The Old Ship Inn, Perth

A fairly small Belhaven house, apparently the oldest pub in town circa 1665 though you’d be hard-pressed to tell. Some nice nautical touches inside but a bit of a nothingness as a whole. Absolutely rammed though and it was standing room only. Just a leftfield choice of GK Ghoul Gangly on cask but it was in good nick NBSS 3.5 so fair play to the local CAMRA branch on that score, as it’s GBG’24 listed.

Hidden off the High Street, strange insdie, feels a bit dated - limited beer choice

An old pub, oldest in Perth? Maybe but there's not much remaining of anything old inside. Piped music, which is not too intrusive and big screens. At least there is bench seating. A forest of keg taps at one end, three pulls in the middle, Jarl, Schallion and a House badged one presumably from owners Belhaven. More pub like than many Scots bars and not an exclusively male preserve. Beer wasn’t bad, NBSS 3.

Official site of The Old Ship Inn - oldshipinnperth.co.uk

Official site of The Old Ship Inn - oldshipinnperth.co.uk

Hidden up an alleyway off the High Street, this attractive and characterful inn is one of the oldest in Perth. According to the plaque on the outside wall, it dates from 1667 and has been known by the same name since records began, which is almost a novelty for a Scottish city centre pub. The name is explained by the proximity of the River Tay which would once have had old ships sailing up and down it. The exterior view is deceptive, as it’s much bigger inside that it appears from the street, with an L-shaped bar room around a service area in the corner of the L. It’s suitably nautically themed, with models and paintings of old ships and quotations from poems about the sea and seafaring on the walls. The appropriately named Old Ship Ale is on hand pump, at a price of £3.10, together with Abbot Ale. Tennent’s, Carling and San Miguel lagers, Belhaven Best and Guinness are also on draught. This is certainly not to be missed if you’re on a Perth pub crawl.