Neolithic villages and stone circles, St Magnus Cathedral, Scapa Flow and the North Isles
Orkney is an archipelago of about 70 islands off the north coast of mainland Scotland, 16 km north of Caithness; about 20 of them are inhabited. Kirkwall, the largest town, grew up around St Magnus Cathedral, founded in 1137 when the islands were ruled by Norse earls. Orkney passed to the Scottish Crown in 1468.
The Heart of Neolithic Orkney, a World Heritage Site since 1999, brings together Skara Brae, Maeshowe, the Stones of Stenness and the Ring of Brodgar on the West Mainland. This guide covers Kirkwall and the central Mainland, Stromness and the West Mainland, Scapa Flow with the South Isles and Hoy, and the North Isles from Rousay to North Ronaldsay.
Areas
Each area has its own mini guide with 63 sights, places to eat and drink, and where to stay across the city.
Orkney's main town: St Magnus Cathedral, the palaces, the Orkney Museum and Neolithic tombs close by
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Skara Brae, Maeshowe and the stone circles, Stromness harbour and the cliffs of Birsay and Yesnaby
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The Italian Chapel and Churchill Barriers, St Margaret's Hope, and Hoy's hills, Old Man and wartime Lyness
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Rousay's tombs, Westray's castle and cliffs, the Knap of Howar and the lighthouses of the outer isles
Open the mini guide →Sights
A sight from each area. Every area guide lists the rest, with directions and official links.
Red and yellow sandstone cathedral founded in 1137 by Earl Rognvald for St Magnus; open daily April to September, Monday to Saturday in winter.
Village about 5,000 years old, uncovered by a storm in 1850; houses keep stone dressers and box beds, and a replica shows a full interior.
Two Nissen huts turned into an ornate chapel by Domenico Chiocchetti and fellow Italian prisoners of war who built the Churchill Barriers.
One of at least nine brochs on Eynhallow Sound, well preserved inside, with a water tank, fireplace and room partitions still visible.
The Norse-era Bishop's Palace, where King Haakon IV of Norway died in 1263, beside Earl Patrick Stewart's Renaissance palace of the early 1600s.
House near Skara Brae built in 1620 by Bishop Graham, shown as the 1950s family home, with Captain Cook's dinner service; open since 1997.
Four causeways, 2.3 km in all, built from 1940 to 1944 to guard Scapa Flow and open as roads since May 1945.
The largest of Rousay's 15 chambered cairns, a stalled tomb inside a modern hangar, seen from raised walkways; at least 25 people were buried here.
1 / 12Itineraries
Short routes that stitch the areas together.
Getting there
Orkney is reached by ferry from Caithness or Aberdeen, or by Loganair flights to Kirkwall. Crossing and flight times below are the approximate figures published by Visit Orkney; always check the operator for current times, fares and weather disruption.
NorthLink Ferries sails from Scrabster, near Thurso, to Stromness (about 90 minutes) and from Aberdeen to Kirkwall (about 6 hours), with some sailings continuing to Lerwick in Shetland. Pentland Ferries crosses from Gills Bay to St Margaret's Hope (about 70 minutes). Both take cars, foot passengers and bicycles.
Loganair flies direct to Kirkwall from Aberdeen and Dundee (about 50 minutes), Edinburgh and Glasgow (about 1 hour) and Inverness (about 45 minutes), and from Sumburgh in Shetland. Kirkwall Airport, run by Highlands and Islands Airports, is about 5 km south-east of Kirkwall.
Trains run to Aberdeen and to Thurso, the nearest station to Scrabster, and buses connect with the ferries at Aberdeen, Scrabster and Gills Bay.
Journey details on this page are the operators' or Visit Orkney's own figures. We do not publish timetables or fares.
Visit Orkney says most visitors bring their own vehicle. There are petrol stations in Kirkwall, Stromness, Dounby, Finstown and Quoyloo, and car hire and taxi firms on the islands.
Stagecoach runs the Mainland buses, with routes passing the Ring of Brodgar, the Stones of Stenness and the Italian Chapel. Services stop when the Met Office issues an amber weather warning.
Orkney Ferries links the Mainland with 13 island communities. Book as early as you can, on foot or with a car, particularly in summer.
Loganair flies from Kirkwall to Westray, Papa Westray, Eday, Stronsay, Sanday and North Ronaldsay in eight-seat Islander aircraft, including the shortest scheduled flight in the world, Westray to Papa Westray.
ScotRail (Scotland’s trains).ScotRail runs most trains within Scotland. Its tickets page refused automated access, so check ticket types and any Scotland-only offers on its site.ScotRail tickets (opens in new tab)
Best time to go
Several sights open only in summer and Orkney's daylight changes a great deal through the year, so check each website before you travel. Sunshine figures are the Met Office's 1991-2020 averages for Kirkwall.
May is the sunniest month in Kirkwall, with about 193 hours of sunshine on average. St Magnus Cathedral opens every day from April to September, and the Westray Heritage Centre opens daily from May to September.
Seasonal sights start to close: the Fossil and Heritage Centre in Burray shut for the winter at the end of October 2026, and Hackness Martello Tower is closed in autumn and winter.
December averages about 26 hours of sunshine in Kirkwall. The cathedral opens Monday to Saturday, and Kirkwall's Ba' games are played in the streets on Christmas Day and New Year's Day.
Music, theatre, visual arts and literature by artists from Orkney, Scotland and around the world; the programme is announced in spring 2027.
St Magnus International Festival →A medieval street football game played through the centre of Kirkwall twice a year; when either day falls on a Sunday, the game moves to the Monday.
Wikipedia: Kirkwall Ba' Game →FAQ
Take a NorthLink ferry from Scrabster to Stromness or from Aberdeen to Kirkwall, the Pentland Ferries crossing from Gills Bay to St Margaret's Hope, or a Loganair flight to Kirkwall from Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh, Glasgow or Inverness.
Historic Environment Scotland sells tickets for Skara Brae and Maeshowe for a specific date and time, so book on its website before you go. The Ring of Brodgar and the Stones of Stenness are open sites.
No. Historic Environment Scotland says the tidal island is reached by a causeway that can be crossed only at low tide, so check the tide times before you set out.
Orkney Ferries sails from the Mainland to 13 island communities; book early, particularly in summer. Loganair also flies from Kirkwall to Westray, Papa Westray, Eday, Stronsay, Sanday and North Ronaldsay.
The Ba' games are played in the streets of Kirkwall on Christmas Day and New Year's Day, moving to the Monday when either falls on a Sunday.
Nearby places
Our closest other guides, by straight-line distance between centres. Road and rail distances are longer: check a journey planner.
Photos from Wikimedia Commons, used under the licences shown. All photo credits
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