Broch of Mousa
The best-preserved Iron Age stone tower in the world, about 13 metres tall, with a staircase inside the wall that lets visitors climb to the top.
The Broch of Mousa was built around 300 BC and stands about 13 metres tall. It is the most intact of the more than 500 known stone brochs in the world. According to Viking legend, a pair of eloping lovers once took refuge here. The dry-stone walls have a double-skinned construction, and a spiral staircase inside the wall climbs all the way to the top. Mousa Island, where the broch stands, is a nature reserve, and seals sun themselves on the shore. In summer, small boats take about 15 minutes to reach the island from Sandwick. Tickets cost about £25 and must be booked in advance. In June and July there are midnight sailings, when thousands of storm petrels fly back in the darkness to nest in the wall crevices of the broch.
Opening hours
Depends on ferry schedule (approx. Apr–Sep)
Nearby sights
- Shetland Croft House Museum
- Broch of Clickimin
- Lerwick Old Town & Commercial Street
- Up Helly Aa
- Fort Charlotte
- Shetland Museum and Archives
- Jarlshof
- St Ninian's Isle