Skara Brae

[mare s.]

Anyone know if there are taxis (or other easy public transport) from Kirkwall port to Skara Brae?   We have a walking tour of the city in the morning but have a long day in port and were hoping to go to Skara Brae in the afternoon.

[Simon-t]

I'm not aware of any public transport (although there may be a bus service). It is pretty remote.

 

We hired a car for the day in Kirkwall and drove to Skara Brae. Well worth the trip and there are a couple of impressive stone circles en route as well.

 

 

[Meander Ingwa]

 

the 8S bus takes about an hour from Kirkwall and the bus stop is at the visitors center at Skara Brae.  You can find out more info from here

 

https://www.orkney.gov.uk/Service-Directory/B/Bus-Services.htm

 

You might reconsider the option of the walking tour in favor of the ancient sites tours, if available.  I am planning a trip to Kirkwall in September and plan on using the bus.  I am not tied to a ships schedule , however.  Bus service is not frequent and involves a potential transfer, as you can see from the timetable.  The route is pretty scenic ,though

Edited April 13 by Meander Ingwa

[gnome12]

Having been to Kirkwall as well as the many other sights on Orkney on a land trip, Skara Brae was far more interesting than anything to be seen in Kirkwall town itself.

[TouchstoneFeste]

I did a quick search and see at least one tour that would take you there (and to other neolithic sites and the Italian Chapel) from Kirkwall. There are also a few taxi companies and I'm fairly sure you could contract with one for a trip to Skara Brae.

Kirkwall is a charming city with a few worthy sightseeing items and a bunch of shops that are much lest touristy than most of the places we visited. But I agree with @gnome12 that the ancient sites are far more interesting. Strange that a city tour would be offered but not the other. We selected our northern Scotland tour because it spent a day and a half in the Orkneys, so we saw both. Maybe you should ditch the city tour for a full day exploring the ancient sites?

[onyx007]

What I read (as I booked a landbased tour) you will need tickets for Skara Brae, which you should by beforehand or miss getting inside:

 

to be able to visit, you must pre-book tickets following the below link:
https://dashboard.ventrata.com/checkout/en/skara-brae?checkout=b79f173c-5654-4776-9f70-06c8077e4b55