Contact Us Jacob's Flock Cottage Holidays Home

Places to Visit


Noss Head


Castle of Mey


Duncansby Head


Thurso in Winter


Tongue


Melvich Beach


The View of Stroma


Sunset

Location

A map, available via this hyperlink, will show you how to reach us and will give you an idea of the local countryside.

Getting to and from Caithness:

Flights – Wick (16 miles) is the closest airport with connecting flights to Aberdeen (Eastern Airways) and Edinburgh (Flybe).
Inverness airport offers a greater choice which is 120 miles from the cottage.

Trains – Stations at Wick and Thurso

Ferries - 3 ferries operate from Caithness to Orkney:
Northlink Ferries from Scrabster to Stromness, Pentland Ferries from Gills Bay (just along the road) to St Margarets Hope and a passenger only ferry from John O’ Groats to Burwick during the summer months.

Caithness is a beautiful county with vast areas of unspoilt countryside, quiet country lanes and big skies. There is plenty for the outdoor enthusiast to discover or simply relax in the holiday accommodation and take advantage of the peace and quiet.

Things to See and Do

John O’Groats
The world famous John o’Groats is just 3 miles from the cottage.
The village itself has a fabulous restaurant, The Schoolhouse, a pub, a Post Office and a shop. At the harbour you will find gift shops, a coffee shop and the famous John O’ Groats sign to have your photo taken to prove you were at the end of the road!
There is also a passenger ferry to Orkney to experience the highlights Orkney has to offer and Wildlife tours around the island of Stroma. Alternatively you can hop aboard the North Coast Explorer an 11 metre jet RIB which offers Wildlife tours around the deserted island of Stroma to see the amazing wildlife or for those seeking more adventure a white-water experience.

Beaches
Caithness has many beautiful and more often than not deserted beaches.
At the end of the drive and across the field you can access the rocky beach which has a small waterfall and is the point to look out for sea otters and porpoise .
You will also see seals here and at the lay-by near the ferry especially when the tide is out and it’s a great location for messing about in the rock pools. For sandy beaches here are just a few suggestions:

Sannick Beach
Four miles from the holiday cottage, this is a beautiful beach where often the water is tropical looking even if the weather isn’t!!

Freswick Beach
Four miles, another small but lovely beach sandy at one end and rocky around Freswick Castle.

Sinclair Bay
Eight miles from the holiday cottage. Voted one of the top-ten beaches in the world by the Guardian in 2007.

Dunnet Beach
Ten miles. Sandy beach stretching for two miles with dunes with the Seadrift visitor centre and toilets.

Shopping

Village shops can be found in Canisbay, John O’ Groats and Mey. A slightly larger shop is found at Castletown, ten miles from the holiday cottage.

Wick and Thurso, the county’s two towns both have several supermarkets and many local shops.

The holiday cottage also falls into a Tesco home delivery service area.

Leisure Activities

Golf Courses
Can be found at Wick, Thurso, Lybster and the most northerly golf course on the mainland is found at Reay, ten miles west of Thurso.

Fishing
Sea fishing by boat or onshore, Loch fishing and river fishing are all available and permits can be purchased from local shops and hotels.

Surfing
With many beaches comes many places to surf the most popular locations being Brims Ness and Thurso East which are both the home to the annual O’Neill Highland Open.

Swimming Leisure centres can be found at both Wick and Thurso.

Wildlife
Even for a complete amateur you cannot be but amazed by the wildlife all around you in Caithness.
Seals, porpoises, otters, deer, buzzards to name but a few are right on the doorstep you just need to know where to look!

Horse Riding
Available at Halkirk or beach trekking in spectacular scenery along Torrisdale Bay.

Historic Places of Interest
Castles
Caithness has numerous castles from fully restored castles to ruins.

The Castle of Mey is probably the most popular and can be found just a few miles away.
It now boasts an animal centre, tearoom and shop in addition to the walled gardens and the castle itself and is well worth a visit.

Mary Ann’s Cottage
Located in Dunnet this is a real slice of croft living. This historic croft has been left exactly as it was when the owner Mary-Ann Calder left in 1990.
Stepping into this croft you can completely imagine what life would have been like in the holiday cottage years ago.

Brochs
There are 100’s of Brochs in Caithness and the best place start exploring them is with a visit to the recently opened Caithness Broch Centre just a few miles away in the village of Auckengill.

Other Sites of Archaeological Interest
Caithness also offers cairns and stone circles the most impressive of which is the Grey Cairns of Camster.

Other Places of Interest

Caithness Horizons
A recently opened visitor attraction based in Thurso. It is a perfect starting point for finding out about Caithness and what it has to offer. It also provides regularly changing exhibitions, tourist information, a café and shop.


Old Poultney Distillery
Take a tour around the most northerly mainland distillery and sample a complementary dram.

Caithness.org
A local community website that is bursting with information on the area and events taking place.