The slate islands in Scotland are well known for their black sand beaches and up until 1965 were key sources of Slate in Scotland, with slate from the island of Luing being used for the construction of buildings such as the University of Glasgow and Iona Abbey.
Luing in particular is a well loved tourist spot and counts tourism as one of its main industries along side lobster fishing and beef farming. The main draw of the Scottish Slate Islands is the peaceful and tranquil ambiance; it is much more relaxing than any two weeks in an overcrowded, noisy hotel in Spain for sure!
The reason it is more relaxing is that many of the accommodation options available are self catering cottages or rented houses, meaning you’re not sharing with hundreds of other people and can really delight in your time away from working life. When staying on Luing you’ll have the perfect chance to forget all the stress and pressure of everyday life as these small islands are sometimes thorough a step back in time: there are no Starbucks on every street corner and endless shopping centres which you’ll no doubt be glad to see the back of for a few days.
This is not to say that holidays on the Slate isles is slow paced and behind the times, far from it, you can make of it what you will by engaging in actions such as cycling, windsurfing and fishing to keep you busy as well as the well-known whirlpool at Corriewreckan well loved for taking the rare Rib Ride down.
Really getting to Luing is moderately simple, taking into account people may have the image of having to charter a small plane or travel by small fishing boats to get to the islands. This is far from the truth; Luing can be reached by car as it has car ferries travelling 200 metres across the Cuan Sound to Seil which is connected to the mainland via a bridge.
Luing also gave the Luing cattle its name, a red beef which even as a money-making breed it is hardier for the tougher conditions. Lobster and Prawns are two main products of the fishing industry on the island and can provide some appealing meals which you can even have a go at cooking yourself at your self catering accommodation Scotland getaway.
So if you’re looking for somewhere truly magnificent to behold and feel like you’re the only one there to see it then maybe you should consider a highland self catering holiday as it can offer much more and yet allow you to relax and delight in your time off work and your time in Scotland.
Andy Adams is an experienced UK based travel writer
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