The Isles of Scilly marked the start of the 2025 cruise season with its first ship calls last week.

On Saturday, April 26, the Ocean Nova became the first cruise ship in decades to dock at St Mary’s Quay, thanks to its smaller size and the high spring tide. 

Earlier in the week, Ambassador Cruise Line’s Ambience arrived on April 21, followed by the red. Olsen Cruise Lines’ Borealis on April 22 and Silversea’s Silver Endeavour on April 25.

These visits brought a total of 2,733 passengers to the islands.

Tom Jackman, managing director of Scillonian Marine Consultants, said: “Today has been really quite special for Scilly. To see a cruise ship alongside the harbour in St Mary’s was an exciting moment for us as it’s the first time in decades this has happened. Usually, cruise ships anchor in the bay.

“It marks the end of a brilliant week – we’ve had four out of four cruise visits in April, the weather has been lovely and everything has aligned for Ocean Nova coming alongside today.”

The plan for the Ocean Nova took shape on Thursday evening when the weather forecast raised concerns about embarking passengers with tenders. Jackman suggested that the pilot consider bringing the ship alongside the quay. After a thorough assessment, the captain, pilot and harbourmaster agreed that docking alongside was safe and feasible.

The ship docked at St Mary’s Quay at 4:30 pm, following the departure of the Scillonian III ferry.

A total of 53 ships, five more than last year, are expected to visit the Isles of Scilly in 2025, with a combined capacity of 28,000 tourists.

“Passengers can visit St Mary’s, go on excursions and wildlife spotting trips and of course visit the world-famous Abbey Garden on Tresco. We are working hard to grow this sector of the market and establish the Isles of Scilly as a must-visit destination on the UK cruise map.”

There has been no independent port agent on the Isles of Scilly since the shipbuilding era. SMC, founded by Jackman, now offers services including vessel clearance, booking anchorages, arranging pilots, coordinating UK Border Force and immigration, collecting light dues for Trinity House, dispatching launches, handling crew changes and repatriations, organizing tours and providing technical support.

Jackman added: “A ship could ask a port agent to ‘sort out’ almost anything – I used to during my career at sea, so I fully expect it from the cruise ships.”