Ferry operator Irish Ferries is replacing its Blue Star 1 ferry on the Rosslare to Pembroke Dock route with a larger and faster passenger cruise ferry.
The company has announced that it will be adding the new cruise ferry on the route from early June 2023, replacing the chartered RoRo (roll-on/roll-off) passenger ferry Blue Star 1.
The new ship, named Oscar Wilde and built in 2007 in Finland for Tallink Grupp, will be the largest and fastest passenger cruise ferry on the Irish Sea with a top speed of 27.5 knots and a capacity to hold over 2,080 passengers, 134 cabins and over 2,380 lanes meters for cars, coaches and freight vehicles.
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There is also a 17,000 sq ft duty-free shopping space as well as Freight Drivers facilities, lounge, restaurants, bar, gaming facilities, pet facilities and family-friendly features such as a children's play area.
Managing director Andrew Sheen said, "We are delighted to announce the addition of the Oscar Wilde to our fleet. This new ship will be a fantastic addition to our service, offering customers the very best in terms of comfort, speed, and amenities. Along with usual advantages of ferry travel in terms of no luggage restrictions or security queues, we are confident that the Oscar Wilde will become a firm favourite with our passengers and freight drivers, and we look forward to welcoming them on board."
Irish Ferries serves routes between Britain to Ireland via Holyhead to Dublin and Pembroke to Rosslare. It also operates from Dover to Calais, France which it launched in June 2021 and now operates a fleet of three ships including Isle of Inishmore, Isle of Innisfree and Isle of Inisheer, on up to 30 sailings per day. It is an operating division of publicly quoted Irish Continental Group (ICG).
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