Kirkwall Harbour – an Evening Stroll and a Pint at Helgi's
A few hours.
The route
Kirkwall's harbour is where the ferries to the North Isles come and go, and on a calm evening it's a lovely place for a short stroll before a drink.
Helgi's, on the harbour front, is a small traditional pub with a slate floor and wood-panelled walls, five Orkney beers on draught and a good run of local malts and gins, and it serves pub food too. It's for over-18s only.
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 House of the Northern Gate, 29 miles away. Sleeps 18.
Book a table at Helgi's on 01856 879293 if you want to eat, or to sit at one of the two upstairs window tables over the harbour: it opens every day from 11.45am (Sundays 12.30pm) and is for over-18s only.
The day
Kirkwall
An evening on foot by the water. A wander along the harbour front as the light goes, then a pint or a dram.
About an hour and a half
Kirkwall harbour
The harbour lies just north of the old town. Stroll along the harbour front, where the Orkney Ferries boats leave for Stronsay, Sanday, Eday and the other North Isles. It's on pavements all the way. Keep back from the quay edges and the ferry berths, as it's a working harbour.
3 min on foot
Helgi’s
A drink
Helgi's is 3 minutes' walk along the front on Harbour Street, a small traditional pub with a slate floor and wood-panelled walls that takes its look from Orkney's Viking past. There are five Orkney beers on draught, local malts and gins, and pub food such as haddock and chips. It opens every day from 11.45am, Sundays from 12.30pm, until late, and it's for over-18s only. It's quieter early in the week and a busy bar at weekends. If it's full, the Bothy Bar at the Albert Hotel on Mounthoolie Lane, a couple of minutes away, pours Orkney ales and whisky.
If it rains
In rain, keep the harbour stroll short and go straight in to Helgi's.
Where to stay