean and elsewhere, any day of the week! Whilst we did enjoy the food, which was comfort, home-cooked standard, my expectations were sadly disappointed. We were told by islanders that most of the top quality seafood was exported to other countries.