Stornoway Unique Vacations
Many folk like to take vacations in unusual places and increasing numbers of travelers are finding vacations at the seaside increasingly boring. The challenge to discover is ever and travel agents are constantly looking for new and exciting places to visit or which offer something of interest. In the article below I introduce the port of Stornoway on the remote Isle of Lewis in the Western Isles and describe the reasons why this is a great destination for a vacation.
The Island Of Lewis
The Isle of Lewis, with Harris, is the largest island in the Outer Hebrides/Western Isles. The archipelago is found a fair distance off Scotland’s west coast a little further out from the Isle of Skye, needing a ferry journey or flight to get there. As a result of the extreme remoteness it was only since the middle to late 20th century that ordinary people have been able to access to the islands for a vacation, before then it was only those with enormous funds who could afford the enormous cost of the trip. The only other way to visit the Outer Hebrides was to arrive on business.
Stornoway
A long time ago the town of stornoway was an immensely busy fishing port. Herring was the main quarry of the multitude of fishing boats and throughout the season Stornoway’s population increased from about 6,000 to over 30,000. An amazing number of Stornoway Hotels, bed and breakfasts and guest houses were built to satisfy the needs for lodging the incredible influx of temporary workers created. Nowadays the population of the town stays at just over six thousand (excluding visitors).
Unfortunately the herring industry fell into a dramatic decline after the First World War with the utter collapse of the the markets in Russia and Germany. A tiny fishing fleet can still be found in Stornoway however few buildings from that time remain and Stornoway lost a great deal of its charm during the redevelopment of the 1970’s.
Recently the local council has sympathetically enhanced Stornoway installing several works of modern sculpture focusing on the association with the herring industry as well as also adding such things as fountains and flower beds. New buildings are also more aesthetically pleasing, for example An Lanntair, the local arts centre.
Although there are far fewer Stornoway hotels existing today, only the Royal Hotel dates back to the heyday of the Herring industry, you will still find a great many bed and breakfasts in Stornoway, plus hostels, inns and guest houses. You will even find a caravan park on the outskirts of the town centre.
If you are thinking about a vacation in the town of Stornoway please take a look at our comprehensive listings of Stornoway hotels.