How do I get to Shetland?

Travel by Sea

Northlink Ferries currently operate the overnight ferry service between Aberdeen and Shetland. The ferry terminal building in Aberdeen is a five minute walk from the train and bus station. Most of our visiting aritsts travel to the Festival this way and please note, on Wednesday 29 April 2026 the ferry departs Aberdeen at 7.00pm. The very last check-in will be at 6.30pm but as this is a busy ferry, you are advised to arrive earlier. You will arrive in Lerwick at 7.30am on Thursday 30 April 2026.

If you require cabin accommodation, booking the ferry is absolutely essential.

• Visit their website at www.northlinkferries.co.uk;
• Call ;
• Email [email protected];
• or book face to face in a Northlink Office ;

2026 Festival members will be sent a discount code that entitles the user to a 30% discount off the passage and any vehicles on the booking. We are extremely grateful to NorthLink ferries for this support.

Parking in Aberdeen

Car parking (hourly/daily rates apply) is available nearby the Aberdeen Ferry Terminal at:

• The car park at Commercial Quay is operated by Aberdeen Harbour Board. Parking is allowed for a maximum of 72hrs.
• Union Square (unionsquareaberdeen.com/visit/parking/) which is three minutes away. This is surface parking for standard parking bay size vehicles, with no height restriction.
• NCP Ship Row () which is fifteen minutes away. There is a height restriction of 1.9m. A discount is available to NorthLink Ferries passengers with a validated NCP ticket (tickets are validated on return in the NorthLink Ferries Terminal Aberdeen.) Please note: This discount is subject to change by NCP without notice

Parking for oversized vehicles / vehicles with tows is available at Aberdeen Beach Boulevard and Esplanade.

Travel by Air

Loganair are the only airline who fly to Shetland. You can also fly from Glasgow, Edinburgh, Inverness and Aberdeen to Sumburgh - Shetland's main airport. There are several flights per day. Loganair flights can be booked online at www.loganair.co.uk or by contacting your local travel agent. Please be aware that Sumburgh Airport is approximately 35 minutes drive from Lerwick. You can arrange car hire from Sumburgh Airport through Bolts Car Hire or Star Rent A Car.

Travelling to the UK

You may need an ETA (Electronic Travel Authorisation) to come to the UK to visit, study or work. For more information visit the gov.uk website

Check if you need a UK ETA

click here

To apply for a UK ETA

click here

Is transport available to the concerts?

Transport to and from venues is not provided by the Shetland Folk Festival. You must make your own travel arrangements to Festival Concerts. If you intend to attend the concerts in the remoter parts of Shetland, a hire car is advisable and we encourage car sharing where possible.

The Service buses unfortunately don't have suitable schedules to tie in with the closing time of our evening concerts. Ferry crossings will be required to attend some of the concerts held during the festival. In 2026, there will be a concert in Yell. Click here for more information on our inter-island ferries. In addition to the scheduled ferries, there may be additional bookable ferries from Yell (Ulsta) back to the Shetland mainland. The ferry booking office is telephone number is . Please tell the ferry office staff why you are travelling to Yell and they will be more than happy to advise what ferries to book on.

Bus Timetables

See local BUS timetables and map your journey on the app using the Shetland Travel Information Provided by ZetTrans and Promote Shetland.

Click here

Taxis

There are a number of taxi companies in Shetland and there will usually be taxi's outside the festival club after the Late night sessions. You will also find a rank down at Victoria pier in Lerwick. If you need to call one then Allied taxi's is a Lerwick based company. There are others throughout Shetland. We have no UBER!