Stranraer, in south west Scotland, will be in the spotlight for foodies and water sports fans this year as it hosts two major events. Both events are based on the unique properties of Loch Ryan, a scenic sea loch that’s home to one of the most important native oyster beds in the world.
SkiffieWorlds 2025, the World Championship for the St Ayles Class of coastal rowing boat will take place from Sunday 6 until Saturday 12 July 2025, with a vibrant shoreside festival. The spectator-friendly rowing regatta will see teams from all over the world compete in brightly painted handmade rowing boats.
Stranraer Oyster Festival returns from Friday 12 September to Sunday 14 September 2025. An influx of new visitors are expected to attend this year, following the festival’s appearance on last year’s BBC’s Countryfile. In 2024 the festival welcomed over 20,000 people to celebrate Scotland’s wild native oyster fishery. Visitors can look forward to enjoying celebrity chef demos, the Scottish Oyster Shucking Championship and a huge festival market.
Stranraer thrives on welcoming guests and the former ferry port is now proudly embracing its growing reputation for holding successful high-profile events and festivals.
The town will also host two smaller water-focused events this summer. The community Wheels – Water – Wellbeing Festival will be held on Saturday 7- Sunday 8 June 2025, and the Scottish Fin and Foil Championships (windsurfing) will be held from Wednesday 6 until Sunday 10 August 2025.
- SkiffieWorlds 2025 the World Championship for the St Ayles Class of coastal rowing boat will be held from Sunday 6 until Saturday 12 July 2025
- Stranraer Oyster Festival is happening between Friday 12 September until Sunday 14 September 2025
- Wheels – Water – Wellbeing Festival will be held on Saturday 7- Sunday 8 June 2025
- Scottish Fin and Foil Championships will be held from Wednesday 6 until Sunday 10 August 2025.
SkiffieWorlds 6 – 12 July 2025
SkiffieWorlds are the World Championships for the St Ayles Class of coastal rowing boat, an event which is held every three years. A record-breaking number of entries are expected from as far afield as USA, Australia, Netherlands, Italy, Canada, France and South Africa, alongside most of the UK and Ireland’s coastal rowing clubs. This is the second time Stranraer Water Sports Association, has hosted SkiffieWorlds.
St Ayles coastal rowing is one of the fastest growing water sports in the world, with a strong focus on community and wellbeing. The 2025 SkiffieWorlds event is expected to be the biggest St Ayles skiff regatta there has ever been, with more than 100 teams expected to take part.
The racing happens on Loch Ryan where teams of rowers will race a 2,000m multi lane course, with a turn at the halfway point. The standard crew is four rowers, each with a single oar, and a coxswain.
There will be lots for spectators to enjoy, with a week-long programme of activities at the shoreside festival, including live music and market traders. Spectators can also get up close to the brightly coloured wooden boats which will be sited on the sandy beach.
This is the second time Stranraer has hosted SkiffieWorlds, with the calm waters of Loch Ryan and the warm welcome from the community making the town a popular location for this community-focused sport. The stunning backdrop of Loch Ryan provides a natural amphitheatre for competitive water sports, and there’s growing interest in Stranraer as a location for major water sports competitions.
Stranraer Oyster Festival 12 – 14 September 2025
The annual Stranraer Oyster Festival is a celebration of the Loch Ryan oyster bed, one of the most important native oyster beds in the world. It’s the last wild native oyster fishery in Scotland, and the bed has been protected by Royal Charter, since 1701.
The 2025 event will see Chef Ambassador for the oyster festival, Tony Singh, return adding his flair for flavour and his charismatic good humour to the programme, alongside a host of other well-known foodie faces. Expect an announcement of the celebrity chefs attending when tickets go on sale in May.
The festival programme will include the Scottish Oyster Shucking Championships which sees seafood professionals pitting themselves against each other in a bid to claim the title of Scottish Oyster Shucking Champion! A huge festival market, children’s activities, live music and talks on food, heritage and oysters are also expected to return.
Stranraer Oyster Festival launched as a community-led regeneration project to ‘change the story of Stranraer’ from a story of economic decline to a story of destination opportunity. The event has had a positive economic impact bringing investment into the scenic former ferry port in south west Scotland.
Wheels – Water – Wellbeing Festival 7 – 8 June 2025
The new Stranraer – Wheels – Water – Wellbeing Festival aims to raise awareness and highlight the importance of an active lifestyle to all generations, with the fun festival kicking off with a special Park Run.
Wheels: Look out for cycling events for children, run by Bikeability. Expect a peloton of cyclists of all ages cycling around the park, with trials of adapted bikes for those who can’t ride normal bikes, courtesy of Wigtownshire Stuff.
Water: There will be free taster sessions hosted by Stranraer Water Sports Association, with sailing, paddle boarding, and kayaking on offer.
Wellbeing: Yoga for cyclists courtesy of Justine of Yoga Venture Scotland (who also provided yoga sessions for Sir Chris Hoy), QiGong sessions for all ages, by Mark Pogson, plus beach art and pebble balancing by artist James Craig Page, the Director of the European Land Art Festival and a children’s drawing exhibition at the Creative Stranraer Hub.
The event is produced by Creative Stranraer, for more information, visit www.creativestranraer.com
Scottish Fin & Foil Open Championships 6 – 10 August 2025
Windsurfers of all levels will be congregating in Stranraer to take part in a five-day Scottish Fin & Foil Open Championships 2025. The event will see competitors blowing in from all across Scotland and UK to compete in various categories the following fleets; IQ Foil, Open Foil, Open class, Junior Techno293, Race boards and Wingfoil (open and X-15)
Spectators can watch from the shore, as competitors race against each other in a battle of skill and speed. The Championships event is organised by Scottish Fin & Foil Association and is the only 5 day combined event for iQFOiL & Techno293 in the UK.
Loch Ryan provides the perfect location to host this multi-disciplinary series with a variety of categories for all levels. There are classes to suit International level Junior and world class Youth windsurf sailors, to wingfoilers who are new to racing.
