The claim
The Ship stands on Harbour Street at Irvine's old harbour, beside the Scottish Maritime Museum, with a ship's mast built into the bar and maritime bric-a-brac through several small rooms. CAMRA's Ayrshire branch calls it the oldest pub in Irvine, dating the building to 1595 and the drinks licence to 1754; Wikipedia's account of the harbour says 1596 and the same licence date. It reopened after a long closure.
What the records show
Two community-written accounts disagree by a year and neither cites a record. CAMRA's Ayrshire and Wigtownshire branch says the building dates from 1595 and that it has been a pub since 1754; Wikipedia's Irvine Harbour article says built 1596 and licensed as an inn since 1754. The national designations have now been searched around the house rather than left open: within a hundred and twenty metres they hold one listed building, the Marina Inn along Harbour Street, and no entry for the Ship, so no survey or listing dates this fabric and the 16th-century date rests on those two notes. It sits outside the Top 100 because the drinks licence is dated 1754, after the cut-off this site uses. North Ayrshire Council inspected the premises on 28 January 2026, which shows it operating, though the council registers it as a restaurant or cafe rather than a bar, and the pub's old web address has lapsed and now points to a gambling site, so we do not link it.
What to look for inside
- A ship's mast forms part of the bar structure
- CAMRA and Wikipedia both date the drinks licence to 1754
- Next to the Scottish Maritime Museum on the old harbour
Visiting
Ship Inn is in Irvine, Scotland, at 120-122 Harbour Street, Irvine KA12 8PZ. We do not list opening times, because they change; the pub’s own site is the place to check before you set out.
Sources
- camra.org.uk/pubs/ship-inn-irvine-115292
- en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Irvine_Harbour
- ratings.food.gov.uk/business/1857848
- portal.historicenvironment.scot/designation/LB44667
Know something we don’t?Suggest a correctionLast checked Sept 2026
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