Hebridean Whisky Festival

The 2025 itinerary is now confirmed by the Hebridean Whisky Festival event organisers.  Hjalmar Bjorge will follow it’s own route which will include Isle of Skye, North Uist and Benbecula and finishing at Tarbert on Harris.  There will be open access to the distilleries, with some having special events on the day. Our route will coincide with the last three distilleries of the festival itinerary and we will be there for the finale at Harris distillery.

We will be providing private transport as part of the cost with either our own vehicle or private taxi and in many instances the Hjalmar Bjorge will be anchored within a short walking distance of some distilleries.   As this will be a one way, our own minibus will transport you back to Oban, so no need to worry about getting back to the start point and you can sit back and relax..

This is also a great time for whale and dolphin activity on our route, so we will be keeping alert for some great encounters.

Please note On our best days our itinerary will be smooth transits from one anchorage to another as shown on the program we have offered. However, this is the West Coast of Scotland, and we, are governed by mother nature. So, on occasion, for your comfort and safety, we may need to, tweak, the original course that we are looking to follow. But wherever our tweaking takes us, our trip and destination anchorages will always be special.

Day 1: Oban; seafood capital of Scotland and known as the Gateway to the Isles.  Our departure point will be the pontoons just off Oban’s North Pier. We look to start boarding Hjalmar Bjorge at around 14:30, a short briefing introducing our new guests to life aboard ship, its safety procedures and getting you settled into your new home for the next 6 nights. Casting off at 15:30 then heading for the first nights anchorage at Tobermory.

Day 2: We will make our way north, past Ardnamurchan peninsula and the lighthouse and head for the isle of Skye, passing the beautiful Small isles.  The plan is to anchor at Ornsay on the east side of the Sleat peninsula, Skye and a visit ashore to Torabhaig, a small independent distillery.

Day 3: Morning will see us head round the point at Sleat and head along the west coast of Skye.  We sail under probably the best mountain scenery in Scotland, the Black Cuillin range.  There will likely be time for an excursion ashore from Loch Scavaig to the spectacularly positioned freshwater Loch Coruisk, before heading into the shelter of Loch Harport and an afternoon visit to Talisker, probably the best known distillery on Skye and popular with visitors from around the world. We will overnight Loch Harport.

Day 4 & 5 :  A fairly short crossing from Skye will see us arrive at Benbecula and North Uist on the Western isles.  We will have plenty of time to explore the islands, walk, golf and of course a visit to Benbecula and North Uist distilleries, both in wonderful settings.   At this stage we will join the formal Hebridean Whisky festival for the last three locations for the festivities.

Day 6: This morning we leave the Uists and Benbecula and make for Tarbet on Harris, a 3 hour steam north.  This will allow us to join the festival finale at the Harris distillery.

Day 7: After a hearty breakfast, it’s off across the Sea of the Hebrides back to Skye, arriving Uig around 1200 and farewells to the boat and crew before hopping on your private transport back to Oban, arriving around 1600.