Kirkwall (Orkney Island, Scotland)
Cruise Port schedule, live map, terminals, news
Kirkwall is a seaport, the biggest town (population around 10,000) and capital city of Orkney Islands. Kirkwall is located on Mainland Orkney Island, off Great Britain's northern coast. Port Kirkwall serves mainly ferries to Lerwick and Aberdeen, as well as to North Orkney islands.
The town was first mentioned in a 1046 saga as the residence of Rögnvald Brusason (Earl of Orkney), who was killed by his uncle Thorfinn. In 1486, King James III of Scotland gave Kirkwall the royal burgh status. The town's name comes from the Norse "Kirkjuvagr" (meaning Church Bay).
At the town's heart stands the St Magnus Cathedral, which was established in memory of Saint Magnus Erlendsson, Earl of Orkney (1108–1117) by Earl Rögnvald Kali. Next to the Cathedral are the ruins of former Bishop's Palace and Earl's Palace. The town has two museums. The bigger (Tankerness House Museum) has items of local historical importance. Its prehistoric, Viking and Pictish collections are of international importance. The other museum (Orkney Wireless) is dedicated to the history of recorded sound and radio.
Orkney Islands cruise ship tourism began in the 1980's. The archipelago is among UK's most popular British Isles (Around Britain) cruise itinerary destinations and Scotland's most favourite ship travel destination. An average of 125 ships visit Orkney annually, carrying over 100,000 cruise passengers and around 30,000 crew.
In 2018, Viking Ocean rated Kirkwall as "top cruise destination" among 46 seaports in Northern Europe. The rating was based on feedbacks from passengers, following company's 2018 itinerary program analysis. For season 2018, Port Kirkwall handled 140 cruise ship calls. For season 2019 were scheduled 170 calls. Around half of the visiting vessels are smaller-sized luxury ships (with max capacity 500 passengers).
Kirkwall cruise terminal
Kirkwall port has Scotland’s longest deepwater berth (at Hatston Quay). It measures 385 m (1263 ft) in length and has draft (depth) of 10,5 m (35 ft).
- Hatston Quay is just outside Kirkwall, offering a complimentary bus shuttle into the town.
- Stromness is Mainland Orkneys' second largest town and also offers excellent berthing for cruise liners.
- Kirkwall Bay is another area used for ship anchorage.
Kirkwall tours, shore excursions, hotels
City Tours and Shore Excursions
- Balfour Castle
- St Magnus Cathedral
- Earls Palace and Bishops (both are former Royal Residences)
- Highland Park is a distillery producing finest Scotish single malt whiskey.
Port Kirkwall cruise ship schedule shows timetable calendars of all arrival and departure dates by month. The port's schedule lists all ships (in links) with cruises going to or leaving from Kirkwall, Orkney Island, Scotland. To see the full itineraries (ports of call dates and arrival / departure times) and their lowest rates – just follow the corresponding ship-link.
| Day | Ship | Arrival | Departure |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20 March, 2019 Wednesday |  CMV Astoria | 07:00 | 16:00 |
| 28 March, 2019 Thursday | CMV Astoria | 08:00 | 18:00 |
The Kirkwall cruise port map is interactive. It shows the port's exact location, along with the real-time cruise ship traffic (if any) in its vicinity - today, and right now. By zooming-out you can see other cruise ship ports located near Kirkwall, Orkney Island, Scotland.
If you lose the Kirkwall location on the map, simply reload the page (also with F5 button). This feature is integrated with the CruiseMapper's cruise ship tracker tracking the vessels' current positions at sea and in ports.
- Accidents
Lifeboat Assists with Medical Case Onboard Hebridean Princess
Kirkwall Lifeboat has been requested to launch at 1:20 a.m. today by Shetland Coastguard in order to assist with a medical case on Hebridean Princess...
July 17, 2017 - show more news