The Area - an sgìre

at the heart of Kintail and Skye & Lochalsh

Dornie is a great location for holidays in the West Highlands and for visiting the Isle of Skye. We are nine miles from the Skye Bridge, within walking distance of the world-famous Eilean Donan Castle, on the doorstep of a wide range of Munros, including the Five Sisters of Kintail and if you’re into high quality dining, there are fantastic restaurants all within an easy drive and one in walking distance.

Rugged country but welcoming

Scotland’s nature

We provide luxury self-catering cottages, designed for you to enjoy the best of Scottish heritage and environment. Your perfect holiday starts beside the sea and just minutes’ walk from Eilean Donan Castle. We are the perfect location for sightseeing, walking, or watching the wildlife. Spacious, fully equipped and eco-friendly houses – the best holiday retreat.

Dornie Croft offers two brand new, spacious luxury houses, both with mountain and sea views, distinctly Scottish, and built on the family croft.

Wildlife

From Dornie Croft you’ll be able to enjoy views of lots of different wildlife, in the sea, on the shore and flying overhead.

The main birds to look out for are golden and sea eagles, herons, gulls, dunlin, sandpipers, oystercatchers, various types of geese and ducks, golden and sea eagles, buzzards, hoodie crows and ravens as well as small birds such as wrens, chaffinches, siskins, goldcrests, sparrows, dunnocks, robins, blackbirds, thrushes and starlings.

For information about bird-spotting in Skye and Lochalsh, there’s a great website reporting sightings at www.skye-birds.com/reports .

There are otters living locally and you might see them crossing the road or in the seaweed, particularly at half-tide. Tide tables for the next seven days can be found here.  You might also see red deer on the hill behind though they can be harder to spot.

 and out and About

The most obvious attraction to visit is Eilean Donan Castle. This is the ancestral home of the Clan MacRae and has fascinating exhibitions – not just for MacRaes – as well as a gift shop and take-away. It’s an easy walk from Dornie Croft (about 10 minutes).  Check out the blog on Easy Walks in Dornie.

Plockton is always a popular place to visit, you’ll find arts and crafts, seal trips, restaurants and micro-breweries as well as the famous palm trees.

The Isle of Skye is very close to Dornie – accessible either across the Glenelg/Kylerhea ferry or the Skye Bridge. To find out about places to visit and activities on the Isle of Skye and Raasay, visit the website isleofskye.com. You’ll find information about Dunvegan and Armadale Castles, Talisker and Torabhaig Distilleries, boat trips, pony trekking and much much more,

anticipating your needs

Food and Drink

If you’re looking for something to eat, the Clachan Bar and Dornie Hotel are five minutes walk away. Always best to phone and book if you want to have something to eat and that’s true of all eating out in the area.

There’s also Manuela’s Wee Bakery with Jo’s Pizza House and the Fairytale Distillery about 15 minutes walk away, across the Dornie Bridge. At weekends (Fri-Sun, 10am-3pm) there’s All the Goodness for takeaway coffee and cakes.

Skye is famous for its food, with Kinloch Lodge Hotel, Three Chimneys and Edinbane Hotel regularly featuring in world best lists!

experience nature

Outdoors

The view changes constantly, with sea and shore birds, golden and sea eagles and regular visits from otters, it’s a wildlife paradise.

Ideally located for Skye, Glenshiel & other mountains, it’s a perfect base for walking, cycling, kayaking and sightseeing.

As well as being a great location for hillwalking, there are some really easy walks in the village itself. Check out the blog post! Enjoy a slower pace of life and take in the sights and sounds.