Skye & Lochalsh

'Speed bonnie boat, like a bird on the wing, over the sea to Skye'. These days you can take the bridge, but the romance embodied by the flight of Bonnie Prince Charlie still lingers. There's just something about Skye and Lochalsh that will stay with you forever.

True romantics pack their bags and head for Skye and Lochalsh. However, so do a host of enthusiastic climbers, walkers, cyclists, sailors, sightseers, anglers and clan history buffs. Explore the wilds of Lochalsh or head over to Skye. Commanding mountains beckon those with a passion for heights at their most dramatic - the jagged Cuillin ridge on Skye and the fearsome Five Sisters of Kintail - offer serious challenges to walkers and climbers alike. From high peaks to deep sounds, Skye's stunning scenery is unrelenting, no more so than at the Quirang on the Trotternish peninsula.

The influence of the sea is also never far away with sea fishing and a wide range of other watersports available on Skye, Raasay and the mainland. Wildlife cruises sail from various locations from which you might be able to spot seals, lovable otters, great golden eagles or even rare and mighty sea eagles.

History is told in old stone at Dunvegan, Armadale and Eilean Donan Castles - the latter's setting on Loch Duich is one of the most iconic images of Scotland. There are many picturesque places in Skye and Lochalsh, such as Portree, with pastel-coloured cottages lining the harbour, the Sleat peninsula - the 'Garden of Skye' - and the fantastically twee coastal village of Plockton, home to palm trees (!) and friendly Highland Cows - another great Scottish icon.