Accomodation and sightseeing on Islay

Hi all!

This is my first posting , but I'm confident all the awnsers are out there :-)

We are three "lads" from the windy south of Sweden who are going on the trip of our dreams to Islay in April of this year. We would like to get some information on where to stay and what to do on Islay, besides the obvious :-)

We intend to stay 5 days on Islay, 2 nights in Port Ellen and 3 nights in Bowmore. Any coments and helpful first hand information would be much appreciated!

Naturally we use the web to look for information, but the web doesn't portray feelings, scents or smells, nore does the web give much information on things to avoid. Useful tips, in short, is what we are looking for so tell us what you know.

Thanks!

Robert van Hal Malmoe, Sweden

Reply to
Robert van Hal - Hemma
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On Fri, 23 Jan 2004 18:48:01 GMT, "Robert van Hal - Hemma" made this cogent remark :

Islay is small enough that you can really stay anywhere and get to anywhere else without too much trouble as long as you either have a car or a bicycle(and a bit of fitness) There are busses but they run infrequently. That being said when we were there last September we were quite glad we chose not to stay in Port Ellen. While it is close to Ardbeg, Lagavoulin and Laphroig the town it self had little to recomend it and when you are talking about "feelings, scents or smells" That was what really struck us about Port Ellen, it was there that we could most notice that the population of the island was shrinking... lots of empty buildings, cheap discount stores, just sort of uncomfortable. I will say that we did not spend much time there and we may well have missed some wonderful things.. but there was so much else to do that we didn't invest the time.

Bowmore is the main town on the island and offers much more to the visitor. It is also closer to the centre of the road system so you wont spend much time back tracking if you use it as a base, which is key if you choose to use a bicycle or the busses for transportation. (Bridgend is really the centre but it is sort of a blink and you missed it kind of place). I liked Bowmore a lot more than Port Ellen, there were still a fair share of empty buildings but the town itself was definately alive and active. It is pretty much like other small towns through out Scotland.

If you are not on a tight budget and/or interested in staying somewhere "nice" give some serious thought to the Port Charlotte hotel in (of all places) Port Charlotte. This village is tiny but is a perfect little postcard all by itself. The hotel has an excellent kitchen (and bar) and the staff were great ... it is quiet however.

Port Nahaven (South West tip) was left off our list of places to see when we were there, but one of the distillery tour guides recomended a visit and we spent the better part of a day there wandering around it is definately worth seeing and gives a much better view of what Island life is really like (Tourists are not as common there as elsewhere).

If you plan to tour distilleries make sure you don't miss Ardbeg and Bruichladdich, they are definately the top two I've been on. As far as other items of interest go there is lots to see.. almost all of it undeveloped (un exploited). But where ever you go make sure you have strudy water proof (and sheep shit proof) boots, a lot of interesting things to see are more accessable with clean dry feet.

Reply to
ajames54

Join as many distillery "clubs" as possible - Friends of the Laphroaig, Classic Malts etc etc This will give you free entry to many.

Email the distilleries beforehand to arrange visits.

My choice of place to stay would be Port Charlotte. The hotel has great food, cask ale and a good malt selection at non-silly prices. The Lochindaal across the road is great as well.

Lunch at Ardbeg is a must.

Pack midge wipes!

Look out for visitor promotions and talks. We had a great talk on the bird reserve on the North of the island. All this took place with local entertainment at Lagavulin Distillery! The promotions happen once a week at various locations on the island.

Don't get too disheartened when you realise that most of the locals prefer Tennents Canned lager or cheap blends to a malt.

Reply to
Brett...

Thanks a lot for your replies! Very helpful indeed!! :-)

This coming trip is very exiting and the anticipation is rising day by day. Any and all information is still very welcome!

Thanks!

Robert van Hal Malmoe, Sweden

"Robert van Hal - Hemma" skrev i meddelandet news:B%dQb.45996$ snipped-for-privacy@newsb.telia.net...

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Reply to
Robert van Hal - Hemma

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