Hostels & Campsites in Skye

For travellers who prefer to keep things simple, sociable, or under canvas, Skye offers a wide range of places to stay that trade polish for personality. This is where you’ll find the island’s friendliest lounges, the best-located fire pits, and some of the clearest night skies in Scotland. From the Cowshed’s design-led bunkhouse in Uig to the off-grid cabins of Eco Bells near Dunvegan, each one brings its own story, often shaped by the people who built them, and by the island’s dramatic settings.

In Broadford and Kyleakin, the hostels and campsites are well connected and close to amenities, ideal for a first or last night on the island. Portree and Sligachan are more central, with easy access to the Cuillins and public transport links. Out in the north, the facilities get quieter and more distinctive — some offer compost toilets and stargazing domes; others sit just metres from wild swimming spots. A few even come with sea views and cafés serving sourdough pizzas by the shore.

The selection here includes both old favourites and newer arrivals, all chosen for their location, quality, and character. Whether you’re pitching a tent beneath the Cuillins or sharing a hostel kitchen with fellow walkers and cyclists, these are places that give you a real sense of Skye — elemental, communal, and refreshingly unpolished.

Some have evolved into design-conscious, boutique stays; others still carry the charm of a place where the kettle’s always on and no one locks their bike. Either way, they offer a chance to slow down, sleep lightly, and wake with the smell of woodsmoke or the sea. For travellers open to a less conventional stay, this is one of the most rewarding ways to experience the island.

BROADFORD & SURROUNDS

Camping Skye
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This picturesque community owned campsite on the outskirts of Broadford is a popular pitstop with a woodland setting, smart, contemporary wooden hub and just a short walk to the pubs, restaurants and shops in the village.

Skye Backpackers
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Colourful and quirky, this cosy hostel in the fishing village of Kyleakin just over the Skye Bridge has a mix of doubles and dorms as well as a couple of converted ‘dorm’ caravans in the garden for those on a tighter budget. The Groove lounge has a roaring fire, books to curl up with and piles of board games.

PORTREE & CENTRAL SKYE

Sligachan Campsite
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A central – and gobsmacking – location, surrounded by the Cuillin mountains, beside a river and with a great bar (at the Sligachan Hotel a caber’s throw from the campsite) – it’s a good base from which to explore the island.

TROTTERNISH

The Cowshed Boutique Bunkhouse
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A design-led, boutique bunkhouse, this new-style hostel has a cool and colourful communal lounge with a cosy wood-burner. The contemporary kitchen-diner is kitted out with red range stoves and lime green banquette seating. Bedrooms feature built-in wooden bunks, grey-blue and cream tartan privacy curtains and sheepskin rugs.

WATERNISH, DUNVEGAN & DUIRINISH

Kinloch Campsite
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This small, family-run coastal campsite in the north-west of the island sits on the shore of Loch Dunvegan on an old croft with views of the flat-topped Macleod’s Tables and just a five-minute walk from Dunvegan village.

Skye Eco Bells Glamping
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This off-grid site has three cute Hobbit-style cabins and a bell tent, each with a fire-pit, BBQ and wood-burning stove. There’s no electricity, there are rechargeable lights and candle-lanterns. Eco-credentials are further bumped up by a compost loo and greenhouse shower.

MINGINISH & THE CUILLIN HILLS

Skywalker Hostel
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In an old wooden schoolhouse on the Minginish peninsula, this award-winning, adults-only hostel has a cheery red kitchen, communal lounge with retro vibe – think cream leather sofas, tartan carpets and guitars for guests to strum, a five-acre garden with a bright beanbag-strewn glass Solardome for stargazing and a giant chess set on the lawn.

Glenbrittle Campsite
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Nudging up to Loch Brittle’s beach and huddled beneath the mighty Cuillins, this award-winning campsite has a heart-stopping location – and great café where you can grab an artisan coffee and croissant – or sourdough pizza.