Thursday, August 21, 2025 - 10:40 by ce-press
The Port of Lysekil had its first cruise call in 2014. This year passenger numbers almost doubled from 2,786 in 2024 to 5,611.
Newcomers to the Swedish port this year are SeaDream II and Seven Seas Voyager with Crystal Serenity, Insignia and Explora III due to call next year.
Whilst the port is a traditional cargo port with no special fixed facilities for cruiseships, it does offer free shuttle buses from the one quay which is 1.3km from the city centre. Named Groto rev 7-8, it is 190m in length and can accommodate a maximum draught of 8.4m. Vis ISPS, the gate is manned with security staff during cruise calls.
At present, anchorage is not offered but the port is exploring the possibilities of installing new bollards to facilitate vessels up to 300m in length.
In terms of waste disposal, there are containers on shore solid waste, a fixed installation for grey water and tank trucks for sludge. Volumes generated during a recent voyage were included in harbour dues. For sludge only, up to 11 m3 is free.
On cruise call days, a mini market is set up at the quay and tourist guides with city maps are on hand to advise passengers of what can be seen. These include city walks and seal safaris in the archipelago. Bus tours to rock carvings at Backa or a boat trip to the old fishing village Smogen are also among the popular choices.
The top three attractions are the church of Lysekil built in 1901, the old town where the settlement began in the 16th century and the 1,100m boardwalk overlooking the sea with areas to swim and Stangehuvud nature reserve, explains Peter Eriksson, operations manager, SDK Shipping. The latter is an area of pristine granite landscape with an amazing history, from being saved from the increasingly widespread stone quarrying back in the early 1920s to now being forever preserved as a monument to nature.
