On check-in I was handed the most wonderful chocolates by Islay Cocoa in a great little gift box. We arrived at Machrie Hotel and found ourselves checked-in to the most amazing and luxurious lodge, overlooking the golf course and a stones throw from the Big Strand. Next we made our way towards the hotel, with a quick stop on route in Bowmore, seemed rude not to as it is such a photogenic little village. Once painted, make sure you arrange to drop your piece of art off with Rosemary to fire it. There has been a ceramics workshop in the family here for around 40 years and it’s wonderful to see it still going strong and probably better now than ever before. Such a wonderful idea to enable people to see what’s actually around them and be inspired by their surroundings. Here you will find Rosemary’s workshop where she recently started ‘ceramics in a box’ which you take away and paint anywhere on the Isles to help the creativity flow. After a comfortable and smooth crossing, before we knew it (really), it was already time to get back to the car.Īs we arrived into Port Askaig, our first stop was the quaint and beautiful little Persabus Pottery only a few minutes drive from the ferry. We headed west and after a brief toilet and coffee stop in Inveraray, we then made it to Kennacraig just as the CalMac Ferry was docking and the kids were very excited to be going onto another ferry, third time in a month! CalMac Ferry arriving into KennacraigĪfter a bite to eat we went to chill out in the coffee lounge. It was an early start in Edinburgh, but this did not dampen the mood, as we knew we would be on Islay only a few hours later. Now, onto the adventures we had across our visit to Islay and Jura. Below you will find suggestions from our visit, most which is relevant to families, although many could be enjoyed as an individual or a couple travelling around.
CRAIGHOUSE JURA FULL
Despite any current covid19 restrictions (July 2021), everyone including ourselves, could still enjoy the hotel to its full extent. The team were so friendly and welcoming from the moment we arrived. Till this day I have rarely stayed somewhere I felt as relaxed and calm as we did at the Machrie Hotel. Yet, it felt like we were a million miles from our hectic daily lives and no more did that feel apparent, than when we opened our bedroom doors and all we could hear were the waves crashing onto the beach at Laggan Bay, also known as the Big Strand. We stayed at the recently refurbished Machrie Hotel and Golf Links, which is along the road from the airport and a few miles outside Bowmore, the largest village on Islay. We travelled with CalMac Ferries from Kennacraig on the west coast of Scotland, from there its a 2 hour sailing, enjoying the most spectacular scenery across to Kintyre, Campbeltown, Jura and Islay. We were invited by the local Explore Islay and Jura community to enjoy and make the most of their peaceful and welcoming islands over a long weekend. Our first visit to Islay was around 10 years ago with a friend who has a personal connection, so ever since then we had been dreaming of returning to these wonderful Isles. If you are on Jura, you should absolutely go and visit and have a browse.We were delighted to have been invited to visit Islay, the Queen of the Hebrides and Jura, the Deer Island on a family holiday. Shipping is available if you are buying anything on the bigger side and can't easily take it with you off the island. We ended up buying quite a lot of prints and calendars for ourselves, friends and family. I'm sure he gets the same questions over and over again (where was that one taken? How did you get that shot?) but he gave no sign of it and shared lots of interesting insights into what he does Konrad is very friendly and enthusiastic and happy to talk about his work. The dominant themes of his work are the same as those of Jura and Isla themselves - beautiful landscapes, wild red deer and of course, whisky!
I am not at all knowledgeable in photography so I lack the vocabulary to do his work justice but it is simply fantastic. They had gifted us a calendar that he had produced which was very nice so I was happy to go along and have a browse although I am by no means passionate We were travelling with friends who had previously met the photographer, Konrad Borkowski, and were keen to go and visit the gallery and say hello. Recently spent 5 or 6 hours in and around Craighouse on a gloriously hot and sunny July day (this is Scotland, your mileage may vary)
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