This page holds all the information you should need to get you to Grianan and have a problem-free holiday. There should be a copy at the house (in the drawer of the table in the hall).
House rules
Maximum occupancy is 10, including children and infants.
No smoking or vaping in the house.
Pets by arrangement. Well-behaved dogs are typically fine - please ensure they are kept off furniture and cleaned up after both in the house and garden.
Address
Grianan’s address is:
Grianan
Isle of Iona
Argyll
PA76 6SW
There is no telephone at the house. Mobile reception can vary but is generally much better now than it has been in the past. There is broadband internet.
Travel
There are two ferries involved in getting to Iona. One from Oban to Mull (Craignure) and another from Fionnphort (Mull) to Iona. There is a bus service between Craignure and Fionnphort, though if you have a lot of luggage, you may want to book your car onto the Oban/Mull ferry and drive across Mull.
For ferry timetables and booking, see www.calmac.co.uk or call 0800 066 5000. For bus timetables on Mull, see www.westcoastmotors.co.uk, service 96/496 or call 01680 812313. If you are taking a car onto Mull, it is highly recommended to book on the Oban/Mull ferry.
Alternatively, you can go via the Corran, and Lochaline/Fishnish ferries, which are not pre-booked. Note that much of this route is single track with passing places, similar to the Mull crossing. Do check that both services are operating, and that the Corran ferry is carrying vehicles. If the 5-minute Corran ferry isn't running or isn't carrying cars, it becomes a 1h30m drive.
Parking
If you are coming by car, you can leave it at the free car park at Fionnphort. There's a left turn just as you enter the village. Don't use the paid parking alongside the road.
Driving on Mull
If driving across Mull, the strict convention which should be followed is to keep to the left when you meet other vehicles, whether a lay-by is to your left or right of the road (i.e. if the lay-by is on the right-hand side of the road, pull up opposite it, and allow the vehicle coming from the opposite direction to navigate around you via the lay-by). Additionally, because the road is mainly single-track only, you are requested to allow following vehicles obviously wishing to travel faster than you to overtake by pulling in at lay-bys, so allowing them to pass.
Taking a car onto Iona
You are not ordinarily allowed to take a car onto Iona. Special permission can be obtained from Argyll & Bute Council if one of your party is disabled.
If the ground is wet, you may have difficulty getting up the field on your departure. If you have a front wheel drive car, you should reverse out, and you may need someone to push to avoid wheel spin and churning up the farmer's field.
Getting a car through the gate is a very tight squeeze for anything but smaller cars. You can leave the car in the field just outside the gate.
Finding Grianan
Grianan is the white house standing on its own in the field about 300m north of the Abbey, and is normally easily visible during the ferry crossing. (North is to the right as you cross over to Iona on the ferry.) It is about ½ mile from the pier, a ten-minute walk.
Taxi on Iona
To order a taxi on Iona, call Lindsay or Joyce on 07810 325 990. You might consider this if you are going to arrive heavily laden with luggage and provisions. For pricing and other information, see www.ionataxi.co.uk.
Shopping
There is a small Spar grocery shop, a post office, and various craft & souvenir shops. See isle-of-iona.net/shops for a comprehensive list.
Cash
There are no cashpoints (ATMs) on Iona. All shops and restaurants take card, but you may want a little cash. Some houses have produce for sale at the door.
In the house
The key
You will receive an email before your arrival with instructions on where to collect the key.
Wifi
There is WiFi at the house. Check your booking email for the details.
Bedding and towels
We do not currently have a laundry service, so are not able to provide bedding and towels; please bring your own sheets, duvet covers, pillowcases, and towels. There are plenty of duvets and pillows, mainly single duvets, there are only two double duvets.
In an emergency, there is bedding and towels in the upstairs cupboard, but please launder and dry these before leaving if used.
Candles
Except in a power cut, please do not use candles, because of fire risk. Never leave a candle unattended. There are torches in each bedroom for emergency use. Please make sure they remain in the bedrooms, prominently placed and visible.
Coasters
Please use coasters under your cups and glasses to protect the furniture in the living room and bedrooms (coasters can be found in the cupboards in the dining room). The wooden kitchen surfaces have a varnish capable of withstanding spills.
The Rayburn boiler
An oil-fired Rayburn boiler and ground-floor radiators are installed. The Rayburn may be set to heat the radiators, or not, as per your requirements. The Rayburn is quite simple to operate and should generally come on at the touch of a switch. Please consult the instructions hanging beside it. Please do not turn the Rayburn off when you leave, but leave it on its standard timer setting. Turn the thermostat down to 15.
The Rayburn cannot be used for cooking.
Hot water
When on, the Rayburn will heat up the house’s hot water cylinder. There is, in addition, an electric immersion heater which is controlled by a timer switch above the mantelpiece in the kitchen. The upstairs shower is electric, so it does not depend on the Rayburn.
Household equipment instructions
The vacuum cleaner and other household equipment instructions are in a folder in the top drawer of the bureau in the living room. If the vacuum cleaner is not picking up properly, it probably needs its filter cleaned. Please check the instructions.
Septic tank
Please only use cleaning products marked as suitable for septic tanks. For instance, please do not use normal bleach.
No products apart from toilet paper should go down the loo. No wipes of any kind, etc.
Fuse box
The fuse box for the house is clearly visible at the top of the northwest corner of the kitchen. In the event of a circuit tripping, you can reset the MCB here.
Rubbish
We'll let you know by email what bins are due to be collected during your stay. Please take them up the field the evening before, and leave them the road-side of the fence. Bring them back reasonably promptly after they are collected, or you risk passers-by making use of them.
The fire, and what to do with ashes
There is an open fire in the living room that can be used. Fireplaces in other rooms are decorative only and should not be used.
The ash collects in a bucket beneath the removable grate, which needs to be emptied after 3 or 4 days of use. The cool ashes should be bagged (a proper bin bag without holes is recommended) and disposed of with regular waste.
There is a spare ash bucket in the porch beyond the kitchen, which you can swap with, allowing the hot ashes to cool before bagging.
Do not on any account deposit ashes anywhere in the garden or over the wall.
We recommend dealing with this the day before you leave, as that allows time for the ashes to cool and be binned. If you do it on the morning you are leaving, they will be too hot to bag. You can then have a final fire using the now empty bucket. On the last morning, you then just need to clean the grate, letting that night's ash fall into the bucket.
Coal
There is a coal heap at the front of the house. If this is running low, please let us know so that more can be ordered.
Watching TV
There’s no TV at Grianan, and no TV licence. If you’re watching any iPlayer or other BBC content, please ensure your own licence covers it.
Fire safety
Please familiarise yourself with the locations of the fire extinguishers. There are two in the downstairs hall, and one at the end of the upstairs hall. There is a fire blanket in the kitchen.
Smoke alarms are in the dining room, downstairs hall, upstairs hall, and each bedroom. There is a heat alarm in the kitchen. These are tested periodically, but if you have any concerns, please let us know.
There is a carbon monoxide alarm in the living room and in the kitchen.
In the event of an alarm, follow evacuation routes (detailed in each bedroom) and only attempt to fight a fire if safe to do so. If a fire is ongoing, call 999 at the earliest opportunity. Note that even if your phone has no signal, emergency calls will still work as they will use another network.
Before departure
Please report any breakages, and let us know if you managed to replace them.
Please leave the house tidy and clean, as the next guests will find it as you leave it.
Leave the top cupboard to the left of the electric cooker empty, so that the next people may easily unpack and offload any food they have brought on arrival. Do not leave any perishable food in the house.
Leave the house locked, with all windows (including the skylight in the upstairs bathroom) closed.
Leave the key where you collected it.
Contact details
Please get in touch by email regarding bookings.
If you’re at Grianan and there is a problem, you can call Rose Burn-Murdoch on 07921 824 812.
Important phone numbers
In the event of an emergency of any kind, dial 999. In a non-emergency, dial 101 for the police, or 111 for NHS 24.
