WESTERN ISLES

In years gone by, the Queen would commence her annual Scottish holiday with a cruise around the Western Isles aboard The Royal Yacht Britannia (see p.70). The Queen and the Royal Family would make impromptu stops on remote Scottish beaches, picnicking and swimming in privacy. When Britannia was decommissioned in 1997 this beloved family tradition ended – for a few years at least.

The Queen clearly held fond memories of those summer days, and in 2006, the year of her 80th birthday, she revived the tradition.

She chartered a former car ferry which had been transformed into a luxurious cruise liner, the Hebridean Princess, and enjoyed a nine-day cruise around the Scottish islands with her family, stopping at many of the places they had visited in the Britannia days and rekindling happy memories of holidays past. The Queen chartered the Hebridean Princess for a second time in 2010, departing from Stornoway on the Isle of Lewis for a two-week holiday with her family. The holiday on that occasion concluded at her late mother’s home, the Castle of Mey. A nostalgic choice perhaps, as the visit took place around the time of the 110th anniversary of the Queen Mother’s birth.

How to visit The Hebridean Princess is one of the smallest luxury cruise ships a oat, with room for just 50 guests. Its all-inclusive cruises sail from Oban and travel round the Scottish Highlands, islands and beyond. www.hebridean.co.uk