Discover the raw beauty of Orkney's northern isles
The archipelago is home to a collection of 'fabulous archaeological sites'

The northern isles of the Orkney archipelago receive fewer visitors than the main island (known as the Mainland) and those to the south. But they have a windswept magic of their own, says Mark Rowe in The Telegraph: teeming colonies of seabirds, fabulous archaeological sites, and often "violently beautiful" coastal scenery.
Each has its own character, so it's worth visiting as many as you can, and exploring them on a bike or on foot. Many have hostels with private rooms, and some also have pubs and b&bs. Regular ferries make the tour easy, and there's even a small- plane service between Westray and Papa Westray – the world's shortest scheduled flight, a "hauntingly beautiful" two-minute, 1.7-mile hop over Papa Sound.
Orkney was at the heart of a seafaring neolithic civilisation that stretched from Scandinavia to southern Britain. Of the sites that survive here from this late era of the Stone Age, the village of Skara Brae, on the Mainland, is the best known – but the Knap of Howar, on Papa Westray, is at least 400 years older.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Believed to date from 3600BC, it may be the oldest stone house in northern Europe. It has two rooms, containing stone furniture, and is in a "superb" coastal setting. Also "unmissable" is the 4.5-metre-tall Stone of Setter – the Orkneys' highest ancient monolith – on Eday, and the four-metre-tall Stan Stane on North Ronaldsay, which is perforated with a single hole, which was possibly used to calculate a prehistoric calendar.
A natural arch spanning the mouth of a cliff-ringed sea inlet, the Vat of Kirbister on Stronsay is an "elemental" sight. Still more rugged are the cliffs around the Noup Head Lighthouse on Westray, where you're sure to see puffins between April and July.
But for "raw beauty", it's hard to beat Sanday, and the walk from Cata Sand (a bay with towering pale dunes and "aquamarine" waters) along the "bird-smothered" headland of Tresness to the Stone Age tomb at its head; a lonely chambered cairn, free of modern-day signage, and "lapped by the sea".
A free daily email with the biggest news stories of the day – and the best features from TheWeek.com
-
The Coldplay kiss cam affair: a cautionary tale
In the Spotlight The pair became 'the most googled people on the planet' after getting caught having an affair at a Coldplay concert
-
Connie Francis: superstar of the early 1960s pop scene
In the Spotlight The 'Pretty Little Baby' and 'Stupid Cupid' singer has died aged 87
-
Friendship: 'bromance' comedy starring Paul Rudd and Tim Robinson
The Week Recommends 'Lampooning and embracing' middle-aged male loneliness, this film is 'enjoyable and funny'
-
6 head-turning homes for town house living
Feature Featuring a roof deck with city views in South Carolina and a renovated Harlem brownstone in New York City
-
Bookish: delightful period detective drama from Mark Gatiss
The Week Recommends 'Cosy crime' series is a 'standout pleasure' in an Agatha Christie-style formula
-
Music Reviews: Justin Bieber, Wet Leg, and Clipse
Feature "Swag," "Moisturizer," and "Let God Sort Em Out"
-
Film reviews: Eddington and Don't Let's Go to the Dogs Tonight
Feature A New Mexico border town goes berserk and civil war through a child's eyes
-
Art Review: Hilma af Klint's What Stands Behind the Flowers
Feature Museum of Modern Art, New York City, through Sept. 27