Introduction

Welcome to the first page of my tour of the Isles of Lewis and Harris. The Isles promise the lure of the ultimate scottish experience, along with fantastic beaches, spectacular scenery, local crafts and a relaxing atmosphere. Did they deliver this when myself and the family took our holiday there in Summer 2004? Read on and find out.

The Isles are located off the west coast of Scotland and are part of the Hebrides which also include the Isles of North Uist, South Uist and Barra. They are not your usual holiday spot, which is part of their appeal.

Don't travel there expecting hot sunny weather though. As the Isles are open to the Atlantic weather systems, the days can be sunny one minute and raining the next. As usual with our visits to Scotland, we were very lucky. Out of the 10 days we spent on the Isles, it only rained constantly all day on one of the days. Of the other days, 4 were dry (2 of which were warm as well), and the other 5 either mixed. However, don't let this deter you. The rule tends to be, when England and Wales are getting bad weather, Scotland is getting the nice weather. (We Brits don't half go on about the weather don't we!!).

The Gaelic language is still spoken by a lot of the Islanders, although we didn't come across it being spoken as much as we thought we would. However, all the road signs show the Gaelic version of the town and village names. You certainly get a feeling of pride in the language, and rightly so. (Just as the Welsh are proud of their language).

The other thing you'll find while your on the isles is the fact that Sundays are still treated as the Lords day. This means that nearly everything shuts on a Sunday. This includes the shops, restaurants and petrol stations (although we did find one that opens for part of the day). It is also advisable to check with any accommodation that you book to ensure you wont offend them if arriving or departing on a Sunday.

Stornoway (Steornabhagh)

Stornoway is the main and largest town on the Isles. It's also the place where most visitors to the Isles arrive, either by ferry from Ullapool or by plane from Glasgow, Edinburgh or Inverness. As we were travelling from North Wales, we flew from Manchester to Stornoway via Edinburgh on BMI. We didn't experience any problems with the short flights, and BMI treated us very well. (Kenny Dalglish was actually sat in front of us on the plane from Edinburgh to Stornoway, although we didn't recognise him at the time).

However, since writing this (in fact in Summer 2006) BMI suspending the daily flight to Stornoway due to low passenger numbers. This is a shame really, as BMI were offering reasonable fares which should have encouraged visitors to the Isles. I only hope that in the future, they reconsider this decision. Those wishing to fly to the Isles do still have the option of flying with BA, Highland Airways or Eastern Airways.

When you arrive at Stornoway Airport, you already know you arrived somewhere different. Although as a family we aren't seasoned travellers, Stornoway Airport has to rank as one of the smallest, prettiest and most relaxing airports we've ever visited. However we did wonder how the aircraft managed to land on such a short runway (well done to the pilot).

This small airport has a lovely eating area (at reasonable prices too) and is the perfect introduction to your holiday. It's also the place where your going to get upset when you leave the Isles at the end of your holiday (provided you fall in love with them like us).

Upon exiting the airport, our hire car was waiting for us. There are about three hire car companies on the islands, all who will meet you at the airport or ferry terminal provided you arrive at reasonable times of the day. We used Arnol Motors, who are the only firm to allow you to take their cars off the isles if you wanted to. But why would you want to do that. You've only just arrived.

Stornoway town, and this is going to sound like I'm putting it down, is no different to any other town you might visit. It has all the same problems as any other town, although on a much smaller scale.

It's the hub of the islands and is the centre for shopping and employment. Shops such as Woolworths and Boots all have branches here, but on a smaller scale. Numerous tearooms, coffee shops and cafes can also be found if you want to duck out of a rain shower for 10 minutes.

The only supermarkets on the isles (Safeway and Co-op) are located just outside the centre of the town. This means that the rule is to stock up with what you need before you leave Stornoway.

As for eating out, we recommend the chinese and balti restaurants in Stornoway. Both serve excellent food at not too expensive prices. The balti restaurant is even open on a Sunday, but you should visit early as it gets busy in the evening (being one of the few places to open on a Sunday).

For the visitor, Stornoway may seem a bit of a letdown when compared with towns like Portree on the Isle of Skye. However we found we quite liked the town. Along with the shops, you should take a stroll along the harbour/fishing docks. The highlight for us here was seeing the seals. While seals can be found at numerous places around the coast, your not going to see any quite so close as at the harbour in Stornoway (Please bear in mind that is a working harbour with fishing boats docking, so children should be closely supervised and kept out of the way at busy times). The seals must follow the fishing fleets around to get any scraps available, so don't expect to see any if the boats are out at sea.

Numerous sculptures can also be found around the town. These depict the history and heritage of the town. Can't really say much more about them than that (knew I should have made some notes while I was there).

The final thing that should be mentioned about Stornoway, is that if your intending to venture out to the quieter areas of the isles, you should ensure that you get some money here, as cash machines are few and far between on the isles. While credit/debit cards are accepted at most petrol stations, shops and visitor attractions, it should be noted that you may still find that the place your visiting is cash only.

Well that concludes the first page of my tour of the Isles. Click here for Page 2.

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