Even though I am nervous about hiring a car outside of the USA and have never driven in the UK before, I have decided that to see what I want to see and take the photos I would like to take, that I need to do it. It must be an automatic transmission so the only places that have them are in Stornoway/Lewis (not Harris). Landscape photography is my hobby :-).
I can probably only afford 2 days rental but I am planning to stay 4 or 5 days in Lewis/Harris. I am thinking about staying in Stornoway the night I arrive (via plane) to get familiar with the shops, see where I can do some food, ask questions about bus travel, etc. Then, I would like to stay in a self catering location near South Dell for 2 nights (on the W1 busline but still pretty remote) and then move to a B and B near Luskentyre for one night (also on a busline).
I really want to spend time sitting/walking on the beaches like Luskentyre, Scarista, Dalbeg, etc. I do not want a long walk over flowers or dunes as I would be carrying a lot (chair, camera, maybe picnic). I have been "driving around" via Google Earth and have already seen that the bus stops by the beaches are way too far a walk. The most I could walk carrying stuff would be 1/4-1/3 mile.
Should I rent the car on the 2 days I am in the self catering place near Ness and use one of the days to drive to Luskentyre and then way back to South Dell? Is it really a long drive from the North part of Lewis to the south part of Harris?
Or, should I depend on the bus for my first night in the self catering place, rent a car for the next two nights so I have it one night near Ness/South Dell and next night in Harris)?
Any and all driving tips as an any advice is welcome!