Orkney, Shetland and Faroe Islands

We arrive in Glasgow and spend a night at a comfortable and centrally located hotel. In the evening we have time to explore this Scottish city on our own.

We travel by private bus and with a local guide to Oban, where our small and comfortable expedition ship M/S Quest is waiting for us. Our trip to Oban offers magnificent sceneries of the Landscapes, characterised by lochs and bens. In the afternoon we embark the ship and head out on our expedition.

At dawn we reach the Summer Isles, located on the northwestern coast of Scotland. Here we go ashore on the largest and the only inhabited island of the archipelago – Tanera Mór. The island was once a port for herring and today it hosts a salmon farm. We take a walk and enjoy the magnificent scenery and the breathtaking views. We also visit the little post office that has issued its own postage stamps since 1970. Later, we reach the small island Handa. During the summer season the island’s dramatic sandstone cliffs become home to an estimated 100 000 breeding seabirds such as puffins, razorbills and guillemots. During the evening we set course for the Orkney Islands.

Today we arrive at the port of the charming town of Stromness, located on the largest island - Mainland. We spend the day exploring the island and we head into the heart of Neolithic Orkney, an area designated as a World Heritage Site due to its wealth of pre-historic archaeology. We visit the 5 000-year-old village of Skara Brae and see the remarkable dwellings that were revealed from beneath the sand dunes by storms only 160 years ago. Today it is western Europe’s most well-preserved prehistoric village. We continue to the Ring of Brodgar – a huge ceremonial circle of stones dating back almost 5 000 years. On the way back to Stromness we also make a stop in Kirkwall, the main town of the Orkney Islands. Here we find St. Magnus Cathedral, the most northerly cathedral in the British Isles, founded by the Viking Earl Rognvald in 1137.

In the early morning, we reach the capital and main port of the Shetland Islands, Lerwick. During our visit we explore the remarkable Neolithic ruins of Jarlshof. The site was uncovered by a violent storm in the winter of 1896/97, revealing an extraordinary settlement site embracing at least 5 000 years of human history. A guided tour takes us through the narrow stone lanes of Lerwick and we make a visit to Shetland Museum, where we get acquainted with the islands’ fascinating history and culture. In the afternoon we continue our voyage towards the remote Faroe Islands

Our ship heads northwest as we listen to interesting lectures on the flora, fauna and history of the fascinating group of islands to come. In the early evening we reach Suðuroy, one of the 18 islands that belongs to the Faroe Islands.

We spend the day exploring the dramatic Island of Suðuroy. Spellbinding steep bird cliffs to the west and a rolling, idyllic landscape offer visitors magnificent sceneries upon arrival. The geographic distance from the rest of the Faroe Islands also explains much of its uniqueness when it comes to language and culture. From Suðuroy’s little town Vágur, beautifully situated in the Vágsfjørður fjord, we head for Beinisvørð – a 469 meter high sea cliff. From here we can enjoy the breathtaking views of the island’s diverse landscape that consists of mountains, fjords, villages and valleys. Our tour continues, either by foot or by bus, down the slope to Suðuroy’s southernmost village, Sumba. From here we make a longer walk to the southernmost tip of the Faroe Islands, Akraberg, where we find a charming lighthouse, dating back to 1909.

Weather and wind permitting we enter our sturdy Zodiacs to explore the westernmost island – Mykines, a bird paradise that attracts bird enthusiasts and ornithologists from all over the world. This little island is home to hundreds of thousands of seabirds such as gannets, fulmars, guillemots, storm petrels and kittiwakes. The main attraction is undoubtedly Mykineshólmur, an independent islet that is connected to the mainland by a suspension bridge on 35 meters elevation. On the grassy slopes above the cliffs, thousands of puffins are nesting. It is not unusual to see them flying in with fish hanging from their beaks to feed their young. For those who are ready for a tougher hike, we hope to have the chance to reach the top of Mykines to enjoy the incredible views. Hopefully we will also visit the only settlement, named after the island, with its ten brave inhabitants

We will spend our last full day in the Faroe Islands on the largest island, Streymoy. Here lies Tórshavn, the archipelago’s charming capital, established by the Vikings in the 9th century. The parliament that was founded in 850 AD can still be seen and is one of the world’s oldest. What was once an important trading port is now a modern town with about 13 000 inhabitants. After a visit to the capital we continue to the historical village of Kirkjubøur, which is the Faroe Islands’ most important cultural and historical site. Here we have a chance to see the 900-yearold picturesque farm Roykstovan, originally the bishop’s residence but since 1550 it belongs to the Patursson family. Today, part of the house is a museum while the remainder is occupied by the 17th generation of the family. In Kirkjubøur we can also find the small, and still active, medieval church St. Olav and the ruins of the Magnus Cathedral from about 1300 AD

In the morning we disembark M/S Quest, transfer by bus to Vágar Airport and begin our journey back home.