Shetland with kids – an ultimate guide

Shetland with kids can feel like an adventure from the start. With its rocky coastline, Viking history and wildlife filled shores it’s somewhere for all the family to feel entranced by. There are 15 inhabited islands and dozens more uninhabited and it’s somewhere to really get away from the rush of day to day life. You can use the headings below to jump to different sections or read through the whole thing for a big, blast of Shetland with kids inspiration.

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About Shetland

Shetland is the furthest north of the UK. A collection of Scottish islands which belonged to Norway until the 15th Century when they were gifted to Scotland in exchange for the dowry to King James’s daughter Margaret.

The islands have a certain Norwegian look to them with some bright buildings and rolling hills.

There’s plenty of history here too including Roman remains and a whole host of evidence of the Vikings.

Our guide to Shetland with kids: Inspiration

Read all about our family trip to Shetland here with all the adventures we had and the things we saw and did.

Read what my children said about our trip to Shetland at the bottom of the page. They often surprise me with the things that they particularly loved about our travels.

Shetland’s best sights

Shetland is jam-packed with places that are worth a visit and that should be included in any itinerary if at all possible.

Our favourites are –

• Enjoying the stunning tombolo (sea on both sides) beach at St Ninian’s
• Looking out for Orcas at Sumburgh Head Lighthouse
• Heading over to Mousa Island and the world’s best preserved Iron-Age broch
• Watching thousands of gannets nesting in the cliffs in Unst
• Seeing 4000 years of life through the ages at Jarlshof
• Walking with Shetland Ponies at The Shetland Pony Experience
• Experiencing the great foodie revolution in Lerwick
• Looking out for otters in Eshaness
• Taking a boat trip around the beautiful island of Noss

Our guide to Shetland with children: Videos

Check out our video all about our time travelling through Shetland here –

Where to go in Shetland with kids

Shetland is beautiful with sparkling, turquoise seas and the most rugged of coastline. Here the beaches are sandy and deserted with rolling hills stretching inland, green and picturesque. With some wonderful history and wildlife in every direction you look it’s a dream location for getting away from the rat race for a while, unplugging and enjoying life.

Lerwick and The Mainland Island

Lerwick

The most populated area is around Lerwick, the main town in Shetland which has the most shops and facilities.

This is a great place to be based to explore the islands and there’s plenty to be seen here too.

The Shetland Museum and Archives is a great place for rainy days and is packed full of all the history of Shetland. It’s nicely interactive with a great cafe and gift shop too.

Somewhere to burn off steam in Lerwick is Clickimin Broch which is an ancient Iron Age structure (historians dispute its original use).

Park up at Sound Service Station (which is another great shop to pick up supplies) and walk across the road to the broch.

There are shops dotted all over Shetland but the biggest are here in Lerwick where there is a fairly large Tesco and also a really good sized co-op to pick up any supplies.

Likewise there are swimming pools all over Shetland, it’s reminiscent of Iceland in that respect and is lovely to see.

The biggest again is here in Lerwick, Clickimin Leisure Complex which is the perfect place to spend a rainy day as it has water chutes and a small children’s pool.

Scalloway

This is the ancient capital of Shetland (it remained so until 1708) and there’s still some lovely things to do here.

Scalloway Castle is free to enter and a great place to explore with kids. As far as ruins go it’s a really well kept one and you can peer up long extinguished fireplaces and look out of glass-pained windows and imagine what life would have been like here 400 years ago.

Also in Scalloway is the Scalloway Museum which is very well priced and a sweet little place to explore.

There are lots of exhibits dedicated to the history of Shetland. In particular the Shetland Bus which was the co-operation between the UK and Norway to help each other during the war and the clandestine journey of boats between the two under the cover of darkness.

The children really enjoyed exploring all the different exhibitions here and learning about everything from the difficult history of whaling to the Oceanic shipwreck.

There’s a lovely, little gift shop here too with a particular emphasis on woollen hats and gloves made on the islands.

There’s also a nice little playground here in Scalloway, along the main stretch which has the Scalloway Hotel on and with climbing frames, slides and swings.

Burra

Just outside of Scalloway, in Burra is the Shetland Pony Experience which is a wonderful place to get up close and personal to the beautiful Shetland ponies.

Here you can groom the ponies, pet them and children can ride them. It’s also possible to lead the ponies down to the beach nearby which is such a special experience.

This was one of our children’s favourite things to do in Shetland.

Sumburgh

In Sumburgh, the Sumburgh Head Lighthouse and visitor’s centre is a really interesting space to visit.

It’s very interactive with lots of displays allowing you to hear the sounds of the past, including the mighty fog horn from the lighthouse.

The centre tells the story of lighthouse keepers been and gone and there are also some fascinating stories including how a unit based there (you can see the room they were in) detected a Nazi attack on British ships at Orkney, giving them a valuable 25 minute warning to prepare and prevent countless loss of lives.

This is also a wonderful look-out point for whales that pass by and also the cliffs here are absolutely teeming with birds – we spotted Puffins, Guillemots, Petrels and Arctic Terns.

Just down the hill from Sumburgh Head Lighthouse is Jarlshof which is an incredible site. It features so many styles of accommodation from different periods of history.

There’s a Norse house, a Viking longhouse and Medieval farm buildings.

This is a lovely place for kids to burn off some steam and also a fascinating insight in to the changing needs of families and communities in the area.

Northmavine

Northmavine is almost a separate island to Mainland but is connected by a small strip of land.

This is an area of beautiful coastline. Head to Tangwick Haa Museum to learn about the history of the area.

This is a very sweet museum with displays of how families lived in the area through the centuries.

There’s a picnic area in the gardens and you can also grab a cup of tea or coffee. There’s a little gift shop too with local ornaments and some hand knitted items.

St Ninian’s

St Ninian’s is a beautiful island, full of intrigue and mystery. Helped thanks to the discovery, by a school boy in the 1950s, of a hoard of treasure under what is believed to have once been a Medieval church on the island.

Plenty to get children’s imaginations really going.

Most impressive here is the tombolo (sea on both sides) beach which is one of my favourite beaches in the world.

This is a stunning, gasp out loud stretch of sand with turquoise waters and sand dunes to clamber up. There aren’t any facilities here but that’s what makes it feel even more special.

Mousa

Take the boat from Sandsayre to the Island of Mousa (between April and September) to experience a deserted island packed full of wildlife.

The 15 minute crossing will land you on the island where you can take a circular route around it which takes around two hours.

This is a really easy walk, nice and relatively flat but it’s important you stick to the guided route so as not to affect nesting birds and also to keep a good eye on children as the cliff edges can be steep in places.

There’s the world’s best preserved Iron-Age broch here which is wonderful to explore. And you can walk up the original staircase from over 2000 years ago to get to the top.

As an RSPB reserve the seabirds here are also magnificent especially the UK’s largest storm petrel breeding colonies.

There is also a late night boat trip (it leaves around 10.30pm and returns around 1am) to see hundreds of the storm petrels returning after being out feeding.

We loved the island and found the boat trip crew so knowledgeable and interesting to talk to. The perfect place to walk and enjoy some of the stunning Shetland scenery.

Noss – Shetland with kids

Noss is a beautiful island, which was once inhabited, close to Lerwick.

It is separated from the island of Bressay by a narrow Noss Sound and is a national nature reserve.

It’s the perfect place to take a boat trip from, to get up close to some of the amazing birdlife around the islands and also have the chance to spot seals.

There are a number of companies operating tours to Noss. This was a real highlight of our trip to Shetland.

Unst

Unst is the absolute north of the UK. The furthest of the inhabited islands and remote, beautiful and full of things to see.

Hermaness National Reserve is a gorgeous stretch of land which you can walk through and spot carnivorous plants and beautiful birds.

At the top the views over the cliffs to Muckle Flugga are absolutely stunning.

Walk just a little further up the hill for the best sight of all and thousands of gannets and a fair few puffins nesting on the cliffs here.

It is absolutely mesmerising and a wonderful place to visit in Shetland with kids.

There is also Muness Castle, the 16th century home of the rogue sherif Laurence Bruce, the most spectacular bus stop in the UK (which changes regularly); replica Viking houses and boats at Haroldswick and some fantastic beaches (Sandwick is one of our favourites).

The Up Helly Aa fire festival

If you travel to Shetland on the last Tuesday in January you can get to experience the world famous Up Helly Aa Fire Festival.

This is a wonderful event to mark the end of the yule period.

There is more than just the one, the most famous is the Up Helly Aa in Lerwick but they take place across 11 different locations and are truly spectacular. Check out our top things to do in Shetland here.

Spotting wildlife on Shetland

There’s wildlife all over Shetland but will a little planning you can get the most out of any trip to the islands.

Some of the best wildlife can be found in the following seasons –

Winter – Common Seal, Grey Seal, Otters, Harbour Porpoise, Peregrine Falcon, Red Grouse, Oystercatcher

Spring – Bottlenose Dolphin, Common Seal, Grey Seal, Harbour Porpoise, Otter, Gannet, Guillemot, Puffin, Razorbill

Summer – Bottlenose Dolphin, Common Dolphin, Common Seal, Grey Seal, Minke Whale, Harbour Porpoise, Otter, Gannet, Guillemot, Puffin, Razorbill

Autumn – Common Seal, Grey Seal, Harbour Porpoise, Otter, Gannet, Guillemot, Razorbill

There are also some great places and experiences trips to explore them. Some of our favourites to see in Shetland with kids were:

• Seeing the world’s largest colony of Storm Petrels on Mousa along with countless other birds and seals.
• Looking across the waters to whales at Sumburgh Head Lighthouse (along with lots of birds nesting in the cliffs)
• Watching dolphins as you travel in on the Northlink Ferry from Aberdeen.
• Looking at otters on Eshaness
• Seeing thousands of gannets nesting on Unst.
• Watching the seals on Noss

Where to stay in Shetland with kids

Scalloway – Shetland with kids

In Scalloway we stayed at Easterhoull Chalets which are a set of nine chalets up above Scalloway and with views across the sea and Scalloway Castle.

They are fairly basic but have everything you need for a family stay with a small kitchen, lounge with television and two bedrooms.

Note they only sleep four. They are in a great location with it being very easy to get in to Lerwick or to Scalloway.

There is also the Scalloway Hotel which is in a wonderful position, right on the edge of the waterfront and full of history.

Brae

In Brae The Braewick Café & Caravan Park is a great place to camp or if you fancy glamping on Shetland then stay in one of their four heated wigwams.

With views across the famous sea stacks, The Drongs, and some dramatic coastline, this is a wonderful place to stay. The cafe here is open for breakfast and lunch and very well priced.

There is also the Burrastow Hotel which is a lovely, traditional hotel with gorgeous lounges. It is tucked away with lovely views.

Unst – Shetland with kids

On Unst we stayed in the self catering accommodation at Saxa Vord which is a little basic but comfortable and warm and a great size for a family with three bedrooms upstairs.

The main part of the hotel has a restaurant onsite if you want to eat out without having to go far too. It’s a good place to stay in Shetland with kids.

Where and what to eat in Shetland with kids

There’s lots of great food in Shetland and a real movement to provide locally sourced which makes for some delicious, fresh creations.

There’s plenty for meat eaters and lots of fish too.

As a vegetarian I ate very well on Shetland and there was plenty of choice. Dishes to look out for are haggis (and vegetarian haggis if you can find it – we bought some at the Tesco in Lerwick to have for breakfast one day but none in a restaurant unfortunately) and sticky toffee pudding.

There are some amazingly adventurous and delicious dishes being made across the island though, so be prepared to be impressed.

Lerwick

We ate at The Dowry which is a lovely restaurant with a Scandi feel and gorgeous views out across the harbour.

The food here is tapas style which is a wonderful chance to order a number of dishes to all share. Some of our favourites were the chips with Orkney cheddar and spring onions, Arancini balls and sage and garlic squash with whipped feta and dukkah spices.

It’s right in the centre of the town and they often have quizzes or live music on too. The food here is wonderful.

We really enjoyed lunch at Fjarå Café Bar which is very Scandi and with gorgeous views across the beaches here in Lerwick.

They have a great selection of food from quesadillas to burgers and bagels and great smoothies. This is also a lovely spot for some coffee and cake.

For something a bit different C’est la Vie Cafe in the centre of Lerwick has some great recipes from Spain and France made with fresh Shetland produce.

You can have lunch or dinner, or just stop in for a cup of tea from their extensive menu and some amazing French crepes. There are French dishes to take away to have at home.

This is a really friendly place to rest your feet after some time off exploring.

Scalloway

We enjoyed lunch at The Scalloway Hotel, right on the waterfront in the former capital and perfect for some food.

The roasted cauliflower soup was amazing and the children thought the fish and chips was outstanding. We all thought the sticky toffee pudding was one of the best we’ve had.

Brae

It’s well worth taking a trip out to Frankies Fish & Chips, the most northerly of all fish and chip shops in the UK.

They have won a few awards and it’s a lovely setting with lots of little extras in addition to the fish on offer.

Eshaness

The Braewick Cafe has the most amazing views across to the famous Sea Stacks, The Drongs.

The food here is fairly simple but it’s a great place to stop and rest awhile and take in the scenery and the food is largely sourced locally.

On the South Mainland

Mackenzie’s Farm Shop and Café in Cunningsburgh is a wonderful place to stop for breakfast or lunch or even some cake and milkshakes in an afternoon.

This is a wonderful cafe with large farm shop making it the perfect place to pick up some delicious, local supplies (I loved their selection of cheeses from Orkney and there’s plenty here from across Shetland) and some crafts and gifts.

Unst – Shetland with kids

Victoria’s Vintage Tea Room is the perfect place for lunch with delicious soup and sandwiches using local ingredients like Orkney cheese and Shetland salmon.

They also have the largest slices of cakes around (their chocolate and Guinness cake is fantastic). The cafe also has a small shop selling local crafts.

Getting to Shetland / How to get to Shetland

You can fly in to Shetland, arriving in to Sumburgh. You can also take the Northlink Ferry which is a great way to travel with restaurants, cinema and bar on board.

There are family cabins and you sleep through the journey, arriving early in the morning ready for breakfast before disembarking. Read more with our full review of travelling from Aberdeen to Shetland with Northlink Ferries.

Driving is the most straightforward way to get around Shetland and really gives you a chance to see bits of the islands you wouldn’t otherwise be able to get to.

We used STAR Rent-A-Car which is based at the port so this is a great place to pick up a car and start exploring.

There are buses everywhere and this is a great, budget way to travel around with children but it really is much more convenient to drive if possible.

Between the islands are plenty of inter-island ferries which are an affordable and quick way to get around.

You can book these in advance which is well worth doing if you know the times you want to travel as they do fill up.

Whether or not you book in advance you will usually need to pay for the boat in cash so bear this in mind before you get there.

Some of the ferries have small lounges to sit in for the short crossings, some don’t. View the inter-island timetable here.

Our guide to Shetland for kids: What to buy

Shetland isn’t filled with the biggest selection of souvenirs but there are nonetheless some lovely items to pick up on your travels around.

Fair Isle jumpers and hats and scarves are a great souvenir and beautifully made.

Find them at various shops through the islands and for example, in the little museum at Scalloway.

The Shetland Soap Company have some great items – their wildrose and rhubarb scented products are amazing.

There are tasty treats including Shetland oatcakes and various biscuits.

Children will love the cuddly toys including otters and puffins you can pick up in lots of the souvenir shops and newsagents.

Some great places to pick up souvenirs are –

• Mackenzies Farm shop & Cafe for local food, knitwear and other gifts on Mainland
• Scalloway Museum shop for Fair Isle style gloves and hats on Mainland
• Victoria’s Vintage Tea Rooms for local crafts on Unst.

Our guide to Shetland with kids: Itineraries

Check out our one week itinerary for Shetland here.

Our guide to Shetland with kids: Top tips

If you’re travelling from outside of Scotland it’s good to look up the Scottish school holidays as they can differ from the rest of the UK.

For example there is no half term in May which makes it a great time to travel.

Dress for the weather. It’s usually chillier in Shetland than in mainland UK and there’s a wind that can whip around that makes it feel even colder.

No matter what the time of year come prepared with jumpers, waterproof and warm coats and plenty of layers. When we visited in late May I wished I’d brought a hat too.

Bring sturdy footwear as Shetland’s beaches can be rocky and uneven and are so beautiful you will be desperate to explore so make sure all the family have good footwear.

Petrol availability can be sporadic so fill up in Lerwick and keep an eye on the gauge to get more well in advance.

There’s not a lot of contactless payment available in Shetland so make sure you have alternatives.

Keep a good eye on children around cliff edges.

Look out for lots of local food to try or take home including oat crackers, cheeses and biscuits. If you’re heading out for a walk take lots of water and snacks with you.

Our guide to Shetland with kids: Further reading

We always travel with a Lonely Planet Guide and loved the Scotland’s Highlands and Islands version which we took with us throughout our time on Shetland.

The Shetland Bus will tell you all about the history of this link with Norway in the Second World War.

I love the Shetland version of the Gruffalo’s Child, “The Shetland Gruffalo’s Bairn” which is absolutely adorable and a perfect book to read to children if you’re planning a trip to Shetland with kids.

If you’re interested in fiction then Ann Cleeves writes murder mystery novels set in Shetland, start with Raven Black.

If you’re interested in bird life (and if you’re not, you will be after a trip to Shetland), then a book like Discover Shetland’s Birds is really useful.

Shetland with kids – What my children say about… Shetland

Our family trip to Shetland was filled with so many beautiful sights and exciting adventures. We saw so much wildlife, travelled to the furthest inhabited island of the United Kingdom and saw some amazing historical sites.

This is what our children aged seven, 10 and 12 thought about the time in Shetland in their own words.

1. What was your favourite thing about Shetland?

N (12) – I thought that Shetland was such an amazing place full of lots of wildlife that you don’t normally get to see. It’s different to other places in the UK because it feels quite small and you bump into people that you’ve seen before which is really nice as it makes it feel friendly. The countryside in Shetland is full of flowers and different types of plants and wildlife.

T (10) – I thought Shetland was such a lovely, friendly place and people were really helpful. It was really beautiful there and you can never really tell what the weather is going to be. I really liked that it was crazy weather…sometimes it would snow, sometimes it would be amazing and sunny. You never know.

M (7) – I got to see otters and they’re my favourite animal so I loved Shetland.

2. We saw so many different wildlife on our travels through Shetland, which was your favourite?

N (12) – The puffins because I’ve never seen puffins before. It was amazing to see them poke their heads out of the cliff and fly off.

T (10) – I have to say dolphins, it was so amazing to see them from the boat, to see them so close.

M (7) – Otters. They were so cute and it was lovely watching them have fun together. I really liked the man who took us {Richard Shucksmith} because he was really nice and he knew about otters a lot and where to find them and he told me where we could look for them and what they were doing.

3. What was your favourite thing we did in Shetland?

N (12) – I loved going to the very top of Shetland, to Unst. It felt like a bit of a mission to get there on the little ferries that go between the islands but then it felt so exciting to be at the very end of the UK.

T (10) – I think it was when, I know it’s not good to remember this, but I think it was at that place where the drone got stuck {Clickimin Broch}. I really liked that it was so local to the main town. It was interesting to climb underneath and it was so old but still standing and the people from so long ago were walking in the same place where you were walking, that felt amazing to think about.

M (7) – I really liked the boat trips because we got to see lots of birds and at the end a really big seal jumped up on the boat, that was so much fun to see.

4. Was there anything you didn’t like about Shetland?

N (12) – No, I don’t think so.

T (10) – I think when we went to see the Iron Age broch on Mousa the walk was quite long and I was worried we were going to be left behind.

M (7) – I didn’t like it when our drone tried to fly away, it got stuck on top of some rocks {the Iron Age broch!} and I thought it was lost forever.

5. What was your favourite meal we ate in Shetland?

N (12) – I really liked the cafe in Unst {Victoria’s Vintage Tea Rooms} because the soup was really tasty and I loved the big slices of cake.

T (10) – I really liked the pancakes {at C’est la Vie Cafe} although they were gone quite quickly. I really liked when we went to The String too, the food was really good and I loved the fish cakes. I really like fish so that’s why I liked that restaurant I think.

M (7) – I really liked the pancakes, they were covered in sugar and lemon which is my favourite.

6. What was your favourite place we visited in Shetland?

N (12) – I really liked the main town {Lerwick} because it was full of little shops like ones selling soap and chocolates made on the islands. It was cool travelling up to Unst too.

T (10) – I really liked the area with the swings and playground {Scallawoy}, there were loads of local people and everyone was really friendly. I also liked the castle there where you could look up the big old chimneys.

M (7) – The main town {Lerwick} was my favourite, I liked the flags all hanging down.

7. What did you think about the accommodation we stayed in during our time in Shetland?

N (12) – I really liked Saxa Vord in Unst, where it snowed and also the little chalets {near Scalloway}. I liked Saxa Vord because it was big and a proper house and it snowed there and felt like Christmas. I liked the chalets because they were at the top of the hill and you could look down on to Scalloway.

T (10) – I really liked the one where it snowed because it was really open and we had lots of space. I liked the conservatory there too.

M (7) – I liked our own little house where it snowed because it was really fun when it snowed in June because it’s supposed to be the summer and I liked that.

8. What was the best activity we did in Shetland?

N (12) – I really liked going to see the otters because we got to see them up close and Richard showed us where they were living.

T (10) – Definitely the pony riding. I really liked it because the people were very nice, we didn’t have to go very far to enjoy ourselves, they helped us a bit but they let us do most of it ourselves. I thought the ponies were really well behaved and very sweet.

M (7) – Definitely the otters because they’re my favourite animal.

9. What did you think about the Northlink ferry to Shetland?

N (12) – I thought the food was lovely, I loved the fish and chips on board and I liked how you could help yourself to the fudge and drinks which were in the lounge.

T (10) – I thought it was so nice we could relax in the lounge, I liked it there. I really enjoyed the food, particularly the pudding. I had a really good sleep on board.

M (7) – I liked sleeping on the boat because it was nice and quiet. I really liked the play area too, you could watch films there.

10. Would you like to go back to Shetland?

N (12) – Yes, I would like to go back to see all the things we didn’t get to do. I would love to go whale spotting, I was really disappointed that we just missed out on seeing the whales who arrived the next day or two after we left.

T (10) – Definitely, yes. That was definitely one holiday to remember, I would love to see all the beautiful things there, I would love to go back and do some more.

M (7) – Definitely. I liked it as it was lovely scenery.

Check out our feature on the best things to do in Shetland with kids and our itinerary for 7 days in Shetland so you can plan your own adventure there too.

We hope you’ve found this guide to Shetland with kids useful. Do please let us know any tips or places to visit we should include, or if we have helped plan your visit, we would love to hear from you.