Wheems Organic Farm and Campsite

We travelled to Orkney for the not to be missed Orkney folk festival. I had been scouting about for accommodation and found Wheems Organic farm to tick all our boxes. Stunning views, wonderful walks. I loved look and layout the communal eating area. There was a little shop with an honesty box where you could pick up some supplies. Staff and fellow campers were incredibly friendly and approachable. Loved the place.
Apr 16th, 2023

Sep 27th, 2022

Aug 17th, 2022

We spent 2 weeks at Wheems recently, over a period of 3 weeks, and had a great time. It was interesting as longer term residents to see the difference made by the changing population of the site. The atmosphere changed markedly several times simply due to the mix of folks on the site. A fascinating social study for those into psychology. The site itself is looking tired. It's in the process of changing hands and whilst the managers couldn't be more helpful, and work hard to maintain the place. The site is in need of some TLC, it's just showing the wear and tear of years. The washing machine shuffled off its mortal perch whilst we were visiting, that kinda thing. The kitchen arrangements are great and a real attraction for those into communal socialising. Pots, plates, etc provided. Fridge available but space was tight when the site was busy. We have small kids, so we stayed in our tent most the time and used our own facilities. The pitches all have fantastic views, they are "slightly sloping" but nothing uncomfortable. The only issue is for larger tents. Nearly all the pitches are quite exposed to high winds, especially from the East. The weather when we visited was very random even for orkney and pitching for wind direction didn't work at all, it kept changing direction. We used a standard family tent and porch. It coped... with minor damage, just. We had several 30+ mph winds and some heavy driving rains. Not typical for summer, most locals agreed it was weird weather. That said, I would advise considering your wind capability if you have a choice of canopy to take. Take your storm guy ropes. We had a great time and plan to return. The site is a family safe/friendly old fashioned holiday. There is an on site shop keeping produce from the farm and a selection of basic organic produce. We used mains hookup, not all pitches have it so you need to book that. I thought 5 quid a night for mains was a bit steep, over 2 weeks it adds up. We weren't running a fan heater... however, its a useful facility. There are communal mains outlets for charging phones etc, but they are communal and in communal areas. THEY DO NOT HAVE CHEMICAL TOILET DISPOSAL FACILITIES. THEY USE A SEPTIC TANK AND REQUIRE BIO FRIENDLY PRODUCTS.
Aug 29th, 2022

Lovely views. Organic? Seemed in my opinion to be a label in this context for unmaintained unmanaged land. There was a poly tunnel toward the site entrance that was crammed with weeds could not have sustainably grown anything for a number of years. Pathways to the facilities building were unstable and trip hazards. The shower had plenty hot water and was spacious made from old doors but again the floor seemed unstable due to sponginess as a result of rot? All amenity buildings seemed makeshift patched up with bits and bobs of material. The charge was 3 per night per dog but did not see any facilities to justify this charge. It stated there were dog waste compostible bags at reception to use at reception but there were none, fortunately we had our own of this type. There was no dog walk I had to just use the narrow overgrown approach track to the site to take the dog to the main road which was quiet. It would have been interesting to know what this 3 per night paid for in relation to dogs? The 20 per night for the ehu pitch was comparable to other sites in the area but those sites were a lot better maintained and cared for with no additional charge for dogs.
Aug 14th, 2022