Leading ferry company Stena Line has confirmed details that it will be operating a new temporary weekend service between Holyhead and Belfast, starting on Fri 25th June. The extra capacity on the new route from Holyhead will be available until Sunday 18 July.
Stena Estrid, one of Stena Line’s newest ships will provide the service which will accommodate a mix of freight and leisure traffic, with an estimated crossing time of approximately 8 hours.
Stena Line is currently experiencing very high demand on its Belfast routes to Cairnryan and Liverpool so the addition of the temporary service will provide much needed additional capacity to and from Northern Ireland. Furthermore, with present travel restrictions between Britain and Ireland in place, this new route will provide an additional travel option for people who might be considering ferry travel for the first time or who wish to visit Britain, Wales and Northern Ireland.
Lead in fares on the new service start at £130 for a car and driver with sailings departing Holyhead at 23:30hrs (Friday and Saturday nights) and departing Belfast at 09:30hrs (Saturday and Sunday mornings).
Paul Grant, Stena Line Trade Director (Irish Sea) said: “We are delighted to be able to announce details of our new temporary service between Holyhead and Belfast. The much-anticipated summer rebound for travel is beginning and we are hugely encouraged by current booking trends. The current travel restrictions between Britain and Ireland have created a lot of pent-up travel demand so hopefully the addition of this new route will help provide another option for people visiting friends, relatives or taking a break as well as being an attractive option for our freight customers.”
Stena Line is the largest ferry operator on the Irish Sea, with the biggest fleet offering the widest choice of routes including, combined passenger and freight services from Belfast to Cairnryan and Liverpool, Dublin to Holyhead, and Rosslare to Fishguard as well as a freight only route from Belfast to Heysham, a total of up to 238 weekly sailing options between Britain and Ireland. Stena Line also offers a direct service from Rosslare to Cherbourg with 12 crossings per week.