Every now and again I’m going to offer a suggestion as to somewhere else you can add onto your Highland adventure. There’s loads of places in Skye that aren’t on the usual lists and tick itineraries (you won’t find me posting them on here, but you might get the low down at breakfast if you’re staying with us!) – but here and there I’ll write about places you can go to next, or first.
I’ve wanted to go to Canna forever and it was an absolutely wonderful trip.
How we got there (and how we should have done.)
Book your ferry from Mallaig to Canna. You can’t take your car (unless you need it for business on the island – and there aren’t any roads to speak of anyway). We stayed in Fort William overnight. I’m not a huge fan tbh and we didn’t find anywhere nice to eat. We should have booked our accommodation earlier in order to get somewhere affordable in Mallaig. Anyway, that was us. We left the car in one of the free parking areas – amazing.
The ferry across stops at Eigg and Rum. We had the dog with us and there’s a great dog area inside as well as the deck. It took about 3 hours and the boy slept most of the way, except when we had a great Calmac breakfast.
Where we stayed.
There is a small B&B on the island but we opted for one of two static caravans operated by Isebail. It’s a proper home from home, super comfortable with brilliant views. She also runs the bunkhouse, bothy and campsite as well as crofting. I thought she was fabulous.
000000000What we ate.
We ordered the breakfast basket from Isebail, eggs, homemade bread and some gorgeous marmalade. We stocked up with that and some garlic salt from the honesty box before we left. Both nights we booked into Canna Café, which was one of the main reasons we’d chosen Canna for our first mini break of the summer. It’s really small, with lovely views from the outside seating (where we sat and had an Isle of Eigg beer before dinner.)1
The food is spectacular, quite the best seafood platter I’ve ever had, and I’ve had a few.
You’ll need to order that, and some of the other shellfish the day before because they collect it off the boat just before service. I had the same pudding both nights which is unheard of, but totally understandable.
We plan to go back as soon as we can, just for the prawn toasts. You absolutely need to book (and the cafe is not open every day, so check that too). We also grabbed a packing up for the ferry on the way back.
There is also a fantastic honesty shop with a great selection of food and souvenirs. Its also the place for wifi on the island.
What we did.
We only had one full day in Canna and we spent that walking to see the puffins on the stacks. It’s not like some of the other islands where they are on your feet, the stacks are far away. But we saw loads with binoculars and some naked eye puffins too. The walk was beautiful although maybe a little too much for the dog – you need a basic level of fitness which the 12 year old chonker might be lacking.
There are coves to swim in, ancient sites to see, bays for a picnic and, when it’s open again, Canna House, which looks extraordinary – it belongs to the Scottish National Trust so grab your membership today!
Summary
We had the absolute best time in Canna. If you fancy something less touristy stop moaning about the crowds at the Fairy Pools and get yourself booked on the ferry. Why not combine it with a stop off in Rum to see the birds or Eigg (described by one ferry master as the party island). Before or after your Skye trip this will be an amazing adventure.
