Up Helly Aa

The Lerwick festival is held on the last Tuesday in January and is the largest of around a dozen held across Shetland through the winter. A galley is built over the preceding year, and the Guizer Jarl, chosen years in advance, leads a squad in Norse dress; on the night, close to a thousand guizers in costume carry lit torches through the town in procession, circle the galley, and throw the torches into it until it burns to the waterline. After the burning, squads perform acts at halls across the town through the night until dawn. The festival in its present form dates from the 1880s, developed out of rowdier midwinter customs involving tar barrels, and the Norse theme was added deliberately in that period. Lerwick opened its squads to women and girls in 2023.

What you actually see

• The galley - a replica built over a year and burned in one evening.
• The torch procession - close to a thousand guizers carrying fire through Lerwick.
• The squads - costumed groups performing at halls until dawn.
• The Guizer Jarl - a leader chosen and prepared years in advance.

When to go

The last Tuesday in January for Lerwick; other Shetland communities hold their own on different dates from January to March. Accommodation and flights book many months ahead and the weather can strand travel either way.

Honest expectations

It is late January in Shetland, so cold, dark and often wet or blowing hard. The hall dances that follow the burning are private and require an invitation from a squad or host. Ferries and flights are disrupted by winter weather with some regularity.

Nearby

Lerwick town is the setting; Jarlshof and Sumburgh lie south.