Tall Ships spectacular making Aberdeen 'proud'

Tens of thousands of people have been enjoying the event

Hosting the Tall Ships Races is making Aberdeen "proud", organisers have said.

The four-day event - described as Scotland's biggest tourist event this year - began on Saturday, with hundreds of thousands of people expected to see the dozens of majestic vessels from around the world.

Monday is the last full day, before Tuesday sees the Parade of Sail as the vessels leave port, heading for Norway.

Martin Greig, chairman of the Aberdeen Tall Ships organising committee, said: "It has been inspiring to see the passion and fun shared by residents and visitors. This event lifts the spirits and makes you proud of what we can achieve together."

The quayside has been awash with visitors

Deacon Blue kicked off the event on Friday night with a harbourside gig.

The main Tall Ships event then opened to the public on Saturday morning, followed a classical concert in the evening.

A street parade was held on Sunday

Sunday saw the Tall Ships Races crews parade through city streets.

Hundreds of crew members took part in the parade

Many bright costumes were on show on Sunday

On Monday, local chef Kevin Dalgleish was on board one of the ships, teaching young cadets how to cook. They used local shellfish to put together a lunch at sea.

"I'm hugely passionate about nurturing young talent and helping to bring up the next generation of world-class chefs," he said.

Cadets were being taught cooking skills by chef Kevin Dalgleish

"So to be able to teach these young cadets some cooking skills aboard the TS Royalist feels like the perfect fit."

He added: "Tall Ships has been a hugely anticipated event for the city and the region, and is really helping to establish Aberdeenshire as a top travel destination."

Crew members aim to become masters of their art

Rock band Kaiser Chiefs will play a gig on Monday night.

Tall Ships Aberdeen is billed as Europe's largest free family event, with almost 50 ships taking part.

About 2,000 international crew members are attending from as far afield as Uruguay and Oman.

The races are designed to encourage international friendship and training for young people in the art of sailing.

The ships are berthed in Waterloo Quay, Regent Quay, Trinity Quay, Upper Quay, Jamieson's Quay and Blaikies Quay.

Full details of where each ship is can be found here.

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