Scotland’s most famous island has plenty to offer. The unforgettable landscapes, unique geological features and welcoming culture are all great reasons to add Skye to your bucket list. If you’d like to know more about the isle’s attractions, check out my post on the best locations to visit on Skye. However, with its remote location and harsh climate, it’s important to be prepared before travelling to the isle. This article will go through everything you need to know before visiting Skye.
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Transportation
By car
Getting there
The Isle of Skye is very accessible by car and you can drive straight across the bridge from the mainland. You can still take the ferry from Mallaig to Armadale if you wish, you can visit this (link) for more information. The A87 is the main route that leads to Skye: it’s definitely a very scenic and enjoyable drive, with mountainous landscapes and well-maintained roads.
If you are travelling to Scotland by train or aeroplane, you can rent a car in Edinburgh, Glasgow or Inverness. From Edinburgh, the quickest route is through the A9: it’s about 230 miles (370 km) to Portree and the journey takes about 5 and a half hours. From Glasgow it also takes 5 and a half hours, taking the A82 for a 220-mile (354 km) journey. You can take the A9 from Glasgow as well for a faster but longer journey. From Inverness, you can take the A82 or the more remote A890 to eventually join the A87. Both routes take about 3 hours and are 114 miles long (183 km).
If you’re thinking of renting a car on your trip, check out this article for the best tips to save money and have a smooth rental experience.
You can also drive to Skye from anywhere else in the UK, although the drive would be quite long due to the slow speeds across the Scottish mountains. For reference, the drive from London to Portree is about 615 miles long (990 km) and takes about 11 and a half hours.
Getting around
On Skye, the roads are mostly well kept and easy to drive on. Remote roads are mostly single-track, but there are usually plenty of passing spaces. Local attractions have well-maintained car parks, most of which are chargeable. If you are concerned about driving in country roads, it may be useful to get some experience before visiting Skye.
By public transport
Getting there
You can reach Skye by coach from Inverness. The 917 has a direct route to the isle and the journey to Portree takes about 3 hours and 20 minutes. For more information on the timetable, visit this website. Inverness has a small airport with many domestic, and some international, flights. You can also travel to Inverness by train from anywhere in the UK, including via the Caledonian Sleeper.
If you’d rather avoid travelling to Inverness and are comfortable with a longer coach ride, you can also take a coach from Glasgow. For more information, visit this link.
Getting around
Once on Skye though, public transport is available but limited. There are buses that can take you to the main attractions, such as the Old Man of Storr and the Fairy Pools. This website has all the relevant timetables. However, many locations you may want to visit are not served by public transport, so your only option would be to take expensive taxis. It’s therefore vital to be familiar with the timetables before visiting Skye to maximise your time on the isle.
Furthermore, as mentioned later on in this article, the only place that you should consider staying in if you’re exploring Skye by public transport is Portree. The links are the best of any other location on the isle, and its central location makes the distances manageable.
Organised tours
Organised tours are another option to explore Skye without a car. They can start from the isle itself or from the mainland, and can last one or multiple days. It’s important to familiarise yourself with the offering before visiting Skye if you’re travelling there without a car.
Day trips
You can take day trips to Skye from the mainland or the isle itself. From Inverness, this day tour stops at many locations including the Quiraing, unlike many tours of Skye. This other tour from Inverness has a similar cost and makes a few more stops on the mainland.
If you can travel to Skye independently, I would recommend taking this day tour instead. It leaves from Portree and explores the isle’s best locations. Because it already starts on Skye, it stops at many more attractions than trips from the mainland. This includes Neist Point and the Fairy Glen.
Multi-day trips
You can join a multi-day trip if you are visiting one of Scotland’s large cities and would prefer to take a tour of Skye without travelling further north. Most trips to Skye take three days and include accommodation for two nights. You can join one from either Glasgow or Edinburgh.
There are also longer trips that visit other locations in the Scottish Highlands aside from Skye. From Edinburgh, you can join this 4-day tour to explore Glencoe and Ben Nevis, or this 5-day tour to explore the Cairngorms and Ullapool. These tours are definitely more expensive, but they are a great option if you’d like to visit more locations in Scotland.
Which option is best?
Looking at the pros and cons, travelling to Skye by car seems to be the best option. It will give you more freedom to explore the island in your own time and reach even the most remote locations. Moreover, you will have the chance to easily visit some famous attractions that would otherwise be quite hard to reach. Neist Point, for example, has no public transport options.
Public transport options are limited but are a good option if you’re only looking to visit the attractions that can easily be reached. The main advantage of public transport is its relatively low cost. The main downside of both buses and taxis, however, is that you’d have to wait around for them. This could be a problem if you are staying on Skye for a short period. If you are considering travelling with public transport, make sure to research the timetables throughly before visiting Skye.
Organised tours to Skye come in various forms and are certainly a good option if you don’t have access to a car. They are arguably better than public transport, although they will also have a higher price. Make sure to research them and choose the one that best suits your needs and stops at the locations you want to visit.
Where To Stay
Portree
Portree is Skye’s capital and largest town. It’s definitely the location on the isle where most visitors stay for quite a few reasons. First, its location is fairly central to most attractions, which makes it an ideal base to explore the island by any means of transportation. Second, it has all the amenities that you’d expect from a town. This includes plenty of eateries, supermarkets and even a leisure centre.
If you want to explore the isle by public transport, Portree is by far the best place to stay. Aside from its central location, it’s served by almost every bus line on Skye. If an attraction can be reached by bus on the isle, you can take that bus from Portree.
This amazing day tour of Skye, which explores most attractions on the isle, also leaves from Portree.
Broadford
Broadford is Skye’s only other proper town, aside from Portree. It’s considerably smaller though, and doesn’t have all the amenities that Portree boasts. However, it still has everything that most travellers need: a supermarket, eateries and public transport links.
Broadford is located on the southern side of the isle, so its position is not as central as Portree. However, if you have a car this will not make too much of a difference. Most locations will take longer to drive to, but everything is a drive away on Skye. So, as long as you are comfortable with driving medium distances, every attraction will still be accessible.
If you are travelling without a car though, Portree is a much better option. The transport links are much better, and the amenities that you can reach without driving are more easily available.
Kyle of Lochalsh
Kyle of Lochalsh is a small town located on the mainland, very close to the bridge crossing onto Skye. Many visitors choose to stay there when visiting the isle, due to the proximity to the island and the lower prices. You can easily drive onto the isle in the morning and come back in the evening, especially on long summer days.
Kyle of Lochalsh also has every amenity that you would expect, such as a supermarket, leisure centre and plenty of eateries. There are also beautiful viewpoints, where you can admire the rugged coastline of Skye from a distance.
If you are intending to explore the isle by public transport, I would still recommend staying in Portree. While Kyle of Lochalsh has transport links, it will take significantly longer to reach Skye’s attractions, and you wouldn’t be able to visit as many locations during your stay.
If you have a car, any village on Skye
While most visitors stay in one of the larger towns to enjoy the amenities, Skye is dotted with smaller villages and remote settlements. There are amazing accommodation options throughout the isle, and most have restaurants and small supermarkets a short distance away. If you want to have a peaceful stay away from urban centres and with stunning views, Skye’s villages are great places to stay.
Due to a lack of public transport to remote locations, staying away from the towns is only an option if you have a car. In most cases, even basic amenities will be a drive away from your accommodation, so having your own vehicle is a must. Taking taxis would be very expensive, and you would have to wait around for them, wasting precious time.
If you are comfortable with staying away from the towns, make sure to research the area to find out where the nearest amenities are.
Best Time To Visit
Skye’s climate is harsh for most of the year and even the summer months are windy and cool. Especially with most attractions being outdoors, knowing what weather to expect before visiting Skye is vital.
Summer
Most people visit Skye in the summer months, between June and August. This is definitely the best time to visit Skye in many ways. The temperatures are the warmest, with average highs of 15 to 16°C and average lows of 8 to 10°C. Another huge advantage of visiting in the summer months is the long daylight hours: June has the longest days, but the sun sets at about 10 pm even in August. These long days will give you plenty of daylight time to explore multiple locations on the isle every day.
May
However, if you’d like to escape the summer crowds and travel to Skye with lower prices, May is definitely a month to consider. Temperatures are just slightly cooler, with an average high of 13°C and an average low of 5°C. Daylight hours are almost as long as in the summer. Furthermore, May is Skye’s driest month, so it’s a great option if you’d like to avoid the rain as much as possible.
September
September is another option to avoid the crowds and save some money. The temperatures are similar to the summer and daylight hours are still long. However, September is significantly rainier, so you’d need to pack plenty of waterproof gear to keep dry when outdoors.
What to pack
This is a destination for an active holiday and it involves many outdoors activities. Therefore, it’s important to know what to bring before visiting Skye to ensure a comfortable trip.
A small rucksack
This may seem obvious, but Skye’s main attractions are outdoors and far from any shops. Therefore, having a small rucksack with you at all times is vital to bring all the essentials along. An umbrella, a jacket, insect repellent and other outdoor equipment will be useful everywhere on the isle. Moreover, due to the scarcity of food outlets in most locations, you should bring packed lunch with you and plenty of water.
Warm and light clothing
The climate is generally quite cool even in the middle of summer on Skye. It also gets windy and rainy quite often. With most, if not all, attractions being outdoors, it’s vital to have warm, waterproof and windproof clothing with you at all times.
However, the weather is also changeable and you could easily have strong winds in the morning and a bright sun in the afternoon. When the sun comes out, it will feel quite warm, especially when hiking. Therefore, it’s important to dress in layers and always have a t-shirt or a light jumper on.
Hiking gear
Almost all attractions on Skye require some hiking or walking. While many of them boast well-kept trails, the terrain can still get tricky in most locations. The risk of slipping is especially high on Skye, due to the frequently wet conditions. Therefore, purchasing proper hiking gear before visiting Skye is vital to guarantee a comfortable and safe exploration.
Make sure to pack proper hiking shoes or boots, and clothing. Outdoor eating products, such as cutlery and plates, can also be useful. Another piece of equipment that could be useful is a picnic mat. You can carry them in your rucksack and sit on them when eating or resting. This way, you will keep warm and dry from the frequently wet ground.
