When you imagine Scotland, you think of quiet glens, river valleys, forests, gorges, lochs, and whisky that flows like water from tumbling burns. This is Moray Speyside; it’s a romantic image punctuated with visions of tartan-clad highlanders, heather, and ‘wild haggis’. It is liberally peppered with at least 50 malt whisky distilleries, making it one of the best-known regions, if less explored.

But we were here for more than just the uisge beatha, or ‘water of life’. Speyside is bursting with family-friendly activities and a drop or three of the strong stuff. This blog will show how you, too, can enjoy a family-friendly escape in Scotland’s whisky capital.

The Shetland Isles, a remote and captivating archipelago located in the North Sea, are a hidden gem waiting to be explored. If you're an avid caravanner looking for a unique adventure, taking your caravan to Shetland is a fantastic idea. With stunning landscapes, rich history, and warm hospitality, Shetland offers a one-of-a-kind experience that you'll cherish forever. In this blog post, we'll guide you through the essential tips for taking your caravan to Shetland, including places to pitch, and highlight some must-visit destinations on the islands.

I’m an island lass at heart. Islands run through my veins, and we were lucky enough to get the opportunity to spend some time exploring Mull recently. Islands provide an anchor to which I always return; they feel familiar and restorative – like home. The ever-present sea offers security and constancy in a fast-paced world. Islands allow me to slow down and breathe.

We spent our week with Mull Holiday Cottages, our trip coinciding with some of the best summer weather so far. Under the blue skies and turquoise waters of Mull, I was keen to explore these Inner Hebridean islands.

For this island adventure, we travelled to Mull. Mull is part of the Inner Hebrides and sits off the west coast of Scotland, with Islay, Jura and Colonsay to the south, Kerrera and Lismore to the east, Coll and Tiree to the west, and the uninhabited Treshnish Isles and Staffa. Mull is an island known for its wildlife, scenery and fascinating geology; it shares much of its allure with Shetland, yet is distinct and different in many ways, as we were to discover.

A few weeks ago, we were invited to come and stay at Shetland Glamping’s beautiful new pods at Rerwick. Enjoying incredible sea views across rolling countryside and out to sea, Shetland Glamping is the hottest new accommodation offering in Shetland’s South Mainland. After opening last summer, the guest book in our pod Shalder was already bursting with rave reviews for their luxurious ‘Mega Bunker’ Glamping Pods.

Auchmithie, where we were staying, is a former fishing village that predates Arbroath by several centuries, and although many of the small cottages were built as farming cottages supporting the rich farmland stretching far inland from the coast, creating a landscape of gently rolling hills, the village is best known for its fishing heritage.

Shorehaven, where we were to spend the weekend, dates back to 1854 when Hermaness Lighthouse was built to aid navigation. Clinging to the hostile slopes of Muckle Flugga, a rocky outcrop off the north coast of Unst, Britain's most northerly lighthouse still shines a guiding light across the water to those at sea – Shorehaven forms part of the story of this iconic lighthouse.

The Peerie Neuk is a tiny “hut” in Unst and part of the tiny-house movement. This architectural and social movement advocates downsizing living spaces, simplifying interiors and living with less. As someone who resides in a constant state of clutter and chaos, kicking off my boots at the door of The Peerie Neuk was nothing short of cathartic!

"We never feel like we own it; we are custodians looking after it for the future," Rachael told me as she explained the history and her deep-seated love of the Boatman's House.

The beautiful Peerie Bugarth, a gem of a property available for holiday let in Mid Yell I often drive past traditional Shetland crofthouses and wonder what they’re like inside. These are buildings that have fascinated me since I was little. Their simple lines, symmetry, and the way they bed into the landscape almost seamlessly continues to inspire my imagination in the same – perhaps less visually attractive way – that they continue to inspire artists and poets to commi [...]

The Old Manse Holiday home is the white house in the centre, beside the former Clousta church.“The winding voes and lakes of Clousetter, are wildly disordered by the irregular encroachments of the hills among which they run. Nature, from mere rocks and water, without the assistance of a single tree, has presented ceaseless varieties of interesting scenery.” ~ Samuel Hibbert (1818)Clousta is an ‘old place’ – it has that sense, as if you’ve suddenly stumbled off the map. It’s a beaut [...]

Busta House Hotel I woke on the night and heard footsteps – it was her – I nudged my husband and said, “ssshhh, can you hear her?”I was on high alert, we were staying in the West Wing of Busta House Hotel, and I knew that this was part of the building she haunted. Busta sits, tucked away on the shores of Busta Voe, just a few miles from the village of Brae. Today it’s a three-star hotel placed in an idyllic rural location in one of Shetland’s most b [...]

Noosthamar, Unst: the perfect island escape. Photo: Joanne Anderson A few months ago, during the school’s May long weekend, we headed north to the most northerly island of Unst to stay at Noosthamar – a picturesque self-catering holiday home overlooking the sandy shores of Burrafirth.Unst is a two-ferry hop from Mainland Shetland and has a community of about 650 people. Getting to Unst is easy on the inter-island ferries that serve the isles and are operated by the Shetland I [...]

The Lodge in Fetlar; the perfect rural retreat in Shetland. In early August we stayed in an award-winning self-catering cottage in Fetlar. The Lodge sits tucked above the shore, overlooking Lambhoga, and won the 2019 Lux Life’s most Tranquil Accommodation award. And wow, what a spot. As you drive into Houbie, the heart of the island, The Lodge comes into view. Nestled in the shadow of the impressive, if imposing, Leagarth House to which the Lodge was built to serve; originally as a [...]

Looking down Whalefirth, Yell Shetland is peppered with beautiful old buildings, and none are more evocative and thought-provoking than some of our old church buildings that are found dotted around the islands. Once seats of spiritual worship and ecclesiastical power, many are now privately owned and have undergone refurbishment. Varda self-catering, situated on the island of Yell, is one of these. Varda self-catering, former church for the Herra community, lovingly restored [...]

The Taing sits nestled on the edge of the striking red sands of Reawick beach on Shetland's west mainland, offering the ideal rural retreat You know when someone envelops you in a warm embrace, and you feel every ounce of stress flow from your body? That’s exactly what the Taing in Reawick does. Situated just a stone’s throw from the beach, in a quiet corner of Shetland’s west mainland, the house has been lovingly restored, the interior care [...]

East-Gate, Vidlin, the perfect retreat for a family holiday Interested in staying somewhere but not sure what to do in the local area? Let Shetland with Laurie help you. In this post, I have teamed up with Karen & Neil Hay who gave us the keys to their newly established self-catering chalet in the village of Vidlin on Shetland's east mainland and told us to explore... East-Gate self-catering chalet, Vidlin.East-Gate is a modern, new build which is fresh to Shetland's self-cate [...]