Harris Articles

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Our first article is about Harris Self Catering which also appears on Article Dashboard at http://www.articledashboard.com/Article/Harris-Self-Catering/428111

We also have Harris articles listed on Ezine @articles:

http://ezinearticles.com/?Self-Catering---Accommodation-in-Style&id=973249
http://ezinearticles.com/?Driving-In-The-Hebrides&id=956274

With other articles about other subjects available at http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Andrew_M_Kelly

Also see Self Catering Accommodation on Harris & Self Catering Harris Style

If you are interested in staying on the Isle of Harris in self-catering accommodation visit our Harris Self Catering page

Harris Self Catering

Many folk are looking for a vacation destination that offers something a little different from the ordinary. Rather than choosing to stay in a high quality hotel, or even a cheap bed and breakfast establishment, they choose to book self catering accommodation. The reasons for making such a choice are many but, if you were to ask a few for their personal reasons, I would wager that the vast majority would count 'freedom' in the top three reasons for using self catering. With such accommodation there are many 'freedoms', freedom to choose when you leave your room, freedom to choose when you should return, freedom of choice of when to eat, I suppose such freedoms could be simply packaged together in the simply totality of 'freedom of choice'.

Having made the decision to stay self-catering and your location you then need to decide upon which type of self-catering accommodation you wish to use. Do you want to book a top rated modern self catering apartment in a modern building with almost as many facilities as a fine hotel or would you rather book something a little more rustic? The wide ranging choice of accommodation types is somewhat mind boggling , even Disney offer self catering chalets. One of my most favorite types of accommodation is known as a blackhouse, more of which I will explain later, maybe you would like to stay in a small rural cottage, a farmhouse, a period building or even a castle or lighthouse. The amazing thing is that the choice of self catering accommodation is immense.

One of the most exciting thing about hiring a cottage, or other building, for a vacation is that you have the opportunity to mix with the local community far more closely than if you were staying in a large hotel or holiday complex. Nothing can beat staying in a small village in a house or cottage that is built in the local style. You get something of a feeling of what it would be like to live there, you can certainly make yourself more at home in such a place. Indeed many folk often end up moving home to set up afresh in a locality which they had previously visited for a vacation.

It was following many vacations on the Isle of Harris in the Western Isles (also called the Outer Hebrides) off the West coast of Scotland that I decided to move here and start a family. It took me a long time to decide to move as the Hebrides are rather unique. In the summer there is nowhere finer but in the winter the weather can be too harsh for some and I have seen many move here only to move away the following spring. I might be strange but I love the bite of a strong wind, I love walking alone along wide golden sands with the sea spray hitting my face and fresh clean cool air filling my lungs. Admittedly the hot summers are more enjoyable when the crystal clear sea is not too cold to swim in and you are able to walk barefoot if the sand is not too hot but I loved visiting so much that I also took vacations to Harris in the winter.

I could write a book about how beautiful the Hebrides are, especially the Isle of Harris, and many have done so in the past. Unfortunately there is insufficient space here for such glowing description of numerous beaches and other places of interest so I will concentrate on introducing you to some of the self catering accommodation available on Harris.

Firstly I must explain about the blackhouse mentioned above. This amazing building can be found at Borvmore Cottages at Scarista on the Isle of Harris. Scarista is well known for it's incredible beach and it's glorious countryside and there are many types of vacation accommodation available. 'Blackhouse' is the name given to the type of building in which Hebrideans (those living in the Hebrides) once lived in. It is a very low stone built single storey cottage type building with deep inset small windows and thatch for a roof. In centuries passed the family would live in one half while the livestock stayed in the other, rather smelly but also very warm. Thankfully you get the blackhouse at Scarista all to yourself and it has been fully modernized to a very high standard.

Other, more usual types of self catering accommodation are available on Harris ranging from the numerous stone built croft houses to chalets and caravans. There are also a few bunkhouses available and plenty of bed and breakfast guest houses (and a few hotels) for those who would rather not stay self catering. However I suggest that you take a look at the self catering accommodation at Scarista, especially the blackhouse, before you make any final decisions.

By: Andrew M. Kelly

If you are looking for self catering accommodation on Harris then why not visit www.southharris.com

For further information on the Outer Hebrides visit the incredibly large and informative Virtual Hebrides at www.virtualhebrides.com