Scottish Islands

The beauty of Scotland’s main land is considered to be good, but the Scottish islands can be even better. Islands such as Skye are favourite places for many tourists, and the harsh attractions of Orkney and the Hebrides is well known.

There are over 200 Scottish islands, with 99 offshore. Of those 94 are populated, but this includes locations such as Eileen Donan, which is on an island in Loch Duich and cannot be considered a true island. The largest islands are Skye and the Hebrides group.

Bridges connect some of the Scottish islands to each other and to the mainland, but they are still islands. Arran is a great location on the west coast of Scotland and easily reached from the central area. The air links to Glasgow make a trip to Arran and the Jura islands an easy trip which can be planned by going to iam-scotland.org.uk.

All the various islands and how to get to them can be found at iam-scotland.org.uk The larger islands can also be reached by a network of ferries, if there is no bridge directly from the mainland. The people who live on the more remote islands have a distinctly solitary lifestyle.

At some times in the winter the islands are cut off by the weather. That weather can be severe but that’s adds to the attraction for many. At certain times of the year, tourist who enjoys the natural world can view seals on the cliffs. The birdlife in these regions attract ornithologists from all over Europe.