Skip to content
LarkTours

Routes · Europe

Nairobi to Scotland's northern isles: Orkney and Shetland

Nairobi → Orkney → Shetland

Ring of Brodgar
"Ring of Brodgar, Orkney.jpg" by Stevekeiretsu, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons· licence
Kirkwall Harbour (Kirkwall)
Photo: Stevekeiretsu, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Neolithic villages & seabird cliffs Best season (general guide): May–Aug

Off Scotland's north coast, Orkney and Shetland feel closer to Norway than to London, with Norse place names and seabird cliffs. This route spends three nights on Orkney and three on Shetland. From Nairobi you'll connect via London to Kirkwall, and the ferry runs on to Lerwick. UNESCO lists the Heart of Neolithic Orkney, which includes Skara Brae, a stone village older than the pyramids, and the Ring of Brodgar, a great stone circle.

How to pace it: Spend days one to three on Orkney: day one, Kirkwall; day two, Skara Brae and the Ring of Brodgar; day three, Italian Chapel. Then spend days four to six on Shetland: day four, overnight ferry to Lerwick; day five, Sumburgh Head and Jarlshof; day six, Lerwick and the coast.

The Italian Chapel was built by Italian prisoners of war during the Second World War inside two Nissen huts. Shetland, further north, is reached by the ferry from Kirkwall. At Sumburgh Head, puffins nest on the cliffs in summer. Jarlshof, near the southern tip, has remains from the Bronze Age to the Norse period on one site.

In winter, Lerwick's Up Helly Aa fire festival ends with the burning of a Viking longship. May to August is the season for long days and seabirds. Skara Brae was revealed by a storm in 1850, and its stone houses still have beds, hearths and dressers.

Maeshowe, a chambered tomb, is aligned so that the setting sun lights its inner passage around the winter solstice, and Viking visitors carved runes on its walls. Scapa Flow, the sheltered harbour between the Orkney islands, was a major naval base in both world wars, and the German fleet scuttled itself there in 1919. Shetland is the northernmost part of the United Kingdom, and Shetland ponies, small and hardy, are named after the islands.

Orkney is known for its fudge, cheese and beef, Shetland for knitwear.

Safety: Canada's advice for the United Kingdom is to exercise a high degree of caution (updated 26 May 2026), and the US rates the United Kingdom Level 2 (9 Sep 2026).

Suggested outline

  1. Nairobi

    Start

  2. Orkney

    By air · 3 nights suggested

    Green islands rich in Neolithic sites.

  3. Shetland

    By ferry · 3 nights suggested

    Britain's northernmost islands, with seabird cliffs.

    Lerwick harbour Shetland
    "05930 UK Shetland Lerwick welcome sign V-P.jpg" by Virtual-Pano, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons· licence

Day by day

  1. Day 1 · Orkney — Arrive; Kirkwall· Nairobi → Orkney (by air) — long-haul; may arrive the next calendar day
  2. Day 2 · Orkney — Skara Brae and the Ring of Brodgar
  3. Day 3 · Orkney — Italian Chapel
  4. Day 4 · Shetland — Overnight ferry to Lerwick· Orkney → Shetland (by ferry)
  5. Day 5 · Shetland — Sumburgh Head and Jarlshof
  6. Day 6 · Shetland — Lerwick and the coast
  7. Day 7 · Shetland — Travel home from Shetland· Shetland → Kirkwall (by ferry), then Kirkwall → Nairobi (by air)

A suggested pace only; expedition days are set by the operator.

Flights, leg by leg

Each button opens a live, dated search. We don't show stored fares here: check today's price on the booking site.

Showing dates about a month ahead — change them when you search.

Orkney

Nearest airport: Kirkwall Search fares · Kirkwall ↗

Partner links may earn LarkTours a commission at no extra cost to you. Prices, availability and terms are set by each partner.