2 Bedroom Self-Catering Accommodation

Holiday Home in Shetland

About Us

“Shetland is a rugged and beautiful place at any time of the year and in any weather: a friendly community where no one is really a stranger for long”.

Averill & Graham, Your Hosts

Charming Victorian Cottage

About Our Self Catering Property

This charming Victorian cottage, built around 1860 by Lerwick merchant Robert Sinclair, offers comfortable accommodation in a quiet, residential and very central location in Lerwick. Situated in a secluded lane, the cottage can sleep up to 6 people. Furniture is good quality and bedrooms are carpetted. Our two bedrooms have been set up to provide family accommodation or accommodation for groups: the larger room has a double and single bed, the smaller one, two single beds. Both bedrooms are fitted with blackout blinds. We can provide a fold out bed on request. Parking is usually available on the street immediately behind the cottage.

Hansel Cottage retains much of its original charm and character but has all the modern conveniences you will need, including free Wifi and a 32” smart TV. All the rooms are surprisingly spacious. The kitchen is equipped to a high standard and includes a washer-dryer and microwave. We provide a small welcome pack of local bread, butter, milk, marmalade, sourced from Scoop Wholefoods and coffee roasted in Orkney provided by Blyde Welcome. There is a bathroom upstairs  with an electric shower over the bath and an additional walk in shower room downstairs with a mains shower. We provide complimentary toiletries sourced from The Shetland Soap Company. Heating is provided by radiators using hot water from a local waste to energy plant and a multi-fuel stove. We provide a small supply of logs and peats for your use. What better than relaxing in front of a real fire after a busy day out? The public rooms have exposed wooden floors and small windows set in thick walls, giving a snug feel. There is a small south/west facing private garden with outdoor furniture, a portable barbecue and a clothes line. There is also a shed where you can store bikes.

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Amenities

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About Shetland

Shetland: TV drama, ponies, knitting, music festivals or wildlife, take your pick. Situated as far north as you can go in the UK, yet enjoying a temperate climate thanks to the Gulf Stream, this archipelago of around 100 islands has been attractive to visitors and adventurers for thousands of years. From the earliest Stone Age settlers through Viking raiders and settlers, Dutch fishermen, German traders, Victorian naturalists, scientists and philanthropists, right up to the present day, travellers have discovered an irresistible way of life, a friendly open community and a rugged, yet beautiful landscape.

Shetland: 60 degrees north, where the Atlantic Ocean meets the North Sea, a place of “white nights” or “simmer dim” and aurora borealis or “mirrie dancers”, of wild storms and tempestuous seas, calm days and enormous skies, the islands are a paradise for naturalists, geologists, walkers and those who just want to get away from it all. In Shetland you can get away from it all, but you can also enjoy modern amenities. Take time to sit back and soak up the atmospheric local culture, with its Norse and Scottish roots, chill out to traditional or contemporary music sessions, explore the rich archaeology and history or just get out and about in the fresh air and marvel at the rich variety of flora and fauna and the stunning geology (Shetland is a member of the European Geoparks Network). The islands’ geology covers around 3 billion years and is more diverse then any similarly sized area in Europe.

Local Info

What To Do In Lerwick

Named Leirvik (muddy bay) by the Vikings, the town dates from the 17th century and is Shetland’s capital. It is a lively town with lots to see and do, all within walking distance of Hansel Cottage.

Breiwick Bay is just 2 minutes’ walk from Hansel Cottage. Here you can take a walk into the historic town centre round the Knab promontory with its practice golf course and walled cliff top path. The route affords fantastic views west over the town and south towards Mousa and passes torpedo tubes from WWII guarding the harbour entrance. As you enter the “south end”, with its iconic lodberries (houses and landing stages built out into the sea by Lerwick’s first merchants), look out for the lodberry that became the fictional home of Detective Jimmy Perez in the TV drama, Shetland.

A stone’s throw from Hansel Cottage is the Hillhead, lanes lead down from here to “the street” (Commercial Street) where there are shops, cafes and eateries. Three minutes’ walk from our cottage is the Market Cross and the Tourist Information office, nearby is the famous Lounge Bar, where local musicians are often found playing sessions with visitors. From the Market Cross you can wander along the harbour front to the Shetland Museum with its excellent restaurant and Mareel with its café bar and cinema.

Clickimin Broch, an iron-age fort situated on a loch to the west of the old town, is only 10-15 minutes away on foot. A charming coastal path (4 minutes’ walk from our cottage) is a fine way to get there. On the way you will very likely see seals, and if you are lucky otters or even Orca. Why not stop at Fjara a lovely café bistro next to Tescos supermarket before you visit the broch. Nearby is the Clickimin Leisure Centre and indoor swimming pool, with water flumes and river ride and health/fitness suite.

If you come to Shetland for Up Helly Aa in January, Hansel Cottage stands in a prime position to view the impressive “light up” and to follow the procession down through the streets. The Galley sits at the end of the Hillhead next to Clairmont Place and the “guizers” gather there from early evening.

FERRY OR PLANE

Travel to Shetland

Shetland is remote from the hustle and bustle, but easy to reach either by nightly ferry crossings from Aberdeen or daily flights from a number of Scottish airports. The ferry arrives in Lerwick itself, while flights arrive at Sumburgh airport 25 miles south of Lerwick. Travel around the islands is hassle free with a good network of roads and inter island ferries linking the mainland to the other islands.

Sumburgh is a scenic airport surrounded on two sides by breathtakingly beautiful sandy beaches. Close by is Jarlshof, a multi-period archaeological site of national importance.

The drive north to Lerwick will take you past good agricultural land, unspoilt beaches and scattered townships. Take a short detour and visit St Ninian’s Isle beach, one of the most dramatic tombolos in Europe. Continue on the main road north passing the island of Mousa with its famous Iron Age broch, the best preserved anywhere. Arriving in Lerwick, you will find a picturesque town and a busy harbour sheltered by the island of Bressay to the East.

Arriving by sea, the Northlink ferry slips into port around 7.30 a.m. and you will enjoy splendid views of Lerwick with its lanes and lodberries rising from the water. In 1263, King Harald of Norway’s fleet anchored here. Later in the 17th century it was the turn of Dutch fishing fleets which came annually to pursue herring fishing and trade with the islanders. Lerwick Town Hall stands proud and prominent and down on the waterfront sits Mareel, a modern cinema/music venue and the Shetland Museum, telling the history of these remarkable islands.

What our visitors say

Testimonials

We know your choice of holiday accommodation in Shetland is very important to you and we invite your feedback if you visit Hansel Cottage. We have a Visitor’s book, a one page feedback form for your comments and a journal where we would love you to write down any special memories or experiences you have had during your visit to our islands. All of these will help “make” the visit for future guests and will help us to constantly improve our service to our guests.

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