Private Bespoke Tours
2025
See What's Included
- £1500 - Deposit Due immediately to secure your place on the trip
- £2490 - Final Payment due 4 months prior to the trip starting
Paid in two separate instalments.
£3990 per person
OPTION 2 - Private Room Price
- £1500 - Deposit Due immediately to secure your place on the trip
- £1990 - Final Payment due 4 months prior to the trip starting
Paid in two separate instalments.
£3490 per person
OPTION 1 - Shared Room Price
Price
Join the waitlist for our 2025 tours
TBC
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Date 2
Date 1
2025 Tour Dates
During your private bespoke tour, you can expect an immersive journey into the heart of Shetland's rich culture and textile heritage. We'll explore some of the finest coastal walks guided by expert local guides. And we delve deep into the world of Shetland wool and knitting as you learn about colour-blending, Fair Isle, Shetland lace, dyeing, and history of Shetland knitwear. With tailored knitting classes catering to all levels, you'll have the opportunity to knit alongside some of the islands’ leading tutors.
Join us on an unforgettable journey to discover Shetland and our unique textile heritage.
Create a thread between you & Shetland that spans oceans.
Our small, dedicated team is focused on making sure that your time in Shetland not only brings enjoyment and stimulating activities but also creates lasting memories. Each day promises an exciting exploration as well as a chance to slow down and experience Shetland at your own pace. We all live busy lives and sometimes crave to escape and find ourselves again – this is paramount for me, so our tours offer a deep yet relaxing experience of Shetland.
Trip Highlights
- A Fair Isle class with Donna Smith
- A Shetland lace class with Elizabeth Johnston
- A Shades of Shetland class with Donna Smith
- A class on colour blending with Terri Malcolmson A moodboards class with Joanna Hunter
- A natural-dyeing class with Donna Smith
- A Shetland lace class with Anne Eunson
- A Fair Isle yoke tips class with Janette Budge
- An introduction to the history of Shetland textiles and knitting talk
- Ella Gordon's Shetland vintage knitwear trunk show
- A Fair Isle class with Donna Smith
Classes:
- A visit to Shetland Museum & Archives, where we will be given a guided tour of its textile collection, which is classed as a Recognised Collection of National Significance.
- Visits to local crofters to learn about Shetland sheep in their native environment
- A visit to the Sandness spinning mill, home of Jamieson’s of Shetland yarn
- A visit to Shetland Textile Museum, a vibrant showcase of Shetland’s textile culture and heritage
- A visit to Jamieson & Smith, where we will learn about the art of wool sorting and grading
- A visit to the Unst Heritage Centre to view their famous Shetland lace collection
Visits:
Tours & Walks:
- A walking tour of Lerwick with Laurie Goodlad – step back in time to the 18th century and the days of the Dutch fishermen, smugglers and whalers. Excursions to many Shetland spectacular places and areas of interest such as St Ninian's Isle, Unst, Yell, Burra, Northmavine, South Mainland, Westside or Bressay
- A boat trip to Mousa & a walk to Mousa Broch
- A boat trip around the islands of Bressay and Noss A circular walk at Eshaness, Shetland's extinct volcano
- A walk in Culswick
- A walk to Hermaness or Sumburgh Nature Reserves
- A visit to the world-famous archaeological site of Jarlshof
- A Shetland cookery class with Marian Armitage
- A visit to the Handmade Fish workshop to sample Shetland smoked salmon
Food Experiences:
- Six nights’ accommodation in a centrally located, super cosy and newly refurbished traditional house in Lerwick, perfectly suited to groups of 6
- Delicious, healthy breakfasts, packed lunches with fresh home-baked cake, tea/coffee & snacks during the day and "Sensational Secret Shetland Supper" evening meals
- Pick up and drop off at the airport or ferry
- Transport within Shetland
- Knitting classes led by Shetland expert tutors. Most of them will be held at the SWA creative space in the very heart of Lerwick's historic lanes.
- All visits as detailed in the itinerary
- The services of a tour manager
- The services of qualified Shetland tour guides Knitting materials
- A gorgeous Shetland Wool Adventures goodie bag
Pricing Includes
- £1500 - Deposit Due immediately to secure your place on the trip
- £2490 - Final Payment due 4 months prior to the trip starting
Paid in two separate instalments.
£3990 per person
OPTION 2 - Private Room Price
- £1500 - Deposit Due immediately to secure your place on the trip
- £1990 - Final Payment due 4 months prior to the trip starting
Paid in two separate instalments.
£3490 per person
OPTION 1 - Shared Room Price
Tour Details
*Please note that travel to and from Shetland is not included in the price.
How it works
Once we've agreed the itinerary of your bespoke trip and everyone is satisfied, a non-refundable deposit of £1500 per person secures your place with the balance due 4 months before the start date. A deposit will be required to finalise your booking.
This approach ensures that we can accommodate any adjustments to ensure you are happy with the plans.
THE BOOKING PROCESS
Your adventure, your way - from intimate knitting classes with expert tutors in the heart of Lerwick to exploring Shetland's diverse landscapes or crafting with local artisans, your tour can be customised to fit your group's unique interests.
Our tours are limited to 6 guests to ensure a relaxed and intimate experience.
Crafting Your Itinerary
Whether it's the intricate Fair Isle colourwork, Shetland history and heritage, or the breath-taking landscapes that you can't wait to experience, our tours are designed to cater to your passions and showcase the best of what these special islands have to offer. Once you have secured a place for your group of 6, we will work with you and your friends to create a journey of discovery and inspiration.
What Lights You Up the Most?
1 0o is wool in Shetland dialect.
2 Please note that Jamieson's is a working mill so a tour of the factory is not always possible. If this is the case an alternative programme will be provided.
- After breakfast we will head to the Westside of Shetland. Our first stop will be in Bixter, at Marion Anderson’s Breckenlea croft and Shetland pony stud to see her Shetland sheep, ponies and sheepdogs.
- Then we will head to Sandness to visit the Jamieson’s of Shetland spinning mill, where their yarn and knitwear is made. We will be given a tour of the factory and learn about the process of yarn and garment production including grading, scouring, dyeing, spinning, knitting and linking.
- After lunch we will return to Lerwick to visit the charming Shetland Textile Museum, a vibrant showcase of Shetland’s textile culture and heritage, run by volunteers.
- We will then head the short distance to Jamieson & Smith Shetland Woolbrokers. Oliver Henry will give us a demonstration in the sorting and grading of Shetland wool (“oo”) and there will also be an opportunity to shop for yarn.
- After a delicious home-cooked dinner we'll meet Ella Gordon and learn about her fabulous vintage Shetland knitwear collection.
Shetland Museum & Archives | Fair Isle Class with Donna Smith | Old Lerwick
DAY 3
- Our day starts at Shetland Museum & Archives, where we will be given a private guided tour of the textile collection, which has been classed as a Recognised Collection of National Significance in Scotland since 2013.
- After tea and cake we will start our Fair Isle class with Donna Smith, a former Shetland Wool Week 2015 patron and the iconic Baa-ble hat designer. The class continues into the afternoon.
- After dinner we will take a leisurely walk around old Lerwick with the local travel writer, Lonely Planet guide contributor and guide Laurie Goodlad, who will take us back in time to the 18th century – to the days of the Dutch fishermen, smugglers and whalers. We will soak up the atmosphere and hear stories about life in the old closses, courts and lodberries. Laurie will also explain the truck (barter) system, in place until the 1930s, by which Shetland knitters produced garments not for cash, but for credit at the local shop.
The Westside | Shetland Oo | Shetland Textile Museum | Vintage Shetland Knitwear with Ella Gordon
DAY 2
Independent travel to Shetland with an airport or ferry pick-up. Meeting at 6.30pm for a welcome dinner.
We will go over our planned itinerary and talk about the days ahead. There will also be an introduction to Shetland textile heritage and tradition. Bring your knitting with you!
Arrival & Welcome
Day 1
Sample Itinerary
- We will start our day with a visit to Ronnie Eunson’s Uradale organic farm, to learn about Shetland sheep in their native environment and to draw some inspiration from Shetland’s spectacular scenery. There will also be an opportunity to purchase their Uradale organic yarn.
- We will then continue to the isle of Burra, where Donna Smith lives. Donna will show us around her croft and we'll also learn about her designer practice, as well as the story of her wonderfully squishy Langsoond yarn.
- After lunch we will enjoy a Shetland hap class with Donna. A hap – a word meaning to cover, wrap or keep warm – is a traditional shawl with a particular association with Shetland where, for more than a century, they were knitted for everyday wear as well as for sale. This class is the perfect opportunity to learn about the traditional technique of the hap construction in which they are knitted from the outside towards the centre.
Uradale Farm | Burra and a Hap Class with Donna Smith
DAY 5
- The fourth day will take us on short ferry rides to Yell and to Unst, Britain’s most northerly island. Unst is one of the most spectacular and interesting islands in Europe, fascinating for both its natural and human history. The beautiful and varied landscape, home to many Viking sites, supports a rich variety of wildlife, as well as pure-bred Shetland sheep and Shetland ponies that roam the common grazing land.
- We will visit Unst Heritage Centre to view their world- renowned collection of fine lace knitwear, as well as another interesting local museum, the Old Haa Heritage Centre in Yell.
Top of Britain - Yell, Unst & Lace
DAY 4
- On our last morning we will learn about traditional Shetland lace with Elizabeth Johnston and we’ll knit a small lace sampler. Elizabeth was the Shetland Wool Week patron in 2018, is an acclaimed hand spinner and she also specialises in dyeing wool with plants.
Lerwick | Lace with Elizabeth Johnston
DAY 7
- We will travel south to St Ninian’s Isle to enjoy some of Shetland’s fascinating landscapes. We’ll walk across the spectacular sand tombolo that links Mainland Shetland to St Ninian’s Isle. St Ninian’s Isle has fine cliff scenery, and the remains of St Ninian’s chapel – where Shetland’s most valuable archaeological find was made.
- On our way to the Sumburgh Head Nature Reserve (where we may well spot puffins), we'll stop in the wonderfully atmospheric Shetland Crofthouse Museum.
- After lunch we will visit Nielanell’s colourful and inspiring textile studio in Hoswick and learn about the design and inspiration process behind their stunning and unusual garments.
- The highlight of the day will be a colour-blending class with Terri Malcolmson, a granddaughter of Wilma Malcolmson of Shetland Designer. Wilma is one of Shetland’s foremost knitwear designers and manufacturers who has based her business on the use of colour for both hand- and machine- knit garments and accessories. After taking inspiration from Wilma’s unique knitwear designs we will have a class in blending colours for Fair Isle with her.
- Another delicious – this time also our farewell – dinner.
South Mainland & Wilma Malcolmsom
DAY 6
For more information please email Info@shetlandwooladventures.com
CONTACT
The food on our holiday is prepared by local chefs, who are passionate about using local produce to create delicious and balanced meals each day. We make sure all meals are healthy as well as tasty, and we’ll make every effort to accommodate any dietary needs you may have.
FOOD
We have a team of talented and experienced Shetland tutors who have a wide range of textile knowledge and expertise.
Our guides are professionally trained, accredited and insured and they are members of STGA (Scottish Tour Guides Association).
TUTORS & GUIDES
We reserve the right to make small changes to the tour where practical.
ITINERARY
We keep our groups size small, with a maximum number of 6 participants, to ensure quality and individual attention.
Our expert tutors and guides are always on hand to help you and provide you with help, advice and insightful information, all backed up by years of experience.
We pride ourselves in a truly individual and personal approach to ensure you have the best possible experience.
GROUP SIZE
Details & Important Notes
Your Shetland Wool Adventure Starts Here
Explore native secrets, hiding in the nooks and crannies of the landscape. And get closer to the crafts and industries that have thrived in such a remote environment.
