Stornoway Port Records 70,000 Cruise Passengers in 2026
In its third full season, Stornoway's £50 million Deep Water Terminal can accommodate vessels up to 360 metres long; only four calls were cancelled in poor weather.
Stornoway completed a record 2026 cruise season with 86 calls and just over 70,000 passengers. AIDAsol made the year’s final scheduled visit, carrying close to 2,000 passengers to the Isle of Lewis port.
Passenger numbers increased by roughly 39% from the 50,500 recorded in 2025. This was the port’s third full season with its £50 million Deep Water Terminal, which can accommodate vessels up to 360 metres long.
Despite poor summer weather, only four calls were cancelled because of conditions.
“We've had some very good feedback from the businesses within Stornoway,” said Kirsty Hutchison, cruise and marketing manager at Stornoway Port, adding that “the impacts are wider than just the port.”
Hutchison put passenger spending in 2025 at around £68 per person, excluding prepaid excursions and port charges, with approximately £3 million going directly into the town’s economy.
“So, the actual economic impact is a little higher,” Hutchison said. She gave no equivalent figure for the 2026 season.
One business benefiting from cruise traffic is the Island Spirit Shop, operated by husband-and-wife team Ian and Mary Faller beside the passenger drop-off point in the town centre. Its location puts it on passengers’ route both when they arrive and before they board their bus.
Ian Faller explained how the shop handles day visitors: “if they don't want to carry their purchases about, we keep them in the back shop for them with their name on it.” He said customers regularly suggested that the business needed larger premises, but stressed the importance of its current location.
For 2027, Stornoway has 99 cruise vessels booked to visit. Passenger numbers are expected to exceed 100,000.
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