We booked The Pier Hotel while driving up the west coast towards Skye. It was the only hotel we didn’t prebook in Scotland and it turned out to be one of our favourites.

The staff were the best thing about The Pier – from the flustered barman who was too flatchat in the teeny tiny bar to show us our room, to the relaxed and knowledgeable breakfast staff next morning.

The Pier is the blue building in the middle of the picture below. We had the attic room which had a remarkable view of the bay and fishing boats, with all the sights and smells such a location offers. Our room was basic, the ceiling height was variable (because of the attic conversion) and the bathroom was very tiny. The shower, however, is a pleasant surprise and everything was clean and neat.

Downstairs again, be sure to pop your head into the bar. It’s possibly the tiniest watering hole I’ve ever seen and is full of gnarly locals. I’m not sure you’d be welcomed if you pulled up a stool but it’s definitely worth a glance.

In the morning, we were roused early by the shouts of fisherman on the water. We watched their operations from our window as they brought in the day’s catch to the pier. Down at breakfast (included in the room price), we found the staff of young women very obliging and passionate about the beauty of Skye. Some staff were itinerant and so it felt more like talking to another traveller than speaking to a hotel proprietor. A good Scottish brekkie too, if I remember correctly.

Dinos and fossils

Skye is loaded with incredible nature stuff. There are dinosaur footprints to be seen at low tide (you can just walk right up to them. But careful, it’s slippery). And several beaches have fossils just laying around to be discovered. And, of course, there’s awesome natural structures like the Old Man of Storr.