Isle of Rona

Portree, Isle of Skye
Self-catering
+44 (0)7831 293963
Visit owner's website

From
£99 - £179
per night
From
£695 - £1250
per week

Thrillingly remote yet cosy, two stone cottages facing the sea & Skye. Swim, fish, walk – simple pleasures in a sublime setting

Place

2 places

Sleeps

Each sleep 4

Children welcome
Pets welcome

£99 - £179 per night

£695 - £1250 per week

The Experience

A gang of seals greets you as you draw into Big Harbour – as, less raucously, does friendly and knowledgeable Bill, one half of Rona’s permanent population. Let him haul your luggage while you walk over the hill to Dry Harbour, another beautiful natural fjord with mistily romantic views across to Skye and the pinnacles of the Storr. The modern world recedes further as you settle in to Escape, a late Victorian stone cottage with fenced garden nestled into the curve of the bay. Some of your electricity comes from a small wind turbine (don’t worry, there’s a back-up generator) but, with underfloor heating and wood burners in both kitchen/diner and sitting room you’ll be cosy. There’s games and books aplenty and sea views all around – a shame not to enjoy it with some Isle of Rona whisky…The second cottage, The Mission House is set some way apart, but larger families and groups can rent both places together. Swim in the bay, trawl rock pools for your supper, stalk red deer with Bill (the venison is delicious) …or just sit on the deck and savour the briny air. A great escape.

Essentials

  • EV charger
  • Self check-in
  • Swimming pool
  • Hot tub
  • Garden
  • Open fire / woodburner
  • Breakfast included
  • Breakfast available
  • Meals available
  • Vegetarian meals
  • Oven
  • Parking on premises
  • Free parking nearby
  • Accessible by public transport
  • WiFi
  • Television
  • Central heating
  • Limited mobility
  • Wheelchair access
  • Mobile reception
  • Hob
  • Barbecue
  • Paid parking nearby
  • Air conditioning
  • Relaxation areas
  • Washing machine
  • Tennis court
  • Microwave oven
  • No smoking
  • Credit cards
  • Working farm
  • Owner has pets
  • Electricity included
  • Dishwasher
  • Pets welcome

Family friendly

  • Baby monitor
  • Books and toys
  • Children welcome
  • Babies welcome
  • Stair gates
  • High chair
  • Fire guard
  • Cot available

Nearby

  • Pub/bar within 3 miles
  • Restaurant within 3 miles
  • Shop within 3 miles

Activities

  • Bikes available
  • Food courses
  • Kayaking
  • Other courses
  • Sailing
  • Surfing
  • Wild swimming

Accommodation

Pricing

Nightly price
from £99
Weekly price
from £695
1 Cottage for 4
From £992 bedrooms
1 Cottage for 4
From £992 bedrooms

Information

Booking information

Other details
Minimum stay: 7 nights.
Closed
Rarely.
No smoking
Smoking not permitted anywhere in the property.

Reviews

A travel journalist summed up Rona when she said its main attraction was Rona. You don't come here to be entertained or occupied. Resilient, self reliant folk will enjoy the dislocation from the outside world, and the chance to switch off and live to whatever timetable or none each day suggests. The main track will get you the length of the island . Manager Bill has very usefully installed metre high painted posts to navigate you through the less obvious paths inc to the wonderful Church Cave and the Trig Point. All in a degree of comfort that belies its remote location.

Chris, Chagford

We stayed for a wonderful, wild, windy weather week in January 2020. As described our cottage was warm (even during the stormy weather leading into Storm Ciara). Although the cottage is remote, on a remote island, it was accessible and very comfortable. The managers are ever ready to ensure their guests are happy - but respectful of privacy too. The kitchen is well equipped. The cottage a delight. Clean. There is a view across to the Isle of Skye; divine, from most rooms. We could've stayed for a year. Nikki's cakes and the venison was fantastic, buy them. Rona is Scottish, raw, wonderful.

Janine, Tocumwal, Australia

We truly stumbled upon the entry for the Isle of Rona. We are immensely grateful we did. A one week stay is necessary in this heavenly place that is run by humorous and gentle folk, Bill and Lorraine. Escape is perfectly equipped and very comfortable, and its name befits an experience where there is no internet, limited mobile connection and no cars. Wonderful! We relaxed, read, walked, visited the beach, spoke to each other, feasted. Our stay enriched us and yet reminded us of the fullness of nothing. We highly recommend this unique and gorgeous place.

Brenda

Been there for a week 3 years ago. Going back for 2 weeks this year. Best place on Earth to escape from it all. Just the fact of not hearing any engine noise for days on end is a feast for the soul. There seems to be a kind of "natural selection" in place for visitors to the island. This ensures you are not going to share your holiday with the noisy/annoying/littering kind of traveller. Bill and Lorraine are incredible: they discreetly check you are getting on fine with your stay, but very much leave you to enjoy and soak up the place. TOP STAY!

Andrea

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Location

The neighbourhood

Local points of interest from Bill & Lorraine Cowie

  • Cooking with our deliciously fresh finest island produce is one of Rona’s great treats. Rona reared & butchered venison is our star ingredient, with seafood, free range eggs, seasonal vegetables also available to order ready for your arrival.
  • We offer boat trips on the MV Rona - a wonderful way to spend an hour or two during your holiday. Help Bill haul in the creels, or fish for a seafood supper. Dolphin, Minke whales and basking sharks can all be seen in the waters around Rona.
  • A walk to Church cave, set in the east cliff of the island is a must. Looking out over the sea waters of the Inner Sound, the cave still has rows of boulder 'pews' that served past populations. Two of our cottage guests even decided to marry here!
  • Rona is home to a host of wildlife; otters & sea eagles, dolphins, porpoises, minke whales and basking sharks are all frequent visitors. Our red deer are a magnificent spectacle in autumn - listen to the stags roar & return to enjoy a dram by the fire.
  • Walkers can follow trails that traverse the island or wander off track through mossy woodland or clamber over the summits of hard Lewisian gneiss. Rona’s highest peak, Meall Acairseid, is 125m high, a short climb rewarded by an awe-inspiring 360° sea view
  • But the beauty of Rona, is that just ‘doing nothing’ is an experience in itself: a roaring fire with our local dram, beachcombing, enjoying fresh seafood yards from the sea, the sunset over Skye’s Old Man of Storr, stargazing in the dark night skies...