Holidays
Best of the Isle of Skye

Best of the Isle of Skye

Guided trails in Scottish Islands

6 nights

1 walk

Grades 4

122kg CO2

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Groups of 10+

020 3974 8865

Discover the Isle of Skye’s most famous walks and some that we’ve crafted especially for you. And when you’re not busy exploring this scenery-packed Scottish island, cosy up in the home-from-home comfort of our carefully selected partner hotel, ready to round off your adventures with a wee dram or two.

What You’ll Love

Enjoy the stylish comforts of the Hame Hotel
Tick-off classic walks and lesser-known routes
Look out for red deer, whales, sea otters, dolphins, and more
Explore the iconic landscapes around the Old Man of Storr
Take in dramatic coastal views from Neist Point
Discover the mighty sea stacks known as Macleod's Maidens

What's Included

Comfortable en-suite rooms in our partner accommodation(s)
Cooked or continental breakfast every morning
Daily packed lunches
Three-course evening meals, plus tea & coffee
Guided walks with an experienced HF Holidays Leader
All transport to and from walks where necessary

Trip Suitability

This Best of Isle of Skye holiday is graded 3. This involves walks/ hikes on a mix of good paths, rough mountain paths and short turf, sometimes boggy, sometimes steep. There are some significant assents. It is your responsibility to ensure you have the relevant fitness required to join this holiday. A sustained effort is required to complete the walks and little provision can be made for anyone who opts out. Please be sure you can manage the daily mileage and ascent as listed, bearing in mind that it may be on rough ground. The walking day is normally 6-7 hours. It is important for your own enjoyment, and that of your fellow guests that you can maintain the pace.

It makes a lot of sense to spend time getting some additional exercise before your holiday. We suggest that you try to fit in a number of longer walks, including some on hilly terrain. Other exercises such as cycling, jogging and swimming are also excellent for developing increased stamina.

Your fitness

Having a solid base of fitness before your holiday will ensure you've the best chance of completing the holiday and enjoying it to boot. Here's a few simple tips to help you get fit and ready for your challenge:

Get out walking - whether the weather, get out there, and start building your fitness months before your holiday
Build your distance gradually and get a number of 6-8hr hill days in
Ideally, try and do two consecutive days training if possible
Take the stairs every time
Train on different terrain
Train with your day pack and your walking boots too, to ensure they're well worn in before your holiday
Other sports help improve your walking fitness too. The best ones are jogging, cycling, swimming, which will build your stamina, and yoga which will help strengthen your core and improve balance
Time training will help ensure you enjoy your holiday to the max.

Itinerary

All our carefully-curated itineraries are designed by our experts. While we make every effort to adhere to the described itinerary, we may take alternative routes or adapt the running order for weather and/or operational reasons.

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Once you’ve checked out your Scandi-inspired room – and taken in the views over the loch - join us in the hotel lounge at 6:30pm to find out the plan of action before dinner.

Distance: 10.5 miles (17km)

Ascent: 1,900ft (580m)

We start with a good leg stretcher of a walk this morning to get you into the swing of things. Our journey along the coast takes us past Loch Bharcasaig with mesmerising views over the Cuillins and out to Idrigill Point where you’ll spot the mighty sea stacks known as Macleod's Maidens.

Steeped in mystery and legends, these impressive – and somewhat surreal-looking - sea stacks are said to commemorate the wife and two daughters of a Macleod chieftain. The largest stack is the mother, the two smaller stacks the daughters.

Distance: 9 miles (14km)

Ascent: 2,450ft (750m)

It may not be particularly high at 736m, but Marsco makes up for it with one of the best viewpoints over the Red Hills. We’ll set off on our steady ascent, taking rough and sometimes boggy paths, to reach the top from where you’ll stare out over the blue sea and jagged peaks of Skye. The summit ridge itself is a narrow but not difficult path with a fine view of the Black Cuillin too.

Distance: 5.5 miles

Ascent: 2,080ft (640m)

You’ll journey to the Black Cuillin today to explore Coire Lagan, one of the most impressive corries in the Cuillin. Admire the tiny loch ringed by gigantic rocky peaks after some easy scrambling to reach the top.

Distance: 10 miles (16km)

Ascent: 3,150ft (950m)

The Old Man of Storr is world-famous and one of the most iconic landscapes on Skye. And while the Old Man gets all the crowds, only a number of visitors continue to the dramatic ridge above. You’ll walk among these inspiring landscapes and head north up the spine of the Trotternish ridge, with 360-degree panoramas, to descend Glenhinnisdal on the west side of the island.

If the weather isn’t ideal, you’ll walk from near the Old Man of Storr along the coast back to Portree instead.

Distance: 10 miles (16km)

Ascent: 2,300ft (700m)

The dramatic northwest coast will be under the spotlight on this enriching walk, which sees you visiting coastal cliffs and theatrical coastal routes. You’ll make your way to Neist Point for views back towards Macleod’s Maidens, the Cuillins, and out towards the Outer Hebrides. Just don’t forget your binoculars, there’s plenty of wildlife to spot.

Enjoy a leisurely breakfast before making your way home.

Download trip notes

Daily Walk Options

Medium Walks

Long distances in remote countryside and on rough terrain. You can expect some sustained ascents and descents; there may be occasional sections of scree and steep ground.

Accommodation

Hame Hotel

Hame Hotel offers us the perfect base for our walking holidays – a stunning coastal location overlooking the loch, with panoramas of the Black Cuillins and MaclLods Tables in the background. Our remote hideaway is a world away from the crowds and hubbub of Portree, and offers us 10 modern scandi-style rooms, all spacious, comfortable en-suites, and plenty of communal space where we can kick back and relax after our walks. Delicious home-cooked food too – the perfect haven for our groups to really escape from it all and immerse themselves in the very best of the Isle of Skye. Each room is equipped with a tea and coffee station, complimentary locally-made tablet (a delicious crunchy fudge-like Scottish delicacy), TV, Wi-Fi and toiletries from Highland Soaps. Due to the remote location of the hotel, it is essential that you advise us at the time of booking, if you have any dietary requirements, and we can check in advance that these can be catered for. The hotel offers evening meals for our groups only, so plans its menu using the requirements we give them in advance. If we haven't been advised at the point of booking, they may not be able to adjust the menu. This hotel is dog-friendly so you may meet four legged friends in some of the communal areas.

Food & drink

Your stay is full-board. This includes daily breakfasts, packed lunch options, and evening meals. Vegetarian choices and dietary requirements can be catered for (please give advance notice when booking).

Packed lunches

Our packed lunches will be too much food for some and not enough for others, if you feel you might need more food during the walk, please bring a supply of snacks to supplement this – it won’t always be possible to buy these on the route. Your packed lunches will include: bread sandwiches or rolls with a choice of filling; some fresh fruit; fruit cake/flapjack or similar, crisps and/or yoghurt, fruit, biscuits.

Dietary requirements

Our partner hotels can cater for most dietary requirements, but it is important you advise us of any allergies and dietary restrictions you have at the time of booking.

More Information

Carbon Footprint - 122kg CO2

We see it as our responsibility to minimise our emissions, not just for this year but every year to come. Our work with sustainability experts, ecollective, has enabled us to measure our carbon footprint and create a strategy to reduce the carbon intensity of our product by 5% each year. Our ambition is to be net zero by 2040 – earlier if we can.

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