Talisker Distillery

The only distillery on the Isle of Skye, set on the shores of Loch Harport with dramatic views of the Cuillins. This alluring, sweet, full-bodied single malt is so easy to enjoy, and like Skye itself, so hard to leave. Our distillery stocks a wide range of single and rare malt whiskies. Here you can find our Talisker Expressions - 10 year old, Distillers Edition, 18 year old, 57 North, 25 year old and 30 year old. They also have available a range of classic malts and flora and fauna malts. Talisker Distillery is built at Carbost (the name comes in part from the Norse, Bost meaning 'Farm') on Loch Harport, despite the loud protestaions of the Reverend Roderick MacLeod.

On selected weekdays the Talisker Tasting Tour starts at 1.45pm and includes a more in-depth tour of the distillery as well as a 5 sample nosing and tasting session of whiskies selected from their award winning Talisker range. The £15 admission charge for this tour includes a limited edition Talisker Nosing Glass for you to take away and enjoy your favourite Talisker in at home as well as discount voucher, redeemable in their well-stocked distillery shop towards the purchase of a 70cl bottle of malt whisky.

Self catering Glencoe

Seaprobe Atlantis - glass bottom boat

Seaprobe Atlantis offers an experience no other boat can match. Enjoy all the scenery and wildlife above and below the waves as you cruise in complete safety with the best wildlife guides in Lochalsh. The huge underwater viewing gallery is easily accessed, with full head-height and seating for 26 people, offering truly astonishing panoramic underwater vision. Explore through kelp forests equal in beauty and sheer diversity to any coral reef.

Lochalsh is a great place in Britain to see otters, in 2010 they had 373 sightings. The glass bottom boat trips all include a visit to the ever-present seal colony at Seal Island. Come in early summer and see the newborn pups, as well as all the young fledgeling sea-birds at the protected bird colonies they visit. Less frequent, but no less welcome, are the whales, dolphins, and even sharks, which occasionally pass through the waters of Loch Alsh - waters so rich in wildlife that they have now been designated a Marine Special Area of Conservation.

Self catering Glencoe

Old Man of Storr

The Storr is prime example of the Trotternish landslip, the longest such feature in Great Britain. The area in front of the cliffs of the Storr is known as the Sanctuary. This has a number of weirdly shaped rock pinnacles, the remnants of ancient landslips. One of the most famous of these is known as the Old Man of Storr.

The summit of the Storr is the highest point on the Trotternish Ridge at 719m. The walk from the car park up the well maintained path to the Old Man of Storr is one of the most popular on Skye - and understandably so. There are good views across Raasay and Rona to the Scottish Mainland on the way, and the rock formations around the Sanctuary, including the 50m high Old Man, are exceptional and not to be missed. But it is well worth the small extra effort to climb to the summit of the hill, leaving the wearers of fashionable training shoes and high heels behind you as you carry on upwards.

Self catering Glencoe

Fairy Glen - Skye

The Fairy Glen is a remarkable place, tucked away on the Isle of Skye. It is not an easy place to stumble across accidentally, but is well worth the effort of finding. Visitors will need to turn right, off the main road from Portree, just before entering Uig. The strangely shaped hillocks are impossible to miss, as the road winds its way through the centre of the Fairy Glen. There is a stone circle, and a beautiful stream.

The Fairy Glen was formed by the land being disrupted by a series of landslides (on a smaller scale than the huge landslips that formed the Storr and the Quiraing), with the results then smoothed by subsequent glaciation. The area covered is quite small and the road is always close by, so the exact route followed around the glen doesn't really matter.

Self catering Glencoe

Quiraing

The Quiraing is a landslip on the eastern face of Meall na Suiramach, the northernmost summit of the Trotternish Ridge on the Isle of Skye. The whole of the Trotternish Ridge escarpment was formed by a great series of landslips; the Quiraing is the only part of the slip still moving, the road at its base near Flodigarry requires repairs each year.

Parts of the distinctive landscape have earned particular names. The Needle is a jagged 120-foot (37 m) high landmark pinnacle, a remnant of landslipping. Northwest of it is The Table, a flat grassy area slipped down from the summit plateau, with vistas of the Torridon Hills and the mountains of Wester Ross. Southwest is the Prison, a pyramidal rocky peak which can look like a medieval keep when viewed from the right angle - the ascent of this is an airy scramble.

Self catering Glencoe

Cuillin Hills

The Black Cuillin are mainly composed of basalt and gabbro, the latter being a very rough rock which makes for superb grip for mountaineers. It is from the dark colour of the gabbro that the Black Cuillin receive their name. The summits of the Cuillin are bare rock, jagged in outline and with steep cliffs and deep cut corries and gullies. All twelve Munros on Skye are Black Cuillin peaks, though one of them, Blaven, is part of a group of outliers separated from the main ridge by Glen Sligachan.

The scrambler can access most of the individual peaks by their easiest routes. Only the Inaccessible Pinnacle is a graded rock climb (moderate) by its simplest line but several of the other summits require scrambling skills.

In addition to climbing individual peaks, there is the challenge of a full traverse of the ridge. Although only seven miles in length, the average traverse is likely to take 15–20 hours from sea level at Glenbrittle to the bar of the Sligachan Hotel owing to the difficulty of the terrain and route finding problems. The first recorded traverse in under 24 hours was in 1911 by L Shadbolt and A McLaren. The record for the full traverse, set by Es Tresidder in May 2007, stands at 3 hours 17 minutes (though this time is from Gars-bheinn to Sgurr nan Gillean and does not include the initial ascent from Glenbrittle or the final descent to Sligachan).

Self catering Glencoe

Clan Donald Skye Visitor Centre

Clan Donald Skye is a 20,000-acre highland estate on the Sleat peninsula in south Skye. Once part of the traditional lands of Clan Donald, the Estate was purchased by the Clan Donald Lands Trust in 1971. The Trust was established to promote an understanding of the history and traditions of Clan Donald and the Lordship of the Isles. As custodians of this wonderful estate, the Trust has worked tirelessly to save and develop this important resource for the benefit of visitors to Skye and, importantly, for the local community.

The Estate offers some stunning walks for all levels of fitness, with views eastwards across the Sound of Sleat to Knoydart, or on the west of the peninsula across to the Cuillin mountain range. It is home to iconic wildlife species including red deer, golden eagles and sea eagles.

The Estate’s principal focal points are the restored historic gardens, and the beautiful walking trails threading through the 40 acres of woodland around Armadale Castle. Part of the Castle has been restored and the striking ruined remains sensitively re-designed, to create an attractive landscape within the gardens.

The fully accredited Museum of the Isles, opened within the gardens in 2002, incorporates the Library and Study Centre. The Trust has also built holiday accommodation and established a lively and vibrant Visitor Centre that appeals to all age groups. Disabled facilities are available at the Centre.

Self catering Glencoe