Today we visited the islands of Orkney, another archipelago at the northern tip of Scotland. It is an amalgam of about 70 islands, some 20 of which are inhabited by about 22,000 people. The islands were inhabited by Viking raiders in the 13th Century, who used it as a staging ground for their forays into…
Category: British Isles
Day 6 – Edinburgh
Today’s trip was to Edinburgh, Scotland’s capital city. This trip ws just a bit disppointing, as there was so much to see and not nearly enough time to get to everything. Our tour was mostly by bus, so we got to see many of the iconic sites, but only from afar. We walked the “Royal…
Day 5 – Scottish Highlands / Invergordon
Today’s excursion was to the Glenmorangie distillery, just outside of the town of Invergordon. Due to time constraints we were unable to visit the town. The scotch tastings were an acceptable consolation, however. we were able to learn about the simplicity – and complexity – of producing quality scotch. The basic ingredients are barley and…
Day 4 – Shetland Islands
Today’s trip was to the Shetland islands, an archipelago to the north of the Scottish mainland. It was initially settled by Viking raiders in the 12th century. The island is famous for its Shetland ponies. We visited a farm whereShetland ponies have been raised for about 45 years. The ponies have lived on the Shetland…
Day 2&3 – Bergen, Norway
We arrived at our destination port in Bergen, Norway, after a somewhat grueling – and sleepless – set of flights and a 30 minute bus ride from the airport. Our ship was waiting to receive us, and everything improved at that point. Bergen is the second largest city in Norway, behind Oslo (the capital city)…
Touring the British Isles
Our tour of the British Isles via a Viking ocean voyage will commence on July 20, 2025. Below is a map of the trip and our day-by-day itinerary. Day 1 -2 – Bergen, NorwayDay 3 – Shetland IslandsDay 4 – Scottish Highlands (Invergordon)Day 5 – EdinburghDay 6 – Orkney IslandsDay 7 – Scottish Highlands (Ullapool)Day…