Stornoway – a Whale and Dolphin Boat and Lunch in the Woods
A few hours.
The route
Immerse Hebrides is a small family firm that takes a 12-seat RIB, a fast rigid inflatable boat, out of Stornoway's Inner Harbour into the Minch to look for whales and dolphins.
The skipper tells the local stories and a wildlife guide comes too. Afterwards, lunch is a short walk round the harbour at the Woodlands Café in the Castle Grounds. It suits adults and older children who don't mind a bumpy ride.
Before you go
Book accommodation nearby
If you are staying over: here are ours nearest where the day starts and ends.
None of ours is close by: the nearest is Harris Hideaway, 27 miles away. Sleeps 2.
Book an Immerse Hebrides whale and dolphin tour online at immersehebrides.com/tours before you go, where the dates, times and prices are posted: the tours leave on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays, seats are paid in full when booked (free to move up to 48 hours before), and the office answers on 07497 350989 from April to October.
The day
Stornoway
Two hours out on the Minch in a small, fast boat, watching for fins and spouts, then a walk round the head of the harbour to lunch among the trees.
About four hoursAbout 0.5 miles on foot
Immerse Hebrides
Immerse Hebrides is a family-owned boat business whose 12-seat RIB leaves from Stornoway's Inner Harbour, facing Lews Castle. No cars are allowed on the harbour, so park in one of the public car parks in town and walk down from Cromwell Street or Bayhead Street, checking in 30 minutes before you sail. The whale and dolphin tours last two hours, out into the Minch east towards Tiumpan Head or south towards the Shiant Isles, with the skipper's stories and a wildlife guide aboard. They leave on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays and are booked online only, where the times and prices are posted. The office answers on 07497 350989 from April to October. Every passenger must be at least 135cm tall, and the ride can be bumpy, so it's not for anyone heavily pregnant or with a bad back. A tour needs six people to sail, and one called off for weather is refunded in full.
About 6 min on foot
The Woodlands Café
Lunch
After a morning sailing, or before an afternoon one, walk round the head of the harbour and over the bridge at Bayhead into the Castle Grounds. Lunch is at the Woodlands Café, the Stornoway Trust's café among the trees, with a seasonal menu and a gift shop. It usually opens Monday to Saturday from 9.30am to 3.30pm and posts its hours on its Facebook page, so check there. Dogs are welcome on the outside decking, there's a children's play area beside it, and the toilets are open in café hours. If it's full, An Lanntair's café bar on Kenneth Street serves soup, toasties and sandwiches from noon, Monday to Saturday.
If it rains
The boat sails only when the weather allows, and a tour called off for weather is refunded in full. The Woodlands Café and An Lanntair's café bar are both indoors.
Where to stay
Photographs by Mark Adams, Graham Coulston-Herrmann and Rui Gomes via Google