July 31, 2025
Tall Ships at Greyhope Bay
Tall Ships Aberdeen 2025 has been a very long time coming. It was an absolute joy to see Aberdeen buzzing with excitement, and to see so many people in our little corner of Torry as we experienced our busiest weekend ever. It’s taken us a week to recover from so much excitement, and we’re going to do our best to summarise an incredible few days.
The last time Aberdeen hosted the Tall Ships Races was 1997. The Greyhope Bay charity wouldn’t be created for another 18 years, and we’re trying not to think about the fact that some of the Greyhope Bay team weren’t even alive then. We’ve been planning and preparing for Tall Ships for over a year, and it surpassed our expectations in so many ways.
We broke records in both the cafe and the charity. As a charity, we were able to raise a fantastic £7,214 through donations, refreshments and merchandise, raffle tickets, event tickets, and bookings. The cafe broke sales records twice across the weekend, and served over 2,000 drinks, which is an incredible achievement for a small off-grid cafe with one coffee machine.
Our Tall Ships diary.
Some of the ships caught us off guard on Wednesday by arriving earlier than planned, and we welcomed some of the first ships in that evening. The dolphins even joined the welcome party, riding the bows. Following a stunning day on Wednesday, the haar covered the coast like a thick blanket on Thursday. We waited impatiently until midday when we finally saw a boat break through the haar, raising cheers and renditions of the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song. Seeing the Gulden Leeuw break through the fog was a real standout moment of the weekend.
On Thursday and Friday, we watched over 50 stunning Tall Ships enter Aberdeen harbour. We waved, cheered, and clapped every one of them in, alongside hundreds of you who came out to Torry. Friday was a particularly special as we were joined by the ACE Voices Intergenerational Choir, the Granite City Brass Band, and the Dezibel Drummers, who played as the ships came in.
The weather was a bit more subdued over the weekend and visibility wasn’t the best as the haar settled in again. We were still out and about to chat with folks coming up to Torry Battery and the Greyhope Bay Centre for a little bit of quiet after spending time in the bustling city centre.
On Monday, we ran Coastal Discovery Day where we were joined by coastal-themed organisations who ran stalls in Torry Battery to tell people about what they do, play games, and get creative. It is always so lovely to see stalls in the Battery and people learning about the great work being done by other local organisations.
The RAF Red Arrows put on a brilliant display, which unfortunately had to be cut short due to, you guessed it, the haar. We were lucky enough to probably get the best view of the display of anywhere in the city from Torry Battery.
Tall Ships Aberdeen finished on a huge high on Tuesday as we watched the ships leave the harbour one-by-one. Seeing the ships close-up with their sails unfurling was incredible. Particular highlights were hearing music being played from some of the ships, the piper playing on the North Pier, and seeing sailors stood on the mast of the BAP Union.
The entire Greyhope Bay Team (which includes our charity and cafe staff team, and our volunteers) had a fantastic view days celebrating Aberdeen hosting such a fantastic event. We loved seeing the city come alive, chatting with you all, and we hope it’s not another 28 years before Tall Ships returns.
Thank yous.
We are lucky to have a strong, diverse, and capable volunteer team who are so generous with their time, skills, and knowledge. Over six days, Greyhope Bay volunteers helped our staff teams by managing the queue at the cafe, helping people spot dolphins and other wildlife, running the charity stall, making decoupage shells and origami cards, washing up in the cafe, taking photos, emptying bins and cleaning toilets, helping run creative classes for all ages, and more.
There is simply no way the eight members of staff split across the cafe and charity teams could have pulled off the weekend we did without them.
In addition to our volunteers, we have a huge list of thanks yous for people who helped and supported Greyhope Bay during Tall Ships. Thank you to:
Finally, a huge thank you to everyone who visited Torry Battery and Greyhope Bay during Tall Ships. As a small charity existing in a challenging funding landscape, events like this are vital for us as they help more people learn about us, benefit from the work we do, and support us so that we can continue paying staff wages and running events. It was so special to see so many people at Torry Battery, and we hope some of you have discovered your new favourite parts of Aberdeen.
If you would like to continue supporting the work we do, one of the best ways to do so is by becoming a crew member for £25 a year. Click here to find out more about membership.
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