Fair Isle tourist information

Beautiful, rugged Fair Isle is amongst the most remote places in Britain, found half way between the Shetland and Orkney isles, but with a long history and unique culture.

Today the island is owned the National Trust for Scotland, and is easily accessible in the summer by boat or plane from Shetland (the air journey is only 25 minutes. However the difficult journey meant that historically this link between these islands was often hard to reach and fraught with danger from rough seas.

Despite this the island has archaeological remains showing it to have been inhabited for around 5,000 years. The island community have preserved their traditional heritage and crofting ways - and the sheep produce the wool to make the famous colourful Fair Isle knitwear.

The wonderful sheer cliffs support thousands of breeding sea birds, such as Guillemot, Razorbill, Puffin and Fulmar, along with unexpected visitors dropping in mid-migration. The large Bird Observatory runs ranger-led guided walks, events such as bird-ringing, and hosts a small museum of the island.