Lerwick Wraps Up Record-Breaking Cruise Season

Lerwick Harbour UKs Lerwick Harbour has logged its best cruise season yet, with the Shetland port setting four new records in 2016 as the cruise season comes to an end. Scheduled to close on October 6, the cruise seasons final visitor this year will be the Cruise & Maritime Voyages-operated Marco Polo, which is en route from Dublin to Torshavn, Faroe, on a 12-nights Iceland, Faroe and Northern Lights cruise. During the season, the Shetland port hosted over 50,500 cruise passengers, breaking the previous record of 43,273 cruise passengers seen in 2014. A total of 79 cruise ships, featuring over 2.19 million gross tonnes together, entered the port, beating the previous high of 52 in 2012. The record for the largest cruise ship to call at Lerwick was broken twice, by P&O Cruises 115,055 gross tonne Azura and then by Celebrity Cruises’ 122,210 gross tonne Celebrity Silhouette, which will return in August, 2017. Despite increasing competition in national and international markets, with operators spoiled for choice, Lerwick and Shetland have had their best season, Calum Grains, the Port Authority’s Harbourmaster and Deputy Chief Executive, said, adding that there are 34 visits already booked for 2018.