Day 1: Aberdeen to Lerwick — NorthLink Ferry
Board the NorthLink ferry in Aberdeen for the overnight crossing to Lerwick. Summer crossings offer excellent chances of spotting cetaceans—minke whales, white-beaked dolphins, and harbour porpoises are frequently seen. The onboard wildlife guide helps identify species. Overnight onboard.
Day 2: Lerwick & Noss National Nature Reserve
Morning arrival in Lerwick. After settling in, afternoon boat trip to the island of Noss, a National Nature Reserve off the coast of Bressay. The 180-meter sandstone cliffs host 75,000 pairs of gannets, making the air thunderous with their calls. The guillemot colonies are among the densest in Europe. Great skuas patrol above, dive-bombing any intruder. The boat circles the island allowing close views of the seabird city. Evening in Lerwick. Overnight Lerwick.
Day 3: Hermaness & Unst — Britain’s Seabird Capital
Full-day expedition to Hermaness National Nature Reserve on Unst, Britain’s northernmost point. A 4.5-mile walk across moorland brings you to the cliffs, where 100,000 breeding seabirds paint the ledges white with guano. Gannets fold their wings and plunge like white arrows into the sea. Puffins waddle at the cliff edge, comical and colorful with beaks full of sand eels. Muckle Flugga lighthouse stands on a rock stack just offshore. The walk back passes through moorland where great skuas nest on the ground—keep your distance; they’re protective parents. Overnight Lerwick.
Day 4: Sumburgh Head & Orca Watch
Morning at Sumburgh Head RSPB reserve. The cliffs here are lower and more accessible than Hermaness, making for excellent puffin photography—the birds nest in burrows right beside the path. Guillemots, razorbills, and fulmars occupy every available ledge. The lighthouse visitor center explains the marine ecosystem. Afternoon: dedicated orca-watching session from a coastal vantage point (Shetland is one of the best places in the UK to see orcas from land). With luck and the right conditions, you may spot the 27s pod, a family group regularly seen around Shetland. Overnight Lerwick.
Day 5: Fly to Orkney — Westray Cliffs & Puffins
Morning flight from Sumburgh to Kirkwall. Transfer to Westray, the northwesternmost of Orkney’s North Isles. The cliffs at Noup Head are Westray’s answer to Hermaness—70,000 seabirds, including Orkney’s largest gannet colony, and puffins that nest so close to the path you can almost reach out and touch them. The lighthouse at Noup Head is one of Britain’s most remote. Afternoon at the Castle o’ Burrian sea stack, another excellent puffin site on Westray. Return to Kirkwall. Overnight Kirkwall.
Day 6: Papa Westray & Seal Colonies
Take the world’s shortest scheduled flight (2 minutes, record-holding) from Westray to Papa Westray, known across Orkney as ‘Papay.’ This tiny island is a microcosm of Orkney’s wildlife: the RSPB reserve at North Hill has Arctic terns, Arctic skuas, and one of the largest breeding concentrations of eider ducks in Europe. At the Holm of Papay, accessible at low tide, grey seals haul out in significant numbers—bring binoculars. Visit the Knap of Howar, the oldest preserved stone houses in northern Europe (3,700 BC), just steps from the beach. Evening return to Kirkwall. Farewell dinner. Overnight Kirkwall.
Day 7: Departure
Morning at leisure in Kirkwall. Optional visit to the Orkney Marine Life Aquarium to see local species up close. Flight from Kirkwall to Edinburgh, Glasgow, or Aberdeen.
