Visit Us

Shetland Museum & Archives is open. Drop in and visit us, no booking is necessary.

Free to visit - As always, entry to the Museum and Archives is free but now more than ever we need your support - please consider making a donation.

View our full opening times

Inside Visit Us

CLOSED

It is with regret that we announce the closure of 'Hay's Dock by The Dowry', which was operated by Beervana Ltd. Unfortunately, despite efforts to remain open, securing the necessary staff has not been possible which has resulted in a mutual end of t...

Read more

Tours

Make the most of your visit with us and join us on a tour to ensure you see the highlights of our museum and our Recognised Collections.

Read more

Crofthouse Museum

The Shetland Crofthouse Museum is now closed for the season and will reopen on the 1st May 2025.

Read more

Galleries

Visit our Museum Galleries

Read more

Archives Searchroom

Visit the Archives searchroom

Read more

Gift Shop

Our gift shop offers a range of products which are inspired by the Museum and Archive collections, and reflect and celebrate Shetland's unique culture and heritage.

Read more

Activities

Whatever your reason for visiting us at Shetland Museum and Archives, there are a range of activities on offer to ensure you can make the most of your time with us.

Read more

Hay's Dock

Shetland Museum and Archives sits on Hay’s Dock; the last remaining area of original dock on the Lerwick waterfront, which is now category B listed. This is a perfect setting to highlight the strong heritage connection with the sea, and display just some of the traditional Shetland boats in the collection.

Read more

Public Art

Shetland Amenity Trust commissioned over 60 individual artworks as part of its Shetland Museum and Archives Public Art Project. These are on show throughout the building and dock, some even appearing alongside the artefacts and documents in the galleries and Archives.

Read more

Accessibility

We want to make sure we continue to offer an excellent experience for all visitors with additional needs .

Read more

Visit Us Blog Posts

Festive Events at Shetland Museum and Archives

The Shetland Museum and Archives team is delighted to be launching a range of winter warming events this December to get visitors in ...

Read more

Grayson Perry: A Potted Biography - Events and Activities Programme

Ceramic workshops, creative writing, children’s crafts and more - get involved with the Grayson Perry Exhibition The team at the ...

Read more

Winter Lecture series at Shetland Museum and Archives

This winter, the Shetland Museum and Archives will be putting on a series of evening lectures and talks which delve into Shetland’s ...

Read more

Grayson Perry: A Potted Biography - Opens at Shetland Museum & Archives

A display of ceramics by contemporary British artist, author, and broadcaster Grayson Perry is set to open at the Shetland Museum and ...

Read more

A call for ‘Pre-loved’ leaflets

Shetland Amenity Trust are encouraging local people, businesses and visitors to help them collect up visitor information leaflets so ...

Read more

Shetland Needleworkers Pieces in Time Exhibition

Shetland Needleworkers are mounting an exhibition in Da Gadderie at the Shetland Museum and Archives, running from 12th October until ...

Read more

The mystery of the three kirks uncovered

Shetland Amenity Trust have been working on a project to uncover the mystery of ‘the three kirks’ and they are now ready to share ...

Read more

Your Shetland Wool Week Stories

Shetland Wool Week celebrates its tenth year this Autumn and with more people than ever booked on classes, tours and activities it is ...

Read more

Shetland Ponies: Choosing the best from the rest

The Shetland Pony is iconic around the world and will be the focus of a week long celebration of the breed this July culminating in ...

Read more

Shetland Nature Festival

The annual Shetland Nature Festival starts on Saturday 6th of July until Sunday 14th July and has events throughout Shetland. There ...

Read more

The Eagle's Last Stronghold

An exhibition opens at the Shetland Museum and Archives next week highlighting the story of the white-tailed ‘sea’ eagle in ...

Read more

‘The Arthurs’

A feature exhibition exploring Shetland surnames Arthur and Arthurson is now on display at the Shetland Museum and Archives. The ...

Read more

Emma Louise's Coffee Shop opening at Hay's Dock

The Shetland Amenity Trust are delighted to announce the re-opening of the café at Shetland Museum and Archives. Emma Louise and Joe ...

Read more

Getting ready for the Summer Season

The Shetland Amenity Trust have been busy over the past month getting ready to open key sites for the 2019 visitor season. Sumburgh ...

Read more

From this Day Forward – Wedding Exhibition

Shetland Museum and Archives is proud to present our latest exhibition, ‘From This Day Forward’ a celebration of Shetland Weddings ...

Read more