Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters

Take your next trip with Atlas Obscura!

Our small-group adventures are inspired by our Atlas of the world's most fascinating places, the stories behind them, and the people who bring them to life.

Visit Adventures
Trips Highlight
Puglia Italy - Matera
Italy • 8 days, 7 nights
Southern Italy: Castles, Caves & Coastal Treasures in Puglia
from
Turkmenistan Gates of Hell Darvaza crater
Turkmenistan • 10 days, 9 nights
Turkmenistan & the Gates of Hell
from
View all trips
Top Destinations
Latest Places
Most Popular Places Random Place Lists Itineraries
Add a Place
Download the App
Top Destinations
View All Destinations »

Countries

  • Australia
  • Canada
  • China
  • France
  • Germany
  • India
  • Italy
  • Japan

Cities

  • Amsterdam
  • Barcelona
  • Beijing
  • Berlin
  • Boston
  • Budapest
  • Chicago
  • London
  • Los Angeles
  • Mexico City
  • Montreal
  • Moscow
  • New Orleans
  • New York City
  • Paris
  • Philadelphia
  • Rome
  • San Francisco
  • Seattle
  • Stockholm
  • Tokyo
  • Toronto
  • Vienna
  • Washington, D.C.
Latest Places
View All Places »
Pinal Airpark
Note the chrysanthemum crests.
Hachiman Bridge
Clarendon War Memorial.
Clarendon War Memorial
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Latest Places to Eat & Drink
View All Places to Eat »
This fried chicken is one of Bangkok’s most famous.
Gai Tord Jae Kee
Chefs Aruss Lerlerstkull and Atcharaporn Kiatthanawat lean into regional traditions.
Charmgang
The khao soi at Gedhawa comes with a rich, coconutty broth.
Gedhawa
At Nai Mong Hoi Thod, the oyster omelet is worth waiting for.
Nai Mong Hoi Thod
In this deceptively simple dish, top-quality ingredients are paramount.
Kor Panich
Recent Stories
All Stories Video Podcast
Most Recent Stories
View All Stories »
Haleakalā National Park’s summit region, shrouded in the pre-dawn fog.
Beware the Legends Behind These National Park Souvenirs
3 days ago
For Aguilar-Carrasco, nature is a powerful reminder of the interconnectedness of all life.
How Can National Parks Be Made Accessible to All? AO Wants to Know.
4 days ago
Podcast: Finding ‘The Great Gatsby’ in Louisville
5 days ago
Here’s which treats you can safely lug home without risking a fine.
Dear Atlas: What International Food Can I Legally Bring Into the U.S.?
6 days ago

No search results found for
“”

Make sure words are spelled correctly.

Try searching for a travel destination.

Places near me Random place

Popular Destinations

  • Paris
  • London
  • New York
  • Berlin
  • Rome
  • Los Angeles
Trips Places Foods Stories Newsletters
Sign In Join
Places near me Random place
All the United Kingdom Scotland Lerwick Up Helly Aa

Up Helly Aa

During this Shetland Islands celebration, hundreds of torch-carrying "guizers" lead a procession to burn a viking longboat.

Lerwick, Scotland

Added By
Eric Grundhauser
Email
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list
Up Helly Aa   Anne Burgess on Wikipedia
Up Helly Aa   Anne Burgess on Wikipedia
Up Helly Aa   Vincenzo Fileccia on Flickr
Up Helly Aa   Vicky Brock on Flickr
Up Helly Aa   Vicky Brock on Flickr
A Guizer Jarl   Anne Burgess on Wikipedia
Been Here
Want to go
Added to list

About

Each year, about a month after Christmas, hundreds of torch-bearers in an assortment of silly costumes march through the streets of Lerwick to set fire to a viking longboat. Welcome to the Up Helly Aa.

Up Helly Aa is a relatively modern celebration that seems to have its origins in the simple desire to get nuts and have a wild party. The official website of the celebration dates the start of the tradition back to 1880 when some organized revelers instituted a series of customs onto a messy yuletide celebration that rowdy soldiers returning from the Napoleonic Wars had begun years earlier.

While the specifics of the festival have evolved over the decades, the essential format has remained the same. Participants, known as "guizers," get together to form dozens of squads, each with their own costuming theme. As night falls on the day of the festival, each man is outfitted with a blazing torch, and the whole procession (which can reach up to 1,000 strong) marches through the streets in a fiery parade. Led by the officially appointed "Guizer Jarl," the festive army then surrounds a full-size replica of a viking longboat, and toss all of their torches into it, setting the ship ablaze.

The themes of the squads range from men in dresses to questionable racial stereotypes to Star Wars Stormtroopers, but the guizers of the Jarl's squad are always dressed like vikings. Being named jarl and being in his squad is a local honor and costume preparations for those in the lead group begin over a year before their appointed Up Helly Aa.

Even with all of the ritual and burning stuff, the revelers in an Up Helly Aa still find time to get good and rowdy, filling public halls all over the city as the squads perform entertaining little acts. If only all historic festivals seemed like such a good party.          

Related Tags

Festivals Vikings
Atlas Obscura Adventures

Flavors of Scotland: Beyond the Haggis

Smoked seafood, single malt whisky, and warm hospitality.

Book Now

Community Contributors

Added By

EricGrundhauser

Edited By

duncancumming

  • duncancumming

Published

April 3, 2014

Edit this listing

Make an Edit
Add Photos
Sources
  • http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Up_Helly_Aa
Up Helly Aa
Lerwick, Scotland, ZE1 0ET
United Kingdom
60.152987, -1.149293
Visit Website

Nearby Places

Shetland Library

Lerwick, Scotland

miles away

Lerwick Public Sign Snail

Lerwick, Scotland

miles away

'Shetland Receivers'

Lerwick, Scotland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Lerwick

Lerwick

Scotland

Places 5

Nearby Places

Shetland Library

Lerwick, Scotland

miles away

Lerwick Public Sign Snail

Lerwick, Scotland

miles away

'Shetland Receivers'

Lerwick, Scotland

miles away

Explore the Destination Guide

Photo of Lerwick

Lerwick

Scotland

Places 5

Related Stories and Lists

Meet the Woman on a Quest to Attend Every Wondrous British Festival

vikings

By Bonnie

A Remote Shetland Island Could Become a Spaceport

news

By Sarah Laskow

Baby Jumping and Worm Charming: 60 of the World's Oddest Traditions

List

By Molly McBride Jacobson

Related Places

  • The mermaid on the rocks

    San Cibrao, Spain

    Estatua de Maruxaina

    This mermaid sculpture commemorates a Galician legend and an annual trial.

  • Display of masks made from various materials

    Bragança, Portugal

    O Museu Ibérico da Máscara e do Traje (Iberian Museum of Masks and Costumes)

    A collection of unique, and sometimes terrifying, handmade masks and costumes used for local festivals.

  • Remains of an old fort on Dalkey Island.

    Dublin, Ireland

    Dalkey Island

    A tiny island off the coast of Dublin was once a pilgrimage site for the sick and the suffering.

  • Visit the shrine on New Year’s Eve if you’re interested in yokai folklore.

    Tokyo, Japan

    Shōzoku Inari-jinja Shrine

    Thousands of foxes are said to gather and parade across the neighborhood of Ōji on New Year’s Eve.

  • This “ship” was once a flower sculpture.

    Andover, England

    Viking Longboat

    This former floral display recalls Andover’s crucial role in Viking history in England.

  • Papier-mâché figures at the Nebuta Museum Wa Rasse.

    Aomori, Japan

    Nebuta Museum Wa Rasse

    Celebrating the famous Nebuta festival of Aomori and showcasing its huge papier-mâché floats.

  • Onalaska, Wisconsin, is the “Sunfish Capital of the World.”

    Onalaska, Wisconsin

    Sunny the Sunfish

    This giant fiberglass sunfish welcomes visitors to Onalaska, Wisconsin, the "Sunfish Capital of the World."

  • Olavinlinna with all three surviving towers visible

    Savonlinna, Finland

    Olavinlinna

    This island castle now hosts a world-famous opera festival.

Aerial image of Vietnam, displaying the picturesque rice terraces, characterized by their layered, verdant fields.
Atlas Obscura Membership

Become an Atlas Obscura Member


Join our community of curious explorers.

Become a Member

Get Our Email Newsletter

Follow Us

Facebook YouTube TikTok Instagram Pinterest RSS Feed

Get the app

Download the App
Download on the Apple App Store Get it on Google Play
  • All Places
  • Latest Places
  • Most Popular
  • Places to Eat
  • Random
  • Nearby
  • Add a Place
  • Stories
  • Food & Drink
  • Itineraries
  • Lists
  • Video
  • Podcast
  • Newsletters
  • All Trips
  • Family Trip
  • Food & Drink
  • History & Culture
  • Wildlife & Nature
  • FAQ
  • Membership
  • Feedback & Ideas
  • Community Guidelines
  • Product Blog
  • Unique Gifts
  • Work With Us
  • About
  • FAQ
  • Advertise With Us
  • Advertising Guidelines
  • Privacy Policy
  • Cookie Policy
  • Terms of Use
Atlas Obscura

© 2025 Atlas Obscura. All Rights Reserved.