3 nights and 2 fulls days Skye

We stayed in Portree in 2019 and had the same three night schedule.

We came over via the ferry, having enough time to hike the Fairy Pools on the way to the B&B. FP was really crowded, and the parking was metered, both which were a surprise. I wouldn't bother going back.

Full day #1 included driving up the east coast of the Trotternish Peninsula, hiking to the Old Man of Storr, stopping briefly at Lealt Falls and Kilt Rock, and hiking the Quirang. We expected to eat in Staffin but found nothing but the market where we bought snacks. Those took all day.

Day #2, we went up the west coast of the Trotternish to RHA Falls, Fairy Glen, and the Museum. If you didn't do the full Quirang or Storr hike, all this could be fit in one long day, making the loop around the peninsula.

We left via the bridge in the morning.

I'm disappointed we didn't get to see anything on the other parts of Skye. If I got a do-over, I'd add a fourth night or skip some of the hiking to allow time for the western part of the isle.

Even in May, dinner was a problem in Portree. Half the places were fully booked, and the other half didn't take reservations and had a long line out front. As a party of four, lots of people went past us for smaller tables. We ended up at the Indian restaurant twice, as they weren't as busy. Music was less than hoped.

Too late to edit my response, but we were there in 2022 (not 2019). We had already been twenty years ago, and had poked around Armadale and the southern area. Also, we had atrocious wind (80mph at the B&B) and walking the Quirang was almost a belly crawl.

You don't mention when you'll be there, but days get pretty long towards summer.

Don't worry about the location of Kinloch Lodge. You are in for a treat. It's a fabulous place and far superior to anything in Portree. In fact we paid for our son and daughter in law to have dinner, bed and breakfast there tomorrow evening as a special treat. We get to look after our baby granddaughter!

Close to Kinloch Lodge you will also find the Duisdale House Hotel, which has a well regarded restaurant. I'd suggest dining there one evening (you will need reservations).

For your other night you could try to get a reservation at the Lochbay restaurant, which is Skye's finest restaurant beyond a shadow of a doubt (Michelin Starred seafood and fish cuisine. Although you'd be an hour away from Kinloch I would say it's worth it and apart from the 5 miles closest to Lochbay all the roads are fine and you'd have no trouble in the evening.

An alternative suggestion and also fantastic would be Edinbane Lodge. Chef patron Calum is a local lad made good, having worked with some of Scotland's finest chefs. It can't be long before he gets a Michelin star. You'd be about 50 minutes from Kinloch.

Aside from those suggestions I hear good things of the Claymore in Broadford (15 minutes from Kinloch). It's not fine dining, but fresh fish and seafood.

For sightseeing, don't worry about needing to start in Portree. You'll see beautiful scenery wherever you start from. In fact one superb hike is at the tip of the Sleat peninsula (very close to Kinloch). Details here on Walk Highlands and you can find other suggestions for the southern end of Skye on their website too. Of course you will probably also want to drive the Trotternish loop described in the post above - but you will be doing so with many, many other visitors, whereas you'd barely see another soul on the less discovered Sleat walk I've linked to above. Shhhh don't tell everyone.

Hope this helps.

Jacqui (Skyegirl)

Thanks for all of this information. Everyone is so helpful on here. We are going to be there the last week of Augus this yeart. Wondering if night one since we will be coming from Edinburgh and it will be a fully day if there is a casual place to stop on the way in I could reserve. Then I will definitely check out the suggestions given! We are not going to be big hikers. We will hike in to see things but prob won't spend a lot of time doing 2-3 hour hikes this trip. So we should prob make it around the loops. I hope!

It will be light until 10pm in August. You could have dinner at Kinloch on arrival, or you could reserve at Claymore in Broadford, which is only 5 minutes past the turning down to Kinloch. You'd have an easy drive from there to the Lodge. Or Cafe Sia in Broadford which does good casual food (not much seafood though).

There's really nothing worth stopping for in Kyle of Lochalsh, which is the last village you pass through before arriving on Skye.

Alternatively you could try Red Skye, which is about 5 minutes before the turn off down towards Kinloch. It gets decent reviews although I've not been there.

I second the rec for the Edinbane Inn. It’s in a nice location away from crowds but is an easy drive from Portree. The food was very good and had a lot of non-seafood options as well. You cannot reserve until two weeks before your date (at least that’s how it was in 2023).

Hi Mardee,
The Edinbane Inn is different from the Edinbane Lodge, which is the one I was recommending. The Inn is almost opposite the Lodge but not connected. The Inn is pub style (and perfectly good) dining, while the Lodge is a multi course tasting menu focussing on the finest local meat, fish and seafood. Both are good but the Lodge is in a different league - and could be reserved now.

Jacqui

I realize Skyegirl is recommending the Edinbane Lodge but I want to second the Edinbane Inn. We loved our meal here. Some of the delicious meals we had were steamed Hebridean mussels, steak and ale pie, and beef. So I guess it depends on what the OP is looking for, something fancier or a more casual pub style dining experience.

For sightseeing, we loved the Fairy Pools. With the backdrop of the Cuillin Mountains, we thought the scenery was spectacular and stunning. There were a lot of people there, but the walking path is quite long. So, yes there is a lot of people, but you are not bumping into people. We were there in June. August could be more crowded.

Regarding the Trotternish Peninsula, we noticed that once we got past The Old Man of Storr, the crowds really thinned out.

If you want to see beautiful scenery and avoid crowds, I suggest visiting the Trumpan Church where a massacre took place in 1577. The drive out there was very pretty with bucolic and pastoral scenery. We saw very few cars and very few people. This is the only place where we saw some hairy coos!

We spent 4 nights on Skye, and we followed this roadtrip that I found online.
https://www.ontheluce.com/isle-of-skye-itinerary/