Heather's Ultimate Guide to North-West Skye

If you're planning a trip to the Isle of Skye, chances are there are places in the north-west of the island on your list. And even though I've lived in the Scottish Highlands for over five years, there are so many places in this beautiful region of the Isle of Skye that I've yet to discover. I'm always returning to this part of the island whenever I get the chance and I just love having the oppurtunity to explore more of this beautiful part of Skye.

A few years ago, I shared my Ultimate Guide to the Sleat Peninsula, which has become one of my most popular blogposts over the years. So I thought it was high time to share another one of these guides: a one stop shop with all your recommendations to visiting Nort West Skye. If you're planning a trip to this beautiful part of the island, hopefully this guide you give you helpful tips for visiting one of the most beautiful regions on the Isle of Skye.

The Vibes of North-West Skye

Unlike the Trotternish Peninsula, which has an otherworldly jurassic quality, or the Sleat Peninsula, which has a feel of a beautiful garden, the North West of Skye (which covers areas like the Duirinish Peninsula, the Waternish Peninsula and Dunvegan) is something else entirely. With dramatic sea cliffs and beautiful beaches, as well as some of the best businesses on the island, its a place that feels so special and interesting.

Being on the western side of the island, it's a place we've rarely visited without facing the dramatic weather Skye is widely known for. As my mother would say, it's a place that'll blow the cobwebs away. But, for me, this is part of the joy and drama of visiting the Isle of Skye. It's a place that you can really connect with nature, where you can learn about the history of a place, and a place where you can see how the story of a place continues to unravel for many years to come.

Places to Eat

Some of the best food I've had on the Isle of Skye has been found in restuarants and coffee shops in north-west Skye. I haven't even discovered all of the incredible spots in this beautiful part of the island, but here are some of my favourites from over the years.

Edinbane Lodge

This incredible restuarant has been one of Skye's top rated foodie spots for a long time and it's clear to see why. We visited Edinbane Lodge in October 2021 (it was actually my first blogpost I shared about the Isle of Skye) and it was such an incredible meal.

Although I'm sure the menu is constantly changing due to what's in season at the time, the food during our visit was absolutely amazing. We enjoyed their four course tasting menu, which had incredible courses showcasing the best ingredients from the local area. At the time we visited, this included an incredible monkfish course with orange, and a heather smoked clam dish with local seafood and olives.

When we look back on this meal though, the highlight remains the dessert course. When we visited, it was a white chocolate mousse with cookie crumb served with a raspberry sorbet. White chocolate and raspberry is one of my favourite flavour combinations already, but something about the tartness from the raspberries and the sweetness from the white chocolate just worked together so well to finish off this meal.

The Dunvegan

Another amazing spot on this part of the island is The Dunvegan. We visited The Dunvegan for lunch not long after I started this blog in January 2022 for a coffee and lunch. It's a fantastic spot to stop in on if you're looking for some of the best coffee in this part of the island. What makes The Dunvegan really stand out though is their Fire Dining menu in the evenings. Inspired by fire cooking from Argentina, this unique experience on the island uses fire cooking techniques and incredible local produce to create some of the most incredible food on the island. The staff at the restaurant also let us into the kitchen to find out more about the process of cooking in this way. If you're looking for a fantastic meal in a cosy and casual setting, I cannot recommend The Dunvegan enough!

Bog Myrtle

If you're looking for a cosy spot to enjoy a couple of hours, especially if the whether is bad, I would highly recommend checking out Bog Myrtle Cafe. With fresh bread and pastries baked here and some really special vegetarian focussed food throughout the year, it's a great place to coorie in and enjoy reading a good book or card game with friends and family, whilst enjoying a cinnamon bun or delcious soup.

Walks to Enjoy

North-West Skye has some of the most interesting and enjoyable walks that I've enjoyed around the Scottish Highlands. There are some amazing coastal walks in this area, as well some incredibly interesting spots to visit. If you love getting out into nature as much as I do, North-West Skye might just be the region to check out.

Neist Point Lighthouse

Neist Point Lighthhouse is a spot on the island that is high on a lot of people's bucket lists, and for good reason. There's nothing more magical to me than seeing a lighthouse at what feels like the end of world.

If you plan on visiting Neist Point, I have two tips for you. One, to get to Neist Point Lighthouse, you have to drive down a pretty scary single track road. As with a lot of beauty spots on the Isle of Skye, you have to get to Neist Point Lighthouse via single track road. I've been living in the Scottish Highlands now for over five years, but even I have to admit this road is not for the faint of heart. Secondly (and I cannot stress this one enough) if you are a long haired girlie like me, please tie your hair up before heading to this walk.

Coral Beach, Claigan

When a winter's day is as beautiful as the day we visited Coral Beach on Skye, you really do have to make the most of it. I love a beach walk, especailly on a winter's day and this has to be one of the best beaches on the island.

The beach itself is made up of millions of fossilised, sun-bleached pieces of algae, giving it the effect of being tiny white pieces of coral. This means, when you're looking down at Coral Beach as you arrive, you are dazzled by the most beautiful white beach. I loved picking up all the pieces of coral and seeing the beauty of it all in my hands. It makes for a truly beautiful walk on the island.

Hidden Gems

Dun Beag Broch

During the first couple of years visiting the Scottish Highlands, we visited a lot of brochs around the Scottish Highlands. These iron age roundhouses, which most people believe would have been used for housing, are dotted throughout the Scottish Highlands and are all in various levels of disrepair. This one near Dunvegan is still in a pretty great condition, meaning you can get around it and really imagine for yourself what life would have been like in this incredible place.

The Dunvegan Two Churches Walk

Right after I started this blog, we spent a lot of January 2022 exploring local walks to us in the Scottish Highlands. On this day, we had planned to visit Neist Point Lighthouse, but bad weather meant we had a change of plans. That's when we discovered the Dunvegan Two Churches Walk.

I discovered this walk in one of my favourite walking books and it was a fanastic wee walk to see Dunvegan village from a new level. It's not a particularly long walk either (about 1.5hrs), making it a fantastic walk to complete if you have little ones or area just looking for a short walk to get outside and explore the area.

Where to Stay

I have to admit that knowing where to stay on Skye is one area where I lack knowledge. However I have actually spent one night staying overnight in this part of the island.

Hame on Skye, Orbost

In 2025, in an endevour to try and explore places we wouldn't normally get a chance to explore, we booked a couple of Itison vouchers for accomadation around the Scottish Highlands and Islands. One of those was for Hame on Skye near Dunvegan.

We stayed here in March 2025, on an adventurous day where we ended up exploring the Trotternish Peninsula. We ended up arriving quite late to the Hame but thankfully we were still able to enjoy what Hame had to offer the next morning for breakfast. The breakfast was fresh and filling, making it perfect for a day of adventuring on the island. It was such a cosy wee breakfast and it really set me up for the day.

Hame is a hotel inspired by Scandi design, so if that's something that interests you, be sure to check it out. If I'm being totally honest, Hame isn't exactly in the picturesque location, however it is fantastic base to explore North-West Skye from.

I really hope this ultimate guide helps you to better plan and prepare for your adventures in this part of the island. It's truly one of my favourite places to explore on Skye and I hope the same will be true for you too.