Shetland Islands

Introduction

Sunset over Bressay Isle (Shetland)

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The Shetland Islands are an archipelago, located northeast off the coast of Scotland. The total land surface covers almost 1,500 square kilometres, with about 22,000 inhabitants calling the islands their home.

For more information, also visit the official Shetland Tourism website.

Cities

• Lerwick

Events and Festivals

Shetland Coast

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Weather

The Shetlands have a cool maritime climate, with relatively little fluctuation regarding the average temperatures. Winters are cool, but rarely cold. The average maximum temperature during the coldest month, Februray, lies around 5 °C, while August is the warmest month at almost 15 °C on average during the day. Temperatures in summer of 20 °C or more are relatively rare and years go by without a single day hitting that 20 °C mark. Almost 3 out of 4 days see some amount of rain and although winters might not be that cold, about 60 days of snow (albeit not much either) is average. Total annual amount of precipitation is about 1000mm, not even that much.

Getting There

By Plane

Sumburgh Airport (LSI) is about 40 kilometres from Lerwick. Logainair flies to Edinburgh, Glasgow, Aberdeen, Inverness and Kirkwall.
Atlantic Airways offers summer flights to London and the Faroe Islands as well.

By Car

Cars can be taken on the ferry (see below).

By Boat

Northlink Ferries operates boats between the Scottish mainland and both the Orkney and Shetland Islands. Ferries leave from Aberdeen for Lerwick. Connections to the Orkneys go through Kirkwall. Boats from the mainland take about 12-14 hours and usually leave during the early evening.

Getting Around

By Plane

Direct Flight Ltd. flies to some of the smaller airfields around the Shetland Islands, most of them originating or terminating in Tingwall Airport (LWK) near Lerwick. Destinations include Fair Isle, Foula, Papa Stour, and Out Skerries.

By Car

There are several car rental companies at the airport and in Lerwick. The latter option is cheaper in general. Roads are well maintained.

By Bus

A few bus companies run services throughout some of the islands, but services are infrequent and it's better to rent a car. Check the local tourism office in Lerwick for information about the Shetland Transport Timetable.

By Boat

Ferries link most of the main islands with eachother and most of them allow you to bring your car.

Sleep