I Travelled The Shetland Islands For 7 Days

When most people think of Scotland, they think of Edinburgh or the Scottish Highlands. However, there's so much more to Scotland than that. The Shetland Islands, located 100 miles north of Scotland, have a long history, dramatic scenery and an abundance of wildlife. There's so much to experience, from incredible hikes to stunning beaches to locally sourced foods. Join me as I explore the Shetland Islands and make my way to the most northern point of the UK. In my previous video, I shared my experience taking the Northlink Ferry with my campervan from Aberdeen to Lerwick in Shetland. Since I wanted to bring my vehicle, I took the ferry, but you can also fly to Shetland. From Glasgow or Edinburgh it takes around an hour and 30 minutes. Even though Shetland is part of Scotland and the northernmost region of the UK, we're very close to Norway right now. There are over 100 islands in Shetland, but from what I can see online, only around 16 are inhabited. I heard that the winds here are continuous and strong, and because of that there are not many trees. Well, I've only just arrived and I don't know if you can see the campervan shaking from side to side, but that's already proven to be correct. Near the south of the main island, there is an airport, and after the airport there are some things to see. But in order to get there, you have to cross the runway of the airport. Can you believe it? So maybe you've seen a train crossing with barriers before, but this is an airport runway crossing. So I'm going to cross it now. There doesn't seem to be any planes around and the barriers do seem to be open, but I just think it's really interesting. I've never seen that before. So I'm here at the airport. So if you fly from Glasgow or Edinburgh, or probably other places too, this is where you're going to arrive. A friend who's from Shetland told me that flights are often cancelled due to the fog, so it can be quite unpredictable if you do book a flight, so the ferry is more reliable. So that's coming in 20 minutes, that plane? Yeah. Oh wow. And it's going to just land right over there, behind you, on that runway. It should be running on 0-9. So I was just speaking to the man at the airport, and he said there's a plane coming in from Aberdeen shortly, so I'm going to watch it come in. So crazy that the plane is going to land just where I was driving one moment ago. But yeah, I'm going to wait and see it. It'll just be here shortly. My first stop is Sunburra, a region located in the southern part of the Shetland mainland. Among its notable sites is Jalshof, an ancient settlement discovered in the late 19th century. Jalshof offers insights into human habitation spanning thousands of years, with layers of structures representing various eras, including the Viking period. These well-preserved structures provide a glimpse into the evolving architectural styles and ways of life through history. Within the Sunburra region, perched on Sunburra Head, stands the impressive Sunburra Lighthouse. This historic lighthouse, constructed in the 19th century, has been a reliable guide for ships and a crucial element of maritime safety for well over a century. Positioned on a rugged headland, the lighthouse offers panoramic views of the majestic North Sea, attracting numerous visitors who are captivated by its beauty and historical significance. The weather is crazy. Later on it's meant to be sunny. I am looking forward to the rain stopping. I've just arrived at Jalshof, I think it's called over there. This is one of the most important sites on Shetland and you can learn a lot about history. Shetland ponies are smaller horses which can be found on Shetland. So I just pulled up at this beach here and look at the seals on the beach, can you see them? Wow, the lighting is incredible. There they are, they're just relaxing on the beach. Oh amazing. So I was chatting to a local guy earlier today and he told me that if he was travelling in a van he'd come up here to see the view and I just came here and I think it's the best view I've seen in the whole of Shetland. So if you're watching this video, thank you so much for telling me about it. Oh my goodness. I don't know if the camera can do this view justice but you can see right over St Ninian's Isle, the amazing blue water, the whole way around St Ninian's Isle, the rocks and the cliffs are incredible and also the sun is setting behind. It is just magnificent. St Ninian's is one of Shetland's most stunning beaches, known for its tombolo which connects the mainland to the Isle of St Ninian. This beautiful beach has pristine white sands and turquoise waters and I enjoyed the three-hour walk around St Ninian's Isle followed by a swim in the freezing cold water. So I've just arrived now at something which I'm so excited about on Shetland. These are cake honesty boxes. So in other places you might have seen like egg honesty boxes. When I lived in Japan there was a lot of vegetable ones for buying potatoes and things like that at the side of the road. But has anyone heard of cake honesty boxes before? This is very exciting. So there's one just here. I'm going to go and have a look inside and see what they have. There is the cake honesty box. So it's like a fridge at the side of the road and there's also a picnic bench there so you could sit there and have your cake. It's a bit windy and rainy today but yeah on sunny days that would be nice. And let's go and have a look inside. Wow, oh it smells so good. So they have this one. Chocolate Crunch. Darroch's Nest Primary. Chocolate Crunch, wow. They have Biscoff Slice. That looks good. And they have gluten-free and dairy-free. Is this gluten-free, dairy-free? Chocolate Brownie. Oh I think this is the winner. This one looks very, very good. I'm going to try the chocolate brownie. So this one's called Picnic Press and it says here that you can pay with the QR code or card. You can also put the cash in here. Oh getting back into the car, so nice. Okay so I just paid and it was £3.50 and I got my chocolate brownies so let's try them. They smell so good. Chocolate brownies and all the ingredients and allergens are on the back as well. Okay let's have a bite. Oh they're really fudgy. Wow, oh they are so good. Absolutely excellent. Extremely addictive. I think they're the best brownies I've ever had. I much prefer the fudgy brownie to a cakey brownie. Sunday Teas in Shetland are a tradition in the local community, bringing people together in a warm and welcoming atmosphere. These gatherings, attended by locals and visitors, offer a chance to enjoy a cup of tea or coffee and indulge in a variety of home-baked treats. With a population of approximately 23,000 people in the Shetland Islands, Sunday Teas serve as a great opportunity for the community to come together, socialise and savour the delicious homemade cakes, soups, sandwiches and other delicacies that showcase the hospitality and community spirit of Shetland. I saw a sign on the road for a Sunday Tea and decided to visit. For £8 I had Tati and Leek Soup. Tati's a Scottish word for potato in case you didn't know. And I finished with Millionaire Cheesecake. Just finished my soup and my sweet and it was fantastic. 10 out of 10. If you're in Shetland and you have the opportunity to go to a community hall to one of the Sunday Lunches or Sunday Teas, definitely recommend it. Food was amazing. That Millionaire Cheesecake that I had for dessert was incredible. I'm going to try and make that at home myself sometime. It's so nice that they do these things. In my local area in Scotland a lot of these events are organised through the church, whereas here it seems to be a lot in the community halls and it's a really nice place for people to get together. And everyone there was so friendly which was really good. I've arrived at Minn Beach and this is a beach that is listed as being one of the most beautiful beaches on Shetland. It looks like there are so many beautiful beaches on Shetland and when the sun is out the water is so blue it's just like the Caribbean. It might be a bit rainy and cold today for a swim but I'm going to walk down to the beach and have a look and see what it's like. Okay, the sun is out and oh my sir, is this even Scotland? The water is just incredible. It's so blue, oh my goodness, so beautiful, I love it. It honestly does look like Cuba. I remember, I think the best beach I've seen in the world was in Cuba and the water is very... I can't believe this is in my own country. It's so funny, I spent all this time travelling the world but there's all these beautiful places so close to where I'm from. So this one is Minn Beach. The previous beach I went to was a different one and it's about a five-minute walk from the car park to get down to the beach. Looks amazing. I could sit here and enjoy the view. There's no one here. I'm the only person on the beach. When the sky is blue, the water just matches. It's incredible, it's so clear. One thing I've really noticed in Shetland is how clean all the beaches are and there's really little rubbish. So perhaps the locals are picking up rubbish or there just isn't that much rubbish here in the sea but it's really nice. I wish all beaches were like that. If you do come to Shetland, definitely come to this beach and try and come on a nice day if you can. It's incredible how quickly the weather's changed. This morning, as you saw, was so rainy and it just seems like a completely different day. You just have to be prepared for all seasons when you come to Scotland and obviously Shetland as well. The really great thing is that the days are so long here so the sun sets around 9.45pm tonight so now it's about 5.30pm but there's still another four hours of daylight so I'm planning to still go to a few more places today to make the most of this nice weather. So I've arrived in a town called Scalloway. I love the name of this town and there's a really interesting castle and museum here and I was at the local visitor centre in one of the different towns and the lady recommended me to visit the museum here in Scalloway as there's some interesting history about World War II so I've just parked up and I'm going to head inside and have a look around in there. The Scalloway Museum, located in the village of Scalloway on the mainland of Shetland, is a museum that preserves and showcases the history of the area including the important role of fishing in the local economy. The museum's exhibits cover the fascinating Shetland bus operation during World War II highlighting the bravery of Norwegian and Shetland sailors as well as the fishing and whaling industry with artefacts and information that illustrate its significance in shaping the island's economy and culture. With an entry fee of £5 this fantastic museum provides visitors with a deeper understanding of these historical events and industries celebrating the resilience and cooperative spirit of the people involved. I then paid a visit to the Half Seafood restaurant in Scalloway to try the renowned seafood of Shetland. I had the Culn Skink, a creamy Scottish seafood soup served with a traditional Shetland bannock bread. It tasted absolutely amazing. Fishing holds a significant place in the daily life of the Shetland Islands and continues to play a crucial role in the local economy. With its abundant fishing grounds the islands rely on commercial fishing catching species such as haddock, cod, whiting and mackerel. Shetland seafood, known for its superior quality is highly sought after both locally and internationally making Shetland a notable seafood destination. To further experience Shetland's fishing heritage my friend from Shetland prepared a delicious meal for me using locally caught fish. It was amazing. So what we have here is a salted whiting so this has been soaked in very salty water for a few days and that's hung up to dry for about from three weeks to a couple of months to preserve it. And this is a herring because this was caught in the North Sea. So for this one we'll boil it and that kind of helps take out some of the salt and we're going to barbecue the herring. So this one's here are herring also that's been smoked. So these are, yeah we're going to barbecue these as well. So it's kippers. I've arrived here at S.U.N.S. Lighthouse which is on the west side of Shetland. It's seven o'clock in the morning I woke up really early. Today the weather is incredible and I'm going to do the hike in this area. It says that it takes about three hours. There's a really good book actually which explains all the hikes in Shetland. I'll link it below in case you're interested to have a look but it has all the popular hikes on Shetland. It has maps and it also explains how long it'll take and how many kilometres and details that you need to know. This hike apparently has amazing cliffs. I'm not sure if I'll be able to fly the drone. It's very very windy but I'll try my best. Let's go. There are lots of seabirds nesting in the cliffs all around Shetland actually not just here and I found this egg. It's like a blue colour. It's very very small. If anyone knows what egg it is please leave a comment below. I heard that you can see puffins along here so fingers crossed I can see some puffins today. I've never seen puffins before. Every year around this time they come back here to nest and lay their eggs. So high! Might not be the best place to come. You can see in a little bit further. This is called the Holes of Skara. I just walked over the top of that area. Wow incredible! I have just arrived at Frankie's Fish and Chips in a town called Bray and this is the UK and Scotland's I can't wait to try it. I love fish and chips. So I'm the first person to enter the chip shop and there are so many yummy things on the menu. There's smoked haddock fish and chips, regular haddock fish and chips, scampi and there's also specials. Lots of different flavours. There's mussels with lots of different flavours. Also scallops as well. So if you like seafood I think coming here is an absolute must. Fish and chips is basically a famous dish all over the UK and Scotland and it's very good to have it with vinegar especially on the chips. Not everyone likes it. It's quite salt and then the tartar sauce. That's so good with fish and chips as well. Let's put some ketchup on as well. Oh that was so good! I am so full but still room for some dessert. Cream egg. Even though Easter's past these are my favourite sweets in Scotland and if you come and you see them you must try them. It's like chocolate with like an egg, sweet egg filling but it's not egg. I don't know what it is. It's like cream but if you come to Scotland please try cream eggs. I've just arrived at my first inter-ferry terminal so I'm going to be going from the main island over to an island called Yell so I better not yell the name too loud. Just joking. The ferry's just pulling in just now and there's two lanes for booked and unbooked. I haven't booked so I'm in the unbooked lane. Doesn't look like anyone's booked for this ferry. I'm on the ferry! You can stay in the ferry or you can go upstairs. I'll go and have a look upstairs after I've paid. £16.50 return so that takes me all the way to Yell and then to Anst if I go today and it also gets me back onto the mainland. I think that's a really good price. Inside you can pay here so there are some envelopes to pay and then also there are some bank details if you want to pay by bank transfer. So the price to stay here is £20 per night and that will include the electricity and then tents are £10 a night. I just went into the local convenience store here on Yell and I got some bannocks. So these are from Shetland. They look a combination between a scone and a piece of bread like a roll so I'll try these later on and I got my favourite tattie scones. These are potato scones so these are one of my favourite foods from Scotland. They're so heavy! They're like... compared to the bannocks they're like three times the weight. I love tattie scones and they're from a local bakery here on Shetland so I'm going to have these later with butter. I have some Orkney butter in the fridge. If you ever have a chance to try tattie scones definitely have them because they're so good. Convenience store here is actually better stocked than my village in my town and this convenience store had so many things in it. Amazing selection of frozen food fresh fruits and vegetables. You have everything you need in this store. It was so well stocked the boy working there was so friendly. Okay on the next ferry to the island of Anst and there is the sea just out there. Last night I parked here. There's space for about five or six camper vans. You can plug in the electric fill up the water and there's also toilets and showers just nearby. The hostel is just up there and inside the hostel there's a kitchen where you can do your washing up and also your laundry. Oh no no no no Now I'm heading to the most northerly point of the UK and it is about a round trip three hour hike and to get to the most northerly point I think it's around an hour hour and a half. There is a chance of seeing puffins on this hike which is so exciting so fingers crossed I'll have good luck for that. Hermanness is a nature reserve on the isle of Anst known for its stunning coastal cliffs and diverse seabird colonies including puffins and gannets. I was incredibly lucky to see puffins for the first time in my life. Puffins typically return to Shetland in the spring to breed and nest forming large colonies on coastal cliffs and islands. Almost at the viewpoint for the lighthouse. Is it visible? Is it visible please? Hopefully. From the Hermanness nature reserve you can see the rocky island of Muckleflugga home to the historic Muckleflugga lighthouse which guides ships through the treacherous waters. Behind the lighthouse is the rock called Outstack the northernmost point of the UK. As soon as I turned that camera around a huge cloud came and I got absolutely soaked. The weather forecast this evening was all sun and luckily I had my waterproofs with me but I got absolutely soaked for like five minutes. This is the reason I wanted to come to Shetland. I saw this view on the Wild Isles David Attenborough TV show and after I saw that view I just wanted to come to Shetland and I made it to the most northerly point of the UK. Yes! I finished my trip in Lerwick the capital of Shetland. I went on the Seabirds and Seals boat trip which I highly recommend. During the excursion I had the opportunity to see seals and lots of seabirds. If you're lucky you might even spot otters, dolphins or orcas. I also explored Lerwick itself and enjoyed an evening of traditional music at the Journey Pub. My time in Shetland has been unforgettable and exploring these islands by campervan has been an incredible experience. I've shared numerous photos from my trip on Instagram so feel free to have a look. Thank you for watching this video and if you'd like to see more of my adventures exploring Scotland please subscribe to the channel. See you next time.