Orkney Islands

Illustration of the "Guided Tour" feature in ArcGIS Story Maps

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Ferry from Scrabster

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On board MV Hamnavoe

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Stromness

Second largest settlement on the islands, after the capital Kirkwall.

Stromness is lively, welcoming and cosmopolitan. It remains a working town and is at the forefront of Orkney's pioneering renewable energy industry, with the  European Marine Energy Centre  headquartered there. Some of Orkney’s best crafts, textiles and jewellery can be found in the delightful independent shops to be discovered around every corner, while in local galleries and the Five-star  Pier Arts Centre  the work of artists and sculptors from Orkney and beyond takes centre stage. And as you take in all that Stromness has to offer, the experience is often accompanied by the vibrant sounds of Orcadian music - rehearsed and impromptu - to be heard in the many pubs and venues across the town.

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Neolithic Orkney

Stones of Stenness

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Neolithic Orkney

Ring of Brogdar

The Ring of Brodgar comprises:

A massive stone circle, originally consisting of 60 stones – 36 survive today

At least 13 prehistoric burial mounds

A massive stone circle, originally consisting of 60 stones – 36 survive today

At least 13 prehistoric burial mounds

A massive stone circle, originally consisting of 60 stones – 36 survive today

At least 13 prehistoric burial mounds

A large rock-cut ditch surrounding the stone circle

A large rock-cut ditch surrounding the stone circle

A large rock-cut ditch surrounding the stone circle

The Scottish geologist Hugh Miller, visiting in 1846, wrote that the stones ‘look like an assemblage of ancient druids, mysteriously stern and invincibly silent and shaggy’.

The Ring of Brodgar comprises:

A massive stone circle, originally consisting of 60 stones – 36 survive today

At least 13 prehistoric burial mounds

A large rock-cut ditch surrounding the stone circle

The Ring of Brodgar is part of the  Heart of Neolithic Orkney World Heritage Site , a series of important domestic and ritual monuments built 5000 years ago in the Orkney Islands.

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Neolithic Orkney

Skara Brae

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Rousay

Knowe of Yarso

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Rousay

Midhowe