By Robin McKelvie
I’ve long been a fan of Hebrides Cruises, whose sturdy wee Elizabeth G has spirited me out to the ultra-remote St Kilda archipelago and on other superb adventures around the Inner Hebrides and along the remarkable Caledonian Canal.
Her sister ship, the 10-passenger Emma Jane, who joined her in 2017, is more luxurious and spacious with plush furnishings and fittings, a large owner’s suite and an outdoor hot tub. As my Emma Jane Hebrides Islands cruise review will cover, she has been upgraded further following the arrival of a third even more luxurious vessel to the Hebrides Cruises fleet, the Lucy Mary, which they started sailing in 2023.
RELATED: Read Robin's Lucy Mary review HERE.
(The Emma Jane was formerly called the Proud Seahorse and sported a red hull, before she was renovated, painted navy blue and renamed Emma Jane during the winter of 2017/2018. Read more in the sidebar further on in the story.)
Over the years I’ve been lucky to head out on cruises through the Hebrides over 20 times and have never been disappointed. How could you be when this vast island-studded oasis is awash with epic mountains, shimmering white sand beaches and stunning sunsets?
VIDEO: Robin shows us the view of Scotland's lovely Hebrides, from aboard the Emma Jane, below.
It’s also an oasis bursting with all manner of wildlife, from red squirrels to red deer on land, through to porpoises, dolphins and even whales in the sea. Then both golden eagles and sea eagles soar through the skies.
Emma Jane makes the most of all this and I greatly enjoyed sampling my second cruise on her, the 10-night Far-flung Islands: Shiants & the Summer Isles voyage.
The upgrades since sailing on her inaugural cruise in 2017 were palpable, most notably in service, the food and the general appearance of the interiors, plus the hybrid propulsion system that has made the Emma Jane more sustainable.
A Perfect Hebridean Cruiser
Emma Jane is the ideal vessel for a comfortable cruise around the Hebrides.
She only takes a maximum of 10 passengers, and she earns her owner’s description as a “luxury mini-cruise ship,” with tweaks to her every winter to ensure she stays in superb condition.
Emma Jane’s Cabins
On an Emma Jane Hebrides Islands cruise, it's worth splashing out on the master cabin suite with its separate sleeping and lounge area on the main deck.
The other cabins are located below deck. Though not as large as the suite, they are very comfortable and Hebrides Cruises’ years of experience in the realm of small ship cruising shows with creative use of space with lots of storage worked in. All cabins are en suite. I stayed in a twin cabin, shown below.
On my most recent cruise aboard Emma Jane, I boarded in Oban and had soon bonded with my fellow passengers as we pushed out of Oban Bay bound for the Sound of Mull, gateway to the Hebrides.
Emma Jane Backstory
Before I get into my Emma Jane Hebrides Islands cruise review, I want to share some of the wee ship's back story.
Proud Seahorse was launched with Hebrides Cruises in May 2017. She was bought from an Orkney family, who were pleased she would be owned by another seafaring family. The vessel was built in 1978 as an ocean-going stern trawler with twin Detroit 8v71 engines and Alison gearboxes, typical of Norwegian rescue ships.
She was then commissioned for survey work in the Gulf of Suez and the Mediterranean Sea. In the 1980s she was contracted by the British Royal Navy for 18 years, doing survey work around the coast of Britain and the surrounding waters. She was then bought by the Reid family in Orkney and fully converted into a luxury yacht, remaining in their ownership until sold to Hebrides Cruises in 2017.
During the winter of 2017/18 the vessel was resprayed to match Hebrides Cruises’ Elizabeth G and renamed Emma Jane (Emma is the daughter of Rob Barlow, Hebrides Cruises owner and skipper, and works for the company).
Emma Jane’s Cuisine
Dining is communal at a large wooden table, the day starting with a hearty breakfast with the option of traditional porridge to start. Lunch is taken — weather permitting — outside with a range of fresh buffet style dishes, with glorious mackerel one day caught by skipper Jake.
Dinner is the highlight, a chalked board with three courses described getting the tastebuds going beforehand. Local seafood like langoustines, king scallops and salmon feature (sourced from the fishmonger on Oban pier), alongside more exotic dishes like Chicken Katsu curry.
Desserts are comforting classics like apple crumble and sticky toffee pudding. Wine at dinner is included and the feast finishes with a well-stocked cheeseboard that features a good selection from Scotland.
The evening concludes with a briefing covering the day’s wildlife sightings and plans for the next day. Stargazing with a wee dram on the top deck is a sublime option afterwards.
Who’s in Charge
At the helm of my Emma Jane Hebrides Islands cruise was the impressive Jake Elson — Jake, as it’s always first name terms aboard Hebrides Cruises. Though not as experienced as the owner/skipper Rob Barlow, or James Fairbairns, a veteran skipper with years of cruising with the Mull Sea Life Surveys and an authority on the local marine mammals for decades, Jake proved very professional and knowledgeable.
He worked in conjunction with wildlife guide and bosun Will Smith, excellent chef Minty McGowan and super friendly and warm hostess Trinity Minney.
A Day-by-Day Account of My Emma Jane Hebrides Cruise
Day One Aboard Emma Jane
Leaving Oban is one of my favorite sailaways anywhere in the world as you wave goodbye to the Argyll hills and the Hebrides — an archipelago of hundreds of islands — beckon. Soon our first cetaceans are spotted, harbour porpoises popping up in the Sound of Mull as we pass Duart Castle, one of Scotland’s most romantic castles, the former bolthole of Sir Fitzroy McLean, said to be the inspiration for James Bond.
Our evening mooring — all our overnights are at anchor — is sheltered Loch Sunart, one of Scotland’s longest sea lochs at 31km long.
VIDEO: Robin shows us a view of the 13th-century Duart Castle, below:
Day Two
Our first morning brings an otter scrambling along the rocky coastline, with the Ardnamurchan Distillery, one of Scotland’s newest, in the background. The aim today is to get around Ardnamurchan Point, the most westerly part of the British mainland, into the Hebrides proper.
A large minke surfaces as we pass the iconic Ardnamurchan Lighthouse and common dolphins ride our bow wave en route to Canna, an island that has the best natural harbour of the quartet of Small Isles that lie to the south of the Isle of Skye.
A tender ashore allows Will to lead a hike up to Compass Hill. On the way we peer down the massive sea cliffs at a pod of bottlenose dolphins frolicking in the surf.
Day Three
We slip our mooring and make our way with the minke whales north up the coast of Skye in search of its most westerly land — Neist Point.
I break away from the group and relax in one of my favorite shore-based wildlife viewing spots in Scotland on the rocks right by the water. I hear a loud outtake of breath and turn to find a minke whale passing just a few meters away. It surfaces again a few minutes later then arcs its tail and disappears on a deep dive. Taking its place are a brace of harbour porpoise, who cruise along feeding oblivious to my presence.
After a glorious couple of hours, it’s back aboard to steam to a mooring in a lovely remote corner of Skye. I set my alarm and get up at 3am hoping to see stars. Instead I’m treated to a bright sky alive with the Northern Lights.
Day Four
Unusually this morning we make a double stop excursion. First to Isay, a little-visited island off Skye. It’s rich in history, from the ruin we encounter on landing that was the site of an infamous massacre that wiped out two families, on to the ruins of a village that was depopulated during the baleful Highland Clearances that the isles are still struggling to recover from.
The second stop is idyllic Coral Beach, a starched white wonder on Skye that looks lie the Caribbean in the brilliant sunshine that accompanies us for this cruise.
I ramble up a hill for a better view then plunge into the waters, which are a bracing 10C.
VIDEO: Here's a quick look at Coral Beach, WOW!
The afternoon is spent gunning out into the notorious Minch in search of the seriously remote and uninhabited Shiant Islands. As we approach, the skies and waters are filled with more and more seabirds: everything from gannets and great skuas (bonxies in these parts), through to super cute puffins.
This three-island archipelago is home to 2% of the world’s puffin population; 10% of the UK’s puffin total. The bird life was a highlight of my Emma Jane Hebrides Islands cruise,
Day Five
After a night with the eerie wailing of the Shiant seals —I see now why the islanders used to fear the ‘Blue Men’ — we get ashore on the rocky tombolo that connects the two main islands. Will introduces the island and takes the group on an immersive wildlife tour, but as I’ve been here three times I strike out off up the hills, risking the wrath of those hulking bonxies as I go, who often divebomb walkers entering their territory.
My reward is a thrilling hike where I feel like the only person left on earth. My only company are those swirling seabirds — thousands of them — and the trio of seals I spy messing around in the aquarium-clear waters below.
Our afternoon journey to the Summer Isles is eventful with half a dozen minke whales and a possible distant spying of a rare sei whale. We encounter two large pods of common dolphins too, before dinner and another gorgeously lingering sunset.
It’s May and in these isles that means almost perpetual light. Tonight the sun refuses to properly go to bed, enjoying a spectacular dance with a blood orange moon.
Day Six
The Isle Martin is the closet of the Summer Isles to the mainland and the locals of Ullapool carefully tend to their uninhabited sibling with a community initiative that has created a great network of walking trails, an honesty shop with basic supplies and a very informal café.
I spend three hours bashing all over the island, taking in the big skies and towering mountains of the nearby Coigach Peninsula.
Then, a voyage south towards Loch Torridon accompanies lunch. Arriving off the postcard-perfect Highland village of Shieldaig, our sea eagle viewing (Shieldaig Island has a nesting pair) is interrupted by a juvenile minke whale popping up just off our bow.
Day Seven
A short tender takes us on to Shieldaig and the mainland. Will leads a gorgeous walk around the An Aird Peninsula. Marked trails cut through the rugged ground and wee hills tempt. I pop up a trio of hill, each offering a different view of the surrounding lochs and the mighty mountains of Torridon, which soar straight from the cobalt Atlantic to over 1,000m.
The bird app on my phone, which identifies each species by their call, reaches over 30 distinct species for this trip alone.
We sail on to the Isle of Rona and moor up in an old pirate’s hideaway after our roughest sailing of our smooth trip, which is expertly handled by Jake, who plots a course to make us more comfortable. (Note: It helps to have your sea legs on a small-ship cruise in the waters off of western Scotland; it is the Atlantic, after all, so occasionally it can be a little rough for a while — wind force 3-4 on my trip was the max. That said, Hebrides Cruises always to tries to avoid rough seas and will always tweak their routes to do so when possible. My wife is not a great sailor on smaller ships, but she was fine.)
On arrival when I’m relaxing in the hot tub, I catch sight of two hulking sea eagles.
Day Eight
The wind has dropped as Jake predicted by morning, allowing us ashore on another gorgeous island. I yomp to the Church Cave, where the islanders used to hold religious services. There are also the abandoned houses of a cleared Rona village, a sight that blights Scotland’s isles.
During the 18th to 20th centuries, thousands of Scots were cleared from the land, many sailing to uncertain new lives in the Americas.
A scenic sail on to Plockton is accompanied by porpoises.
Day Nine
Will’s wildlife walks are excellent, but today I strike out along on a brilliant solo hike, which takes in Duirinish, a thriving community where common grazing allows Highlands cows (aka “coo”) to wander this small village.
More porpoises ease by as we sail on to Eigg in the summer Isles, a journey whose highlight is a sighting of the PS Waverley, the world’s last seagoing paddle steamer, who now takes passengers on day trips.
You don’t see many other ships when you’re cruising the Hebrides; the Waverley (launched back in 1946) is definitely the most graceful.
Day 10
Eigg is one of my favorite islands, so it’s a joy to get ashore for an extended five hours. This allows a walk with Will and the rest of the passengers up 393m-high An Sgurr, a spectacular mountain with a very daunting (from a distance) peak.
This community-owned island is booming with a rising population, a symbol of what can be done in the Hebrides and a fascinating template for other islands. The islanders are only too happy to share their stories at the swish new community centre, where Isle of Eigg Brewery beer is served in a bar with a view of the isles.
Day 11
All that is left is to pack, enjoy a last hulking communal breakfast and ease reluctantly back into Oban after yet another typically brilliant voyage with Hebrides Cruises.
Useful Details Before Booking An Emma Jane Hebrides Islands Cruise
Itineraries/Fares
Emma Jane has 10-night Far-flung islands: Shiants & the Summer Isles cruises mentioned here from $5,300 per person including all meals, wine with dinner and excursions.
The vessel is also available for private charters, which currently account for about 15-20% of all bookings.
Note, people often book cabins well in advance, often two years ahead, with much of the 2025 season already booked out, so do look to the 2026 season to avoid disappointment.
Getting There
These days there are a number of direct flights from North America to Scotland. Depending on your airline, many flights connect through London. You can choose to arrive in the Scottish capital of Edinburgh or Glasgow. Trains run from Glasgow direct to Oban.
Tips
Hebrides Cruises’ two other ships are also of an excellent standard so if you cannot get on the Emma Jane, they are excellent alternatives.
The Elizabeth G is a former Norwegian rescue vessel. She is a little less luxurious and spacious — though still comfortable and one of my favorite ships anywhere, and her rates are lower so she is a better option if you are watching your budget.
After a refit a couple of years ago, Elizabeth G comfortably accommodates a maximum of 10 passengers (8 for individual bookings in four en-suite cabins, and 10 for full charters). She is smaller than her more luxurious sister, but Elizabeth G is a wee charmer, a sleek former Norwegian rescue ship that cuts through the Hebridean seas with ease. She’s a trusty steed and one who has steered me out to ultra-remote St Kilda.
The eight-passenger Lucy Mary is more Monaco than Mallaig, a luxury yacht-style small cruise ship with a slightly higher price point to reflect this. She is a sleek vessel with very well appointed outdoor and indoor pubic areas.
RELATED: Here's Robin's review of the Lucy Mary.
Weather
Scotland is this green with a reason as it can rain whenever you visit. The cruising season runs from spring in April through to autumn in October.
May and September are good choices as they tend to be drier, prices are a little cheaper and there is less chance of having to contend with the baleful midge, a harmless but annoying small insect. August is the warmest month, but can also be very wet.
Passenger Mix
Hebridean Cruises passengers tend to be mostly British, as they were on this cruise. Sometimes there are other Europeans and/or North Americans aboard, and I have met Australians and New Zealand nationals too on past cruises.
Of the Scottish small-ship cruise lines, Majestic and Hebridean Princess tend to get more non-UK passengers, as those lines have been featured on TV more.
Money Matters
The British Pound is the official currency, with Scottish banks printing their own notes that are legal tender throughout the UK. Credit cards and cash widely accepted.
Interested in This Emma Jane Hebrides Islands Cruise?
If you’re looking to explore Scotland’s remote and breathtaking Hebrides islands, then the Emma Jane is a great way to do it.
Here are more details about Hebrides Cruises' 10-night Far-flung Islands: Shiants & the Summer Isles cruise. And check out other Emma Jane itineraries here.
RELATED: 9 Small Ship Scottish Cruise Lines to Consider, Including This One.
Interested In A Scotland Cruise?
For years, we've been referring our readers to our favorite travel advisor, Kevin Flink, because of his excellent customer service and expertise in travel planning. Heidi first met Kevin on a small-ship cruise in Alaska and they bonded over their shared passion for quirky cruising!
Kevin owns a franchise of Cruise Planners, one of the highest producing land and cruise travel agencies in the world, which means he gets access to various discounts and perks from cruise lines, hotels and insurance companies that he can pass on to his clients.
To show your interest in booking a Hebrides Scotland cruise (or any cruise!) with Kevin, please tell us a bit more about what you’re looking for and we will be happy to get you both connected. Oh, and keep in mind, these wee Scottish ships are great for private family/friend charters as most only carry 8 to 12 passengers.
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HEIDI SARNA
