GO SLOW AND ENJOY EVEN MORE
Aweek may be a long time in politics, but in (never say “on”) Orkney, you will really only skim the surface of what we have to offer in a week. So, I want to offer some advice that might sound counterintuitive — and that is to “slow down”.
Slow tourism, where you take time to immerse yourself in local culture and experiences, and appreciate the moment, is the best way to travel. Not only for you, but for the environment and the resident community.
Slow tourism is a responsible approach to travel where you may cover less ground, but you are moved more! You make deeper connections and enjoy a more meaningful experience. It’s about engaging with people, as much as place.
Of course, you will want to visit our tourism megastars, particularly if this is your first time in Orkney. And Orkney is compact enough that a week gives you plenty of time to do that. So, visit the UNESCO Heart of Neolithic Orkney sites comprising the 5,000-year-old village of Skara Brae, the Ring of Brodgar, the Standing Stones of Stenness, and Maeshowe; see the delightful Italian Chapel built by Italian prisoners of war; marvel at the magnificent St Magnus Cathedral, a legacy of our Viking history; and explore The Earl’s and Bishop’s Palaces in Kirkwall. Perhaps spend a little longer at them, and take advantage of the enhanced experiences there.
Invest in Historic Environment’s Orkney Digital Guide to learn more of the history at the sites, which you can buy as an add-on to your ticket or separately from their site.
Or book (well in advance mind) a tour guide to take you around — guides live and breathe these sites, and will really bring them alive with knowledge and stories that are often unique to them. You can find out more by looking at Visitscotland.com’s tour pages or by visiting the website of the Orkney Tour Guide Association (OTGA).
Of course, you will enjoy the Ring of Brodgar as a spectacle in its own right, but why not try one of the rangers’ excellent and free daily walks around “The Ring”, where you will hear the history of the site, stories, and uses for the many wildflowers that bloom there. Find out more at the Historic Environment Scotland website.
If you want to avoid the busiest times and the tour buses, our long, long summer days mean you can save the Ring of Brodgar for a sunset after dinner walk — a good excuse for an extra helping of Orkney Fudge cheesecake!
To get within touching distance of the Iron Age, there are many other places, away from the UNESCO site, where you can get really close to our neolithic ancestors.
For example, visit the Ness of Brodgar, which is a fairly recent discovery, sited at the foot of the Ring of Brodgar. The Iron and Bronze Age site, dating from around 3000BC, has grown like topsy over the last few decades. It is now one of the most important archaeological excavations in the world today. Pottery, tools, jewellery and other significant finds have been made around the huge stone structures uncovered there. This year offers your last opportunity to visit, as work moves into post-excavation after the season closes. The nine-week excavation will be open to the public on weekdays between Wednesday, June 26, and Friday, August 16.
The Broch of Gurness, on the east side of the Mainland, is less talked about than Skara Brae, but is in fact Scotland’s best-preserved broch village. Here you can walk right into and around stone structures, hand piled thousands of years ago, to get an ancestor’s-eye view of Iron Age living. Gurness is one of at least ten brochs that line either shore of Eynhallow Sound.
Dotted all over the islands there are amazing Stone Age chambered cairns, some that you can actually go down into. Ask at Kirkwall’s information centre for location . . . and take a torch.
Another way to get really close to the heart of Orkney is to take part in local events. Orkney has a rich year-round calendar of cultural events. It is at these that you will gain a better understanding of our islands, whether it’s our love of music and the arts at the Orkney Folk Festival, St Magnus Festival or the Rock Festival; our farming heritage which is proudly on show at the county and parish shows at the beginning of August; or perhaps the Storytelling Festival in October. In between times there are hundreds of community events — tea and coffee mornings, knit and natters, local ceilidhs, art shows, flower shows, quizzes, sporting fixtures and many more besides. You’ll be welcomed warmly, and you will get a very authentic Orcadian experience.
A good tip is to check out award-winning local newspaper, The Orcadian, and the daily half-hour bulletin from Radio Orkney (available on Sounds) for news of local events on that week.
I hope you enjoy your stay in Orkney, and if a week isn’t enough, come back and see us again; perhaps for a winter visit when you may catch the Northern Lights or see the seals pupping along the beaches . . . but that’s another story.