About
The Old Haa, on the Shetland island of Yell, occupies one of the island's oldest surviving buildings, a traditional 'haa' — the local term for a laird's or merchant's house — now serving as a genuinely multi-purpose community hub combining a local and natural history museum, an arts and crafts gallery, a tearoom, a shop and a visitor information point. This combination reflects a common and practical pattern among Shetland's smaller island heritage sites, where a single well-loved building serves multiple community and visitor functions rather than being dedicated purely to museum display, and it means a visit here rarely feels like a purely static museum experience.
The museum's collection covers Yell's local and natural history, reflecting the island's traditional crofting, fishing and maritime economy, alongside its distinctive natural environment, including its significant otter population and other wildlife that draws naturalist visitors to Yell specifically. A notable strand of the collection is a large sound and photographic archive, including over 16,000 images, documenting the island's people, places and way of life across a substantial span of the 20th century — a genuinely significant local-history resource for an island of Yell's modest population, and one that continues to grow as islanders contribute further material.
Alongside its historical collection, The Old Haa hosts a programme of temporary exhibitions on contemporary arts and crafts, adding a living creative dimension to the site beyond its historical displays, and its garden and tearoom make it a genuinely pleasant stop for visitors exploring Yell, the second-largest of the Shetland Islands, whether primarily interested in its heritage collection or simply seeking refreshment and information while touring the island's landscape and wildlife. The building's survival into active community use, rather than falling derelict like many comparable historic 'haa' houses elsewhere in Shetland, owes much to the sustained volunteer effort of the Old Haa Trust over four decades.
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Plan Your Visit
⏱️ Recommended Visit Duration
💡 Visitor Tips
- The museum is open 5 April-4 October (2026 season), Monday-Saturday, 10am-4pm — closed Sundays and outside these dates.
- Plan your visit around the Toft-Ulsta ferry crossing to Yell if travelling from the Shetland mainland.
- Groups of 10 or more should email a booking at least 24 hours in advance, as a £4 per-head charge applies for groups.
- The tearoom is a genuinely pleasant stop — allow time to enjoy the garden as well as the museum.
- Yell is known for its otter population — combine your visit with wider wildlife-watching on the island if you have time.
- Some areas of the historic building have physical access limitations — contact ahead if this is a concern.
- Consider combining your visit with Unst Boat Haven on the neighbouring island of Unst for a fuller Shetland heritage day, given the inter-island ferry connections.
Highlights
The Historic 'Haa' Building
The Old Haa occupies one of Yell's oldest surviving buildings, a traditional 'haa' — the local term for a laird's or merchant's house — giving visitors a genuine sense of a historic Shetland island building type that has become increasingly rare. The building's continued use as a genuinely multi-purpose community hub, rather than a purely static museum display, reflects a practical and sustainable approach to preserving historic island architecture, and its survival stands in contrast to many comparable 'haa' houses elsewhere in Shetland that have fallen into disrepair or been lost entirely over the past century.
The Photographic and Sound Archive
A notable strand of the collection is a large sound and photographic archive, including over 16,000 images, documenting Yell's people, places and way of life across a substantial span of the 20th century. This is a genuinely significant local-history resource for an island of Yell's modest population, and offers researchers and interested visitors alike a rich window into everyday island life across several generations, from crofting and fishing families to the changing appearance of the island's villages and landscape over time.
Yell's Natural History and Wildlife
The museum's natural history displays reflect Yell's distinctive natural environment, including its significant otter population and other wildlife that draws naturalist visitors to the island specifically.
This natural-history strand complements the human social history with a fuller picture of the island's environment, of genuine interest to visitors combining a museum visit with wider wildlife-watching on Yell, whose network of voes and open moorland supports one of Britain's densest concentrations of European otters.
Contemporary Arts and Crafts Gallery
Alongside its historical collection, The Old Haa hosts a programme of temporary exhibitions on contemporary arts and crafts, adding a living creative dimension to the site beyond its historical displays. This gallery strand connects the historic building to Shetland's active contemporary craft and art scene, giving repeat visitors genuinely different content to see across different visits, and reflecting the wider tradition of textile and craft skill that runs throughout Shetland's culture.
Collections
The Old Haa's collection documents the local and natural history of Yell, Shetland's second-largest island, housed within one of the island's oldest surviving 'haa' buildings. A substantial photographic and sound archive, including over 16,000 images, records the island's people, places and traditional crofting and fishing economy across a significant span of the 20th century.
Natural history displays reflect Yell's distinctive environment, including its notable otter population, while a contemporary arts and crafts gallery adds a living creative dimension to the historic collection.
Run by the Old Haa Trust, the site combines its heritage collection with a tearoom, shop and visitor information point, sustaining the historic building through multiple complementary community and visitor functions.
Yell Life and Landscape
The core local and natural history exhibition covering Yell's traditional crofting, fishing and maritime economy alongside its distinctive wildlife and environment.
The Photographic and Sound Archive
Displays drawing on the museum's substantial archive of over 16,000 photographs and sound recordings documenting 20th-century island life.
Themes
Time Periods
Current Exhibitions
No current exhibitions. Please check the museum website for updates.