HEBRIDEAN ODYSSEY

Robin McKelvie experiences a holiday fit for royalty as he takes a 10-day voyage around Scotland's magnificent islands.

- Robin McKelvie

A day alive with world-class hiking, breaching whales and boat-fresh seafood lingers on a smouldering Hebridean sunset, enjoyed with a dram in hand in the on-deck hot tub. Welcome to life aboard Hebrides Cruises’ Emma Jane, a small luxury ship that eases just 10 guests on life-affirming adventures around Scotland’s incomparable islands.

It’s no wonder that the Prince and Princess of Wales are rumoured to have sailed to Mull when they celebrated their 14th wedding anniversary. “There is nowhere quite like the Hebrides,” beams the Emma Jane’s skipper Jake (it’s very much first-name terms with Hebrides Cruises); from the helm of a plush cruiser that feels more Monaco than Mallaig. “To explore this magical archipelago is a real privilege; I cannot think of anywhere else I’d rather be sailing.”

I’m back onboard the Emma Jane for the 10-night “Far-flung Islands; Shiants & the Summer Isles” cruise eight years since I joined her inaugural sailing. Since then, she has aged more gracefully than me, each winter enjoying several – including a hybrid power system, part of a determination to be more sustainable that has won Hebrides Cruises upgrades coveted Green Tourism Gold awards.

Its fleet – which also includes the trim former rescue vessel Elizabeth G and the even more luxurious Lucy Mary – cannot stop winning awards, with half a dozen in 2024 and two Sailawaze gong’s this year.

As we emerge from its home port of Oban, I share Jake’s enthusiasm as an escort of porpoises greets us.