6 Tips for Taking a Handspinning Vacation

Cherie and her husband, Tim, took a trip to Ireland and Scotland, and here’s what she learned about including fiber destinations in her travel plans.

1. Identify fiber destinations before finalizing travel plans.

Begin with an Internet search. Using variations of your search words can reap unexpected places to visit. Search for yarn shops by country and city, then reach out in advance to verify whether visitors are welcome at specific times.

Freda Magill of Wool Initiative in Rathfriland, County Down, Northern Ireland, and her girls, Wensleydale ewes. Photo by Timothy Cornick

2. Allow enough time.

Don’t try to fit your fiber excursion into a couple of hours. Allow a day to get there, explore, shop, and enjoy the unexpected. Because travel on tiny roads and lanes moves more slowly than on highways, it may take a while to reach your destination. Use a map program to help you find the estimated travel time for your destination.

3. Investigate transportation.

How will you get to the farm, shop, or mill? Will you rent a car that you drive or one with a driver? Take public transportation? Renting a car you drive may be cheaper than taking a taxi or private tour, but you may find it more difficult in the long run. Road conditions, traffic, and navigation can pose major challenges. You may be able to arrange a custom tour with a guide who can translate for you.

Freda Magill and Cherie discuss Freda’s Wensleydale sheep breeding program. Photo by Timothy Cornick

4. Plan excursions for your traveling companions.

Find alternate activities for your companions, such as a day at the beach or a museum. When we went to Ireland and Scotland, I made sure that St. Andrews Old Course and a couple of distilleries were included on the itinerary before proposing a daylong trip to the Magill farm. Spend as much time searching for excursions for your companions as for yourself. You will all be happier for it.

5. Plan especially carefully for cruises and tours.

Consider planning your fiber excursion before or after an organized cruise or tour. Cruises and tours are packed with activities, so unless your tour is fiber-related, it is often difficult, but not impossible, to fit in an excursion of your own design. Consult the program director and plan ahead.

One of Freda’s Wensleydale ewes. Photo by Timothy Cornick

6. Plan to get your purchases home.

How do you get the pounds of fleece or all those skeins of yarn home? Verify in advance that you can bring in raw fleece from your destination. Save room in your bag to pack a finished sweater, for example, as part of your duty-free allowance for purchases and gifts, but consider shipping any fleece. If you may be short on luggage space, consider packing an empty light suitcase or duffle to bring your treasures home in checked baggage.

Excerpted from Spin Off Winter 2018. Also, remember that if you are an active subscriber to Spin Off magazine, you have unlimited access to previous issues, including Winter 2018. See our help center for the step-by-step process on how to access them.

Is a fiber festival on the itinerary of your next handspinning vacation? Check out “Fiber Festivals: What Not to Miss at a Sheep and Wool Festival.”

Cherie Cornick is a retired educator who lives in Michigan. She teaches spinning classes at Heritage Spinning and Weaving, is currently the president of the Woolgatherers Knitting Guild, and is working on her Master of Hand Knitting Certification. Her Ravelry name is CherieC.

Originally published May 7, 2018; updated June 26, 2023.