Lerwick

The town dates back at least 3,000 years, initially centred a little to the west by the freshwater Clickimin Loch. A wooden town grew up but was burned down by the inhabitants of Scalloway in the 17th century, ostensibly because they objected to the drunken immorality of the Lerwick sailors. Their real motive was fear that Lerwick would supplant Scalloway as capital of Shetland, as indeed it did in 1708. Stone buildings came to predominate in the 18th and 19th centuries and Lerwick became a busy fishing and shipping port. It still is.

Shetland Tourism Association run the tourist information centre. It's on Market Cross, south end of the harbour.

By plane:

Sumburgh Airport (LSI IATA) is Shetlands' main airport, 25 miles (40 km) south of Lerwick. Loganair fly from Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness, Kirkwall and Bergen. One flight a day is local, to Lerwick-Tingwall. Bus 6 runs between Sumburgh and Lerwick every hour or two, taking 60 min, and there is car hire at the airport.

1 Lerwick-Tingwall Airport (LWK IATA) 4 miles north of Lerwick handles the inter-island flights. These serve Fair Isle, Foula and Sumburgh; day-trips either way are often possible. Flights are operated by Airtask on behalf of Shetland Islands Council, using a couple of BNF Islanders, so they're small and not infrequently grounded by the weather. Bus 21 / 23 (Lerwick to Brae, Hillswick or Toft) and Bus 9 (Lerwick to Walls) pass near the airport, but better take a taxi. By car follow A970 north, turn left onto A971; parking here is free.

By boat:

Northlink Ferries sail overnight from Aberdeen. These carry vehicles and sail every afternoon: on 4 days direct, the other 3 days via Kirkwall in Orkney. See Shetland page for practical info. Ferries no longer sail to Scandinavia, Faeroes or Iceland.

2 Holmsgarth Terminal is the ferry pier, on A970 main road about 2 miles north of Lerwick centre, opposite the Shetland Hotel. Bus 4 (Lerwick to Scalloway) runs past the terminal every hour or so and there are taxis. Cruise ships often visit Shetland in summer and may dock here, or anchor up and bring passengers into Kirkwall by tender.