Howan Cottage

31/05/2026

Here's a list of the cruise ship arrivals for the week beginning 01/06/26. There are expected road closures on Tuesday 2 June and Friday 5 June.

Monday 1 June
🚢 Arcadia - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 2388
🚢 Seabourn Ovation - Kirkwall Anchorage - anticipated passengers: 638
🚢 Sylvia Earle - Papa Westray Anchorage - anticipated passengers: 200

Tuesday 2 June
🚢 Exploris One - Kirkwall Pier - anticipated passengers: 150
🚢 Nieuw Statendam - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 3152

Wednesday 3 June
🚢 Mein Schiff 2 - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 1896
🚢 Le Champlain - Kirkwall Anchorage - anticipated passengers: 184

Thursday 4 June
🚢 Viking Saturn - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 944
🚢 Star Pride - Kirkwall Anchorage - anticipated passengers: 212

Friday 5 June
🚢 Sylvia Earle - Kirkwall Pier - anticipated passengers: 200
🚢 Celebrity Eclipse - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 3013

Saturday 6 June
🚢 Renaissance - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 1623

For the full cruise ship schedule and latest updates, visit https://bit.ly/4clLMF2

29/05/2026

We have limited availability for 2026.

Large private garden, off road parking, cozy well equipped cottage in the heart of Neolithic Orkney.

Summer availability:

w/c 13th June

w/c 22nd August

Autumn availability:

26th September onwards

“A beautifully appointed retreat offering comfort and finish at an affordable price.”

STL licence OR00374F

Howan Cottage is a newly renovated traditional stone built self catering accommodation, set within it’s own enclosed garden, surrounded by a working farm, in Orkney’s West Mainland. Conveniently located only 0.8 miles from the peaceful village of Dounby which offers a range of amenities.

29/05/2026

Another favourite!

There is nowhere else you can do this. Step inside the world's last working bere mill and feel the building come alive around you.

We're open for tours every day from 11am, with tours every 45 minutes until the last tour at 3.30pm.

Tour times:11am, 11.45am, 12.30pm, 1.15pm, 2pm, 2.45pm and 3.30pm.

Perfect for visitors, families, or anyone local who keeps meaning to come and finally see it properly.

No plans for this weekend? Come and experience something found nowhere else on earth but Orkney.

29/05/2026

An interesting read about our beloved Birsay Whalebone! 🐳

With so many new followers joining us, we’d like to take this opportunity to outline the history of the Birsay whalebone and the reasons behind our current fundraising efforts.

For 150 years, the Birsay Whalebone stood on the Northside at Nether Queena. Its story began in the 1870s, when a huge whale washed ashore at Doonagua Geo, the shore below where the whalebone stood.

Local men bought the whale carcass from the Receiver of Wreck and salvaged what they could. From those remains, someone — we still don’t know who — built the whalebone structure using part of the jawbone and a back section of the skull.

Over the decades, it became more than a landmark. It became part of Birsay’s identity — woven into our memories, our photographs, and our sense of place.

In May 2023, after days of relentless wind, the whalebone finally fell. Thankfully it wasn’t badly damaged, but its condition made one thing clear: the original bone is now too fragile to survive outdoors.

That’s why a community group, part of the Birsay Heritage Trust is working to create a bronze replica — a permanent version that can return to the Northside while the original is safely preserved indoors. 3D scans have already been made, and fundraising is underway to reach the £70,000 needed to create and install a bronze replica of the whalebone. We will be attending a number of local events over the coming months so watch this space.

This isn’t just about a landmark. It’s about our heritage, our coastline, and the stories passed down through generations.

If you’d like to help bring the whalebone home, your support means everything 🫶

25/05/2026

Here's a list of the cruise ship arrivals for the week beginning 25/05/26. There is an expected road closure on Friday 29 May.

Monday 25 May
🚢 Viking Sky - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 930

Tuesday 26 May
🚢 Europa 2 - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 706
🚢 Expedition - Stromness Pier - anticipated passengers: 140

Wednesday 27 May
🚢 Expedition - Kirkwall Anchorage - anticipated passengers: 140
🚢 Expedition - Papa Westray - anticipated passengers: 140
🚢 Ambience - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 2043
🚢 National Geographic Explorer - Kirkwall North - anticipated passengers: 109

Friday 29 May
🚢 MSC Preziosa - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 3450

Saturday 30 May

🚢 Viking Vela - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 998
🚢 National Geographic Explorer - Kirkwall Pier - anticipated passengers: 148

Sunday 31 May
🚢 Scenic Eclipse - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 240
🚢 Ocean Nova - North Ronaldsay Anchorage - anticipated passengers: 70
🚢 Le Laperouse - Hatston Pier - anticipated passengers: 92

For the full cruise ship schedule and latest updates, visit https://bit.ly/4clLMF2

24/05/2026

Fantastic meal at Murray Arms Hotel and Seafood Restaurant tonight! It was delicious!😋
The very best of seafood sourced in the waters surrounding Orkney! You can’t get fresher than this! 🦀🐙🦐🍤

24/05/2026

We’ve had a great final day of Orkney Folk Festival performing at the Fiddlers Rally and then a few tunes at the pierhead too!

22/05/2026

Our guests loved attending a few weeks ago 💃🕺

22/05/2026

This looks like an amazing afternoon!

20/05/2026

For our coffee loving guests! ☕️