Scapa Flow Museum
Scapa Flow Museum, located at Lyness on Hoy, is one of Orkney’s most compelling heritage sites, telling the story of one of the world’s great natural harbours and its pivotal role in both World Wars. Scapa Flow served as the main base of the Royal Navy, and one remarkable fact defines its legacy: in 1919, the interned German High Seas Fleet was scuttled here, the largest mass sinking of ships in history. Many of those wrecks still lie beneath the water, shaping the museum’s narrative. Inside, the museum occupies restored wartime buildings, including a former pump house, creating an authentic industrial atmosphere. Exhibits range from ship engines and communication equipment to uniforms, tools and personal belongings that reveal daily life for sailors stationed in this remote but strategic location. The displays on the scuttling of the German fleet are particularly striking, with artefacts recovered from the wrecks and detailed accounts of the dramatic event. You can also explore stories from the Second World War, when Scapa Flow again became a crucial naval base. Models, photographs and interactive elements help visitors understand the scale of operations, from defence networks to submarine activity.
Lyness Scotland
Scapa Flow Museum is on the island of Hoy in the Orkney Islands, Scotland. It tells the story of Orkney's big role in both World Wars when Scapa Flow was the main base for the Royal Navy. The address is Scapa Flow Museum, Lyness, Island of Hoy KW16 3NT. It sits right next to the ferry terminal at Lyness, in the old Royal Naval base HMS Proserpine. You get there by taking the ferry from Houton on Mainland Orkney to Lyness, then it's a minute's walk. The museum is in refurbished wartime buildings including a Romney hut and the old oil pumping station, and it's free with a nice cafe inside. Because it's on Hoy you are in a dramatic place for exploring. Right at Lyness you have the old naval piers, the Scapa Flow shoreline and views across the Flow itself where the German fleet was scuttled. On Hoy you can visit the Martello Tower and Battery at Hackness, the Dwarfie Stane Neolithic tomb, and the famous Old Man of Hoy sea stack with walks to Rackwick Bay. Back on Mainland Orkney, close by is Stromness with Stromness Museum on Alfred Street and the Pier Arts Centre, and Skaill House and Skara Brae at the Bay of Skaill. Further east in Kirkwall you have St Magnus Cathedral and the Bishop's and Earl's Palaces on Watergate, plus the Orkney Museum in Tankerness House.