Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
ORKNEY FESTIVALS
Kirkwall's chief cultural bash is the week-long
St Magnus Festival
(
W
stmagnusfestival
.com), a superb arts festival held in the middle of June, with some events in Stromness.
July is peppered with several island regattas and agricultural shows, culminating in the
agricultural
County Show
held in Kirkwall in the middle of August.
To find out
what's on
(and the weather forecast), tune in to Radio Orkney on 93.7FM, buy
yourself a copy of
The Orcadian
, which comes out on Thursdays, or log on to
W
orkneynewstoday.co.uk.
important fishing port and ferry terminal, and is the focus of the popular four-day
Orkney Folk Festival
, held in May.
Unlike Kirkwall, the old town of Stromness still hugs the shoreline, its one and only
street, a narrow winding affair still paved with great flagstones and fed by a tight
network of alleyways or closes. he central section, which begins at the imposing
sandstone
Stromness Hotel
, is known as
Victoria Street
, though in fact it takes on several
other names as it threads its way southwards. On the east side of the street the houses
are gable-end-on to the waterfront, and originally each one would have had its own
pier, from which merchants would trade with passing ships.
15
Pier Arts Centre
Victoria St • Tues-Sat 10.30am-5pm • Free •
T
01856 850209,
W
pierartscentre.com
A warehouse on one of the old jetties on Victoria Street now forms half of the
Pier
Arts Centre
; the other half is a modern glass and steel structure framing views of the
harbour. he gallery has a remarkable permanent collection of twentieth-century
British art, including worth by Scotish sculpter Eduardo Paolozzi, and, most
notably by members of the Cornish group such as Barbara Hepworth, Ben
Nicholson, Terry Frost, Patrick Heron and the self-taught Alfred Wallis. here are
also contemporary works, many by northern and Scandinavian artists, which
continue the marine themes of the original collection.
Stromness Museum
52 Alfred St • April-Sept daily 10am-5pm; Oct-March Mon-Sat 11am-3.30pm • £4.50 •
T
01856 850025,
W
orkneycommunities.co.uk/
stromnessmuseum
At the junction of Alfred Street and South End stands the
Stromness Museum
,
built in 1858. Highlights include an early inflatable boat like the one used by
John Rae, the Stromness-born Arctic explorer, and some barnacle-encrusted
crockery from the German High Seas Fleet that was sunk in Scapa Flow in 1919
(see box, p.538).
ARRIVAL AND DEPARTURE
STROMNESS
By ferry
T
0845/600 0449,
W
northlinkferries.co.uk. Car
ferries
arrive in the centre of Stromness from Scrabster
(2-3 daily; 1hr 30min), which is connected to nearby
Thurso by shuttle bus. The tiny passenger ferry to Moaness
Pier on Hoy (via Graemsay) departs from the old harbour in
Stromness (Mon-Fri 4-5 daily, Sat & Sun 2 daily; 25min).
By bus
T
01856 870555,
W
stagecoachbus.com. Buses
depart from Stromness ferry terminal.
Destinations
Houton (Mon-Fri 2 daily; 20min);
Kirkwall
(Mon-Sat hourly, Sun every 2hr; 30min);
Skara Brae (Mon,
Thurs & Sat 1 daily; 20min); St Margaret's Hope (10 daily;
1hr 5min).
INFORMATION AND ACTIVITIES
Tourist office
Stromness ferry terminal houses the
tourist office (March-Oct daily,
T
01856 850716,
W
visitorkney.com).
Orkney Cycle Hire
54 Dundas St
T
01856 850255,
W
orkneycyclehire.co.uk.
Bike rental
from £7.50 a day.
