Now the Iran war even hits the Waverley! Fuel costs spark ticket price hikes for paddle steamer

Published: 16:38, 26 April 2026 | Updated: 16:41, 26 April 2026 The world’s last seagoing paddle steamer has been hit by a huge hike in operating costs as a consequence of the Iran war. The paddle steamer Waverley has been forced to impose a ticket surcharge after fuel costs leapt due to the conflict. The vessel’s daily operating costs have shot up by £3,000 compared with last year due to rising oil costs. Fares for cruises on the ship have been increased by up to £4 from April 14. Named after Sir Walter Scott’s novel Waverley, the steamer was first launched almost 80 years ago. However, the charity that operates the vessel says its future is unclear due to the rising operating costs fuelled by the price of oil. Paul Semple, of operator Waverley Excursions, told The Telegraph: ‘It risks her future if we don’t do something. We have to somehow try to get some money towards these extra costs. ‘Once we start operating Waverley, we’ll be refuelling the ship every two or three days, and we’re buying 20,000 litres on a delivery. We have to go to a supplier, they give us a price, and we have to pay it. It’s a very fluid market in that sense. The rise in fuel has led to the Waverley's operating costs increasing by £3,000 a day compared with last year ‘It’s a seasonal business. My concern would be that by operating the ship this season at very high increased costs in fuel, we would have insufficient funds in October to be able to last the winter.’ The vessel, which can carry up to 860 passengers, runs on Marine Gas Oil to heat water in its boilers to generate the steam to drive its engine. The price of Marine Gas Oil has risen by 60 per cent from £426 per metric tonne to £675 since the US and Israel began attacks on Iran in February. Owners say the ship will be burning £13 worth of fuel every minute based on current prices. Based on trips lasting 12 hours, the paddle steamer’s fuel costs will be around £3,000 a day more than in 2025, increasing her operating costs by around £400,000 a year. Cruises run from May until October, with maintenance work carried out over the winter. Tickets generally cost between £35 and £69, meaning the average fare is equivalent to less than four minutes’ worth of fuel. A decision was made to mitigate the costs by imposing a fuel surcharge of £2 a ticket has been added to adult and senior fares under £45, rising to £4 for tickets over £45. Passengers who bought a ticket before April 14 won’t have to pay the surcharge. The ship, which is based on the River Clyde in Glasgow, was built to replace a paddle steamer of the same name which was sunk during the evacuation at Dunkirk in May 1940. Since 1974, the steamer has operated mainly for tourists, carrying more than six million passengers from more than 60 ports around the country. The ship is set for eight days of cruises around Scotland’s west coast in May, before travelling to Cornwall later that month. No comments have so far been submitted. Why not be the first to send us your thoughts, or debate this issue live on our message boards. By posting your comment you agree to our house rules. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual. Do you want to automatically post your MailOnline comments to your Facebook Timeline? Your comment will be posted to MailOnline as usual We will automatically post your comment and a link to the news story to your Facebook timeline at the same time it is posted on MailOnline. To do this we will link your MailOnline account with your Facebook account. We’ll ask you to confirm this for your first post to Facebook. You can choose on each post whether you would like it to be posted to Facebook. Your details from Facebook will be used to provide you with tailored content, marketing and ads in line with our Privacy Policy.