travel

Stunning Sunsets and historic castles – Camping at Kinloch Campsite

Posted on by Iris

The sunsets are stunning here on Kinloch Campsite. As we stood looking out on Dunvegan Loch, with a local gin and tonic in one hand, the sky transformed from a golden yellow, to orange, then purple and pink.

Kinloch Campsite is a small, friendly, family run campsite located in the north west area of the Isle of Skye, Scotland. We stayed here for 3 nights in August of 2019.

The natural views of Dunvegan Loch and the surrounding hills of MacLeod’s Tables are two of my favourite features of this campsite. It’s also very spacious, with many places to choose from to pitch a tent, with unhindered views and space, away from your fellow campers.

The campsite also caters to campervans, with hard standing electric hook-up pitches, clean toilet block with free, hot showers, laundry and dish washing areas and free Wi-Fi.

Dunvegan’s Bakery, the oldest on Skye is a short walk from the campsite, and a great place to buy a variety of fresh baked bread, rolls, pasties, pies and cakes. We stopped here on several occasions, for breakfast or to grab some snacks on our road trips around the Isle of Skye.

Kinloch Campsite is the perfect base to explore the rest of the Isle. Our road trips took us up to Trumpan Church with it’s historical and violent past, the historic Dunvegan Castle, the natural beauty of the Fairy Pools, and the endless seafood options at Portree.

As the Covid-19 pandemic restrictions begin to lift, a trip back to Kinloch is planned, once safe to do so. With so much more of the Isle of Skye to see, including a meal at The Three Chimneys, I highly recommend Kinloch Campsite as a relaxing and beautiful place to stay.

Advertisement

Forget about Arabian nights – try scuba diving the Arabian Sea! 

Posted on by Iris

They say some of the best diving in the United Arab Emirates is on it’s East Coast, so naturally I had to arrange 3 open water dives with Al Boom Diving  during my vacation here.

After emailing Al Boom in Fujairah, the booking process was easy, with a deposit or full payment to secure my place on what is usually a very busy weekend. So I definitely recommend booking your place ahead of time.

The organisation of my three recreational dives over two days was excellent, with equipment bags prepared for all the divers on arrival, and a short walk down to the beach and onto the boat. We were provided with water and fruit, with the option of paying for a sandwich from Le Meridien Resort. 

My friend and I dived across three locations, Martini Rock and Hole in the Wall on the first day, and Sharm Rock on the second. With the water temperature at 26 to 27 degrees celcius, I was comfortable in my 5mm long Fourth Element wetsuit, while my friend was comfortable in a short wetsuit. 

The visibility at Martini Rock and Hole in the Wall on Saturday May 19, 2018 was excellent. At a maximum dive depth of 19 metres at Martini Rock, we saw lots of butterfly fish, trigger fish, moray eel, stone fish and trumpet fish.

The second dive at Hole in the Wall was a great experience, with the dive instructor leading us through a tunnel or “hole in the wall”. At this second site, we saw more trigger fish, stingrays, trumpet fish and butterfly and angel fish.


Our third dive on Sunday May 20 was at Sharm Rock. The visibility wasn’t as good as the day before, but we still saw barracuda, trigger fish, butterfly fish, moray eels and clown fish.

Al Boom Diving In Fujairah are based at Le Meridien Al Aqah Resort. As divers at Al Boom, you can also collect a food discount voucher to be spent at the beach bar and hotel restaurant, which I recommend.

Pradeep Fernando, the manager of this 5 Star PADI Dive Centre is friendly, and his staff are professional, helpful and hospitable. My friend couldn’t complete the second dive on the first day, and was offered another opportunity to dive again. The service was excellent and I’d highly recommend diving with Al Boom Diving in Fujairah.

For more info, visit Al Boom Diving