United Kingdom
Lerwick, Shetland Islands, United Kingdom
Lerwick: Shetland's Harbor Town Between Scotland and Norway
Lerwick grew up on Bressay Sound, a natural harbor between Shetland's Mainland and the island of Bressay, and Bergen in Norway is only a little farther away than Aberdeen. The town shares its latitude with Anchorage in Alaska, so midsummer nights never get fully dark, while the sea keeps its winters mild for so far north. A small car ferry crosses the sound to Bressay from the town center about once an hour, if you would like a short trip on the water.
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What Cruise Travelers Should Know About Lerwick
Ships up to 230 meters long tie up at Mair's Pier or, depending on conditions, at Holmsgarth, while larger ships anchor and bring passengers ashore by tender, a few minutes' ride. Tenders land at a modern landing stage with a welcome pavilion in the middle of Lerwick, a short walk from the main shopping streets.
- Lerwick welcomes around 100 cruise ships in a season. Holmsgarth is about 2 miles north of the town center.
- The harbor's tidal range is small, about 1.7 meters, which makes stepping between tender and landing stage easier.
- Lerwick has about 6,700 people and is the northernmost major settlement in the United Kingdom.
- Summer days are very long here, with nearly 19 hours of daylight at midsummer, but the weather is cool and often windy, so bring a warm layer.
Lerwick on Your Own
Lerwick is compact and easy to explore on foot: the old shopping street, the fort and the museum are all close to the tender landing, and an Iron Age broch is a short walk south. A ten-minute ferry to the island of Bressay adds a sea crossing.
- Commercial Street and the lanes: Walk Commercial Street, the pedestrian street one block back from the shore, and climb one of the steep lanes that run up the hillside to Hillhead, where the Town Hall stands.
- Fort Charlotte: The five-sided artillery fort in the center of town is free to enter.
- Shetland Museum and Archives: The islands' main museum opened in 2007 on the waterfront at Hay's Dock. No booking is needed, and entry was free in 2024; check before you go.
- Clickimin Broch: An Iron Age stone tower on the shore of Clickimin Loch, about three-quarters of a mile southwest of the town, on the road to Sumburgh.
- One short crossing: A small car ferry crosses to Bressay about once an hour from the town center; the trip takes about ten minutes.
- Getting back on time: All-aboard is usually about 30 minutes before sailing, and your ship posts the exact time. A ship will not wait for passengers touring on their own.
- Watch the clock: All-aboard is given in ship's time, which may not match the local clocks or your phone. Shetland keeps UK time, one hour behind Norway all year.
Getting Around Lerwick and Shetland
Lerwick's center is easy to walk, and buses and taxis reach the rest of Shetland's Mainland. Most of Shetland's sights beyond town need a tour, a taxi or a hire car.
- Taxis wait at a rank by Victoria Pier in the town center.
- Viking bus station is at the north end of the center, about a five-minute walk from Fort Charlotte.
- Local buses pass Clickimin Broch, and Holmsgarth is on bus routes north of the center.
- Lerwick has only a small fleet of rental cars, so book well ahead if you want to drive.
- Jarlshof, a prehistoric settlement site at Sumburgh, is about 30 miles south, and Scalloway, the old capital, about 6 miles west.
What to Eat in Lerwick
Lerwick is one of Britain's main ports for landing seafood, and fish is the natural choice here. The town has fish-and-chip takeaways, bistros and cafés along Commercial Street and the harbor.
- Fish and chips is sold to take away on Commercial Road.
- The café at the Shetland Museum uses local produce where it can.
- Lerwick Brewery, about 2 miles west of town, offers tours.
- Handmade fudge from Shetland is sold on Commercial Street.
Tipping in the United Kingdom
The UK does not have a strong culture of tipping. In restaurants, a tip of about 10 to 15% is customary for good service, but it is in no way expected or mandatory.
- Many restaurant bills already carry a service charge marked "optional," so check before adding more.
- Tipping is not a tradition in most pubs.
- In taxis, people often round the fare up to a convenient amount.
- Prices are in pounds sterling.
Culture and Local Life
Shetland's culture looks north as much as south: its dialect, its place names and its fire festival all draw on its Norse past. Fiddle music and knitting are still living traditions.
- Up Helly Aa, held in Lerwick on the last Tuesday of January, ends with up to a thousand torch-carrying guizers burning a replica Viking galley. Its Viking theme dates from the late 19th century.
- A display of the year's galley, costumes and photographs of past festivals opens in Lerwick in summer, with limited hours, so check before you go.
- Fair Isle knitting, the multicolored patterned knitting named after one of the Shetland islands, became popular after the Prince of Wales wore a Fair Isle sweater in public in 1921.
- Mareel, on the waterfront beside the museum, is the town's music venue and cinema.
- The Town Hall's stained-glass windows include one showing the 1469 marriage of Margaret of Denmark and James III of Scotland, and others given by Amsterdam and Hamburg.
A Brief History
People have lived around Lerwick for thousands of years, but the town itself only grew up in the 17th century as a market for Dutch herring fleets. Shetland's deeper story is Norse: the islands were Norwegian until a royal marriage brought them to Scotland.
- Prehistory: Stone tools and other finds show people in the area in the Neolithic and Bronze Age, and Clickimin Broch was a fortified Iron Age home.
- Norse centuries: Norse settlers gave the islands their place names and a language, Norn, which was spoken until the mid-19th century.
- 1469, to Scotland: King Christian I of Denmark and Norway pledged Shetland as security for his daughter Margaret's dowry when she married James III of Scotland; the money was never paid, and Scotland annexed the islands in 1472.
- From the 15th century, trade: Shetlanders sold salted fish, wool and butter to merchants of the Hanseatic League.
- 17th century, a herring town: Lerwick grew as a cluster of wooden huts trading with the Dutch fleet, and was burned down at least once by people from Scalloway, then the capital.
- 1665 to the 1780s, Fort Charlotte: A fort built in 1665 during a war with the Dutch was burned by them in 1673; the present fort was rebuilt around 1780 and named after Queen Charlotte.
- 1708, the capital: Lerwick took over from Scalloway as the capital of Shetland.
- 1815 to 1883, a growing port: Hay's Dock was built in 1815, the herring boom of the 19th century made Lerwick Shetland's main herring port, and the Town Hall opened in 1883.
- 1970s, oil: North Sea oil brought new jobs and new housing estates to Lerwick.
- To learn more ashore: The Shetland Museum and Archives, at Hay's Dock on the Lerwick waterfront, covers the islands from their geology to the present; its hours vary by season, so check before you go.
Lerwick with Children and Families
Lerwick suits children who like boats, forts and ancient stone towers. A museum with a boat hall, a free fort and a broch with passages inside its walls make an easy day.
- Younger children: Look up at the boats in the Shetland Museum's three-story boat hall, and check its calendar for children's activities in the school holidays.
- School age: Clickimin Broch has a gallery inside its thick walls and an upper entrance leading to a staircase.
- Teenagers: With a tour or taxi, Mousa Broch, reached by boat from Sandwick about 14 miles south, is the tallest broch still standing, at about 13 meters, with a staircase inside the wall to the top.
- A swim: Clickimin Leisure Complex, by Clickimin Loch, has a swimming pool, useful on a wet day.
Shopping in Lerwick
Lerwick has most of Shetland's shops, and Commercial Street holds many of its independent stores. Knitwear is the local buy.
- Knitwear shops are on Commercial Street.
- The Shetland Textile Museum, in the Böd of Gremista, a fisherman's booth from about 1780, sells work by local knitters in summer.
- The Toll Clock Shopping Centre on North Road has about two dozen shops under one roof.
- The museum shop at Hay's Dock sells gifts.
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