Cruise ship season

[Rasmie]

i wonder why they keep coming back

[MuckleJoannie]

As someone who is involved with one of the loacal museums that gets a lot of tours from cruise ships I would say that apart from history the things that attract cruise passengers are knitwear and ponies. I've googled Shetland as a cruise ship destination. Here are a couple of random samples

 

http://www.fredolsencruises.com/places-we-visit/port/lerwick-shetland-islands

 

 

Until the 1600s there was little here apart from a few huts around a “leir vik†– Norse for a muddy bay. But around the middle of the century, conflict between the British and Dutch (whose fishing fleet fished for herrings off the islands) led to the building of a permanent settlement. This included Fort Charlotte, which once overlooked the harbour but has now been enclosed by the town following land reclamation.
Despite the wealth created by North Sea oil, modern Lerwick retains many fascinating small shops and delightful historic buildings. Near the port is the Böd of Gremista, a “fishing booth†built in 1780 and now a museum. The ground floor has the salt store and the kitchen, where herrings were hung to dry. Outside the town are the well preserved remains of the Broch of Clickimin, a small Bronze-Age settlement excavated in the last century.

 

http://www.princess.com/excursion/exlistfordestination.do?portid=LWK&t=R&exType=S

 

 

The Shetlands are the most northerly of the British Isles and consist of over one hundred islands, of which a mere 16 are inhabited. Lerwick is the capital of the archipelago. Located on the eastern shore of Mainland, the largest Shetland Island, the town was largely developed by Dutch herring fisherman in the 17th century. The islands are renowned for their superb crafts ranging from woolen and cashmere knitwear to intricate lace shawls and fine jewelry.

 

 

Points of Interest View excursions that include these sights and activities »

    Scalloway Castle

    Explore the ruined remains of this fortress built in 1600 by Patrick Stewart, the Earl of Orkney and Shetland. Known for his cruelty, he was hanged in 1615 and the castle was never used again.

    Jarlshof Ruins Jarlshof Ruins

 

    This multi-period settlement complex was in use from the Bronze Age until the 16th century, although there is evidence as far back as 2500 BC. Explore the Norse remains dating back to Viking days.

    Fort Charlotte

    The fortress was built in 1665 by order of Charles II and successfully repelled a Dutch naval attack during the Third Anglo-Dutch War. Enjoy the breath-taking town views from its battlements.

    Mousa Broch Mousa Broch

 

    The world-famous round castle built during the Iron Age, it is the tallest and best-preserved broch in the world.

 

    Shetland Museum

 

    Enjoy a smorgasbord of Shetland treasures. The museum boasts an impressive recollection of 5000 years worth of culture and people. You can even pop into the underground home of a "trowie knowe."

    Shetland Ponies

    Visit some of the islands' most famous residents. These delightful ponies have been here since Viking times. Their shaggy coats and flowing manes help them withstand severe weather conditions.

    Bird Watching

 

    Shetland's been famous as the place to enjoy sensational seabird colonies and amazing rarities. You can get close-up views of Gannets, alongside Guillemots, Puffins, Razorbills, Kittiwakes, Fulmars.

    Hoswick Visitor Centre

    The Hoswick Visitor's Centre provides a space to display collected and preserved items associated with the islands. The Centre includes weaving machinery, local items and an interpretation of the Hoswick Whale case and a unique wireless collection.

[Ghostrider]

As one tourist was overheard to comment when disembarking a tourie bus at Jarlshof a few years back.....

 

"Oh, God! Not another bloody pile of old rocks......"

 

They may as well punt us to the "historical interest" tourist, as lets face it there ain't much in the present for them other then ruins and museums that they couldn't get better cheaper elsewhere.

Edited June 30, 2014 by Ghostrider

[suuusssiiieee]

Anybody looking forward to the Eurodam in the morning will be disappointed as she's cancelled due to i presume weather, heading from Bergen to Thorshavn direct

[Kavi Ugl]

Shame, but it looks like a blashy kind of a day.  Stiff wind wi heavy showers.

 

I see she's heading northwards and avoiding Shetland all together.

 

On a plus note, it's great to see the old Judane Knitwear factory finally gone.

 

Apparantly there have been expressions of interest from developers for the land.

 

Let's hope something decent is built/done there.....

Edited August 29, 2014 by Kavi Ugl

[stilldellin]

 I see on Marine Traffic the Sts Pogaria heading in the direction of Lerwick ( 20 mile aff ) so will be great tae see a tall ship back and then hopefully the Statsraad later in the week.

[brian.smith]

Good Shepherd sailed so pretty much flat calm for everybody else

[suuusssiiieee]

I get that ships cancel, but today's planned visitor Columbus cancelled owing to a "weather delay". Well i checked the AIS position last night and she was west of Foula sailing at a stately 13 knots. 

 

The upshot is she diverted to Kirkwall, and Tuesday's planned ship Aegean Odyssey is you guessed it also cancelling her visit to go to Kirkwall. The forecast for Tuesday again looks reasonable, not Caribbean weather by any means but more than decent enough for Shetland.

 

So this begs the question have cruise operators finally had enough of the grubby, rundown Lerwick town centre? And lets be clear it's pretty grotty just now.

[Colin]

"Weather Delay" does seem like a pretty flimsy excuse given the prevailing conditions;

 

http://magicseaweed.com/UK-Ireland-Surf-Chart/1/

 

Lets face it though.  There is sweet f* all for tourists (or anyone else) to do in Lerwick on a Sunday and, perhaps, there were not enough bus drivers willing/available to operate the usual excursions.

 

Kirkwall, on the other hand, is not that much better but, it is much more welcoming(?) to visitors, has "built in" attractions/history, plenty of shops open on a Sunday and, plenty of places to get a coffee/meal etc.

 

Go figure..

 

I wouldn't be to hard on the tour operators as they are (possibly) responding to feedback from previous visits.

[Scorrie]

Maybe they couldn't bear to inflict even more endless whingeing from some Shetlanders on their passengers?

Edited July 9, 2017 by Scorrie

[Wheelsup]

I don't think the cruise passengers have come all this way to just see a small fishing town centre.

And if they do I am sure Lerwick compares favourably to most similarly sized Scottish towns.

In fact comments I hear are surprised at how busy it is and also strange that no-one is wearing kilts and rivlins. 

On these tours with particular emphasis on archaeology, it is difficult to compete with Orkneys Maes Howe and Ness of brodgar.

Some of the buildings at Jarlshof look a bit un-cared for and un-lived-in.

 

They are usually paid up full board and as such the majority have little interest in spending time sitting in a  caff eating.

 

I am not really sure of the reason for this grouse unless to slag off Lerwegians.