Off-licence keen for earlier Sunday openings amid rise in cruise ship visitors

AN OFF-licence in the centre of Lerwick is looking for approval to be able open earlier on Sundays to cater for an increased number of cruise ships arriving in town.

The Wine Shop has applied to Shetland’s licensing board to be able to open on Sundays at 10am instead of the current midday.

The application will go in front of councillors on the board next week.

Owner Robert Smith, of Brudolff Hotels, said in a submission to the board that many cruise ships are now arriving in Lerwick on Sundays.

When docked in Lerwick cruise passengers are usually able to disembark and explore the town.

Over the years the number of cruise ships arriving in Shetland has increased, with more than 140 scheduled for this year.

The last ship scheduled for the main part of this year’s season is the 253 metre Aidasol on 1 October, although the polar exploration cruise Le Commandant Charcot is booked in for a visit in mid-November too.

“The wine shop has traded at its current location since November 1985 and we hope to continue for many years to come,” Smith wrote.

“However we do have to adapt to new circumstances and one of those, nowadays in Shetland, are the cruise ships. As you will know there are much more of them each season, and many of them arrive on a Sunday.

“Retailers on the street are opening on Sundays to accommodate this, but for the wine shop, 12 noon start is a problem, as it doesn’t fit in with our colleagues in other shops, nor does it fit in with the shopping habits of those coming off the ships; therefore this application is to allow us to open from 10am on Sundays, on the Sundays we open, instead of the current 12 noon.”

Meanwhile an application from the Lerwick Legion will also go in front of the licensing board at Monday’s (19 August) meeting too.

It is proposing changes to its operating plan which includes adding the provision of bar meals and conference facilities outwith core hours, from 8am to 11am.