Renaissance rolls in as cruise season picks up steam

22 April 2026 09:05

A large cruise ship and two red-and-white fishing vessels berthed at a port, with a car park and industrial buildings in the foreground.

The Renaissance arrived in Lerwick on Wednesday morning. Photo: Malcolm Younger

LERWICK’s cruise ship season gets into full flow this week, with the first of two major arrivals over the next two days.

The Renaissance, operated by Ambassador Cruise Line, arrived from Aberdeen in the early hours of Wednesday morning.

The 219m long ship can carry around 1,200 passengers, and will sail on to Kirkwall later today.

A double-decker bus being trialled for the first time to shuttle passengers around Lerwick.

Renaissance follows the arrival of the 101m Spitsbergen late on Friday 3 April, which was the first cruise ship of what is expected to be another busy season in Lerwick.

The 229m long Viking Neptune will arrive in town tomorrow (Thursday), bringing a potential 930 passengers north from Aberdeen before sailing on to Bergen in Norway.

May will bring a busier scene to the harbour, with three ships – the AIDAsol and National Geographic vessels Explorer and Endurance – all expected to arrive on Monday 4 May.