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Dive Into History In Scapa Flow
Planning Your Trip
We know how stressful it can be trying to plan an exciting trip or holiday, especially somewhere as remote as Orkney, so have got a few bits here to try and help.
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The most popular way to come to Orkney is by ferry, which has the added bonus of giving you chance to explore the Scottish Mainland on the way up.
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Northlink Ferries offer two routes to Orkney.
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Option 1 - Scrabster to Stromness - The Hamnavoe Ferry has multiple sailings a day and takes approximately 1 1/2 hours from the very north of Scotland through Scapa Flow to Stromness, a lovely little fishing town where our dive boat goes from.
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Option 2 - Aberdeen to Kirkwall - Offer numerous sailings a week departing from Aberdeen at 1700 and arriving to Kirkwall, the main city in Orkney, at 2300 (Departing Kirkwall at 2300 and arriving Aberdeen at 0700 on the return).
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Pentland Ferries offer the quickest sailing at 1 hour from Gills Bay to St Margaret's Hope in Orkney.
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The other option for coming to Orkney is to fly, with Loganair offering flights from various Scottish Airports into Kirkwall. Remember to leave at least 18 hours (preferably 24+) after diving before your flight.
Where to Stay?
Orkney is made up of a number of islands and they're all worth a visit (but you'll need a long holiday to manage that). For your days with us we'd recommend staying on Orkney Mainland, Kirkwall and Stromness offer the biggest selection of accommodation providers and places to eat and drink but there are loads of other places which would be beautiful to stay in too, you can find them and loads of other helpful planning tips on Orkney.com
What else to do?
Obviously the main thing we'd recommend in Orkney is Diving or snorkelling with us, but there are loads of other things to enjoy whilst here.
There is a crazy amount of history in Orkney, if you're interested in the World Wars then Ness Battery in Stromness makes a great stop off, or if you prefer your history older, neolithic sties such as Skara Brae have loads to offer.
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One of the coolest ways to explore and see them is with the awesome Amanda from Ride Orkney, who offers guided mountain bike tours around various islands and areas in Orkney. The tour around Hoy includes a stop at the amazing Scapa Flow Museum which is great to show any non-divers in the group what you're getting excited by in the water!
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If you'd rather spend your days relaxing, there are plenty of restaurants and alcohol places, with the famous Highland Park and Scapa Distilleries offering guided tours.