Dog-Friendly Beaches in Orkney
Written by UK Hidden Gems Editorial
Updated 5 August 2026
The dog-friendly beaches in Orkney are Windwick Bay, Newark Beach, Waulkmill Bay, Rackwick Beach, Whitemill Circular Beach and Scapa Beach.
Orkney is made for a dog with energy to burn, its islands ringed by wide, open shores where the sand stretches out for miles and the wind comes straight off the sea. Many of the beaches here are quiet and lightly visited, with room to run and long walks to be had along the tideline.
On the Mainland, the pale sands of Scapa lie just outside Kirkwall, while Newark and Waulkmill Bay give easy shores with car parks, dunes and salt marsh behind. Cross to the islands for the white sand and clear water of Whitemill on Sanday, or the wild, boulder-strewn bay of Rackwick on Hoy, hemmed in by high cliffs.
Windwick Bay, on South Ronaldsay, is a rocky shore rather than sand, but its seals and sea stacks make it a striking spot for a walk. All are open, uncrowded and full of wildlife.
Here are six dog-friendly beaches to seek out in Orkney.
Windwick Bay
Photo: Ian Balcombe via Geograph.org.uk
Windwick Bay A memorial above this bay remembers the crews lost when the destroyers HMS Opal and HMS Narborough were driven onto the rocks in a blizzard in 1918. It is a fittingly wild setting: a small, cliff-flanked bay on the east coast of South Ronaldsay in Orkney, with a rocky shore in place of sand and sea stacks standing offshore.
Grey seals shelter here through winter and pup on the shore in autumn, while seabirds crowd the cliffs in summer. The Iron Age broch known as The Cairns, still under excavation, looks down over the water, and a small car park is reached by minor roads.
Come for seals, stacks and history rather than soft sand.
Newark Beach
Photo: Gordon Hatton via Geograph.org.uk
Newark Beach Out to sea from this curve of golden sand rises Copinsay, an island loud with seabirds, while nearer to hand seals haul out and wading birds work the shoreline. The beach sits at Newark Bay in Deerness, on the eastern Mainland of Orkney, with a path running behind marram-topped dunes and a small car park, a slipway and picnic tables close by.
A signed coastal walk heads north from here to the Point of Ayre, and the beach at Dingieshowe lies just along the coast. It adds up to an easy day of open sand, room to roam and wildlife on the water and the wing.
Waulkmill Bay
Photo: N Chadwick via Geograph.org.uk
Waulkmill Bay In the parish of Orphir on Mainland Orkney, Waulkmill Bay opens onto the northern shore of Scapa Flow and empties and fills with the tide. When the water pulls back at the northern end, a long sweep of sand appears, laced with sandbars and salt marsh and fed by fresh water draining from the Loch of Kirbister behind.
Reach the beach by a flight of steps from the car park and toilets up on the road. As a protected wildlife site beside the RSPB's Hobbister reserve, and with such shallow water, it draws paddlers and birdwatchers alike.
Turn up as the tide drops to see the sands at their widest.
Rackwick Beach
Photo: Des Colhoun via Geograph.org.uk
Rackwick Beach Where a glen opens to the sea on the western side of Hoy in Orkney, Rackwick Beach spreads its sand between towering sandstone cliffs and hills, the whole bay scattered with huge rounded boulders. A single-track road brings you down to a car park and an old bothy close to the shore.
From here walkers set off along the coast, about a mile, to reach the Old Man of Hoy, the great sea stack that rears from the water. Seabirds crowd the surrounding cliffs, and few places in Orkney feel as raw or as beautiful.
Give yourself time for the boulders and the walk beyond.
Whitemill Circular Beach
Photo: Richard Webb via Geograph.org.uk
Whitemill Circular Beach sits at Whitemill Bay, a white-sand beach with clear, shallow water on the northern tip of the island of Sanday. The low headland at its end, Whitemill Point, is a place where seals haul out and fulmars nest, with reefs offshore.
There is a small parking area and a picnic table above the sand. A signed walking route around the area, the Whitemill Circular, gives the beach its listed name here.
Seek it out for white sand and clear water on a quiet northern isle.
Scapa Beach
Photo: Alan Reid via Geograph.org.uk
Scapa Beach Barely a mile out of Kirkwall on the Orkney Mainland, Scapa Beach curves its pale sand to the south, facing the vast sheltered waters of Scapa Flow. Low cliffs rise behind the shore, and locals come to stroll, swim or simply watch the light, helped by a small car park, toilets and a pier close at hand, with the Scapa distillery standing on the slope above.
At the top of the bay a memorial garden remembers the crew of the battleship Royal Oak, sunk by torpedo as she lay at anchor in the Flow in 1939, taking more than eight hundred lives. A gentle shore with a solemn story to tell.
FAQs
Which Orkney beaches have the best sand for dogs?
Whitemill on Sanday, Newark in Deerness and Scapa near Kirkwall all offer open sand with room to roam. Waulkmill Bay also lays out a long sandy beach at the northern end when the tide is low.
Is Windwick Bay a sandy beach?
No. Windwick Bay is a rocky shore rather than sand, backed by cliffs and sea stacks. It is still a striking spot for a walk, with grey seals sheltering and pupping along the shore.
Are there facilities at these Orkney beaches?
Several have a small car park, and some, like Waulkmill Bay and Scapa, have toilets nearby. Others are simple and quiet with just a parking area and a picnic table, so come prepared.
Conclusion
Orkney rewards anyone travelling with a dog, its shores wide, open and blessedly uncrowded, with room to run and long tideline walks in every direction. Close to Kirkwall, Scapa gives an easy pale-sand bay for a stroll and a swim, while Newark and Waulkmill Bay open onto dunes, salt marsh and rich birdlife.
Out on the islands, the white sand of Whitemill on Sanday and the boulder-strewn bay of Rackwick on Hoy sit among some of the wildest scenery in the north. Even the rocky shore of Windwick Bay, with its seals and sea stacks, makes a memorable walk.
With car parks, quiet paths and space to spare, these are the dog-friendly beaches to seek out in Orkney.
