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Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
Following Fred Olsen's Boudicca that marked the first cruise caller of 2017 to Dublin Port, the capital is to welcome Saga Cruises smaller Saga Pearl II on St. Patrick's Day. The 449 passenger ship became the first cruiseship to visit Warrenpoint. Co. Down in recent years.
#CruiseIncrease – Dublin Port in 2017 is to welcome a total of 125 cruise calls an increase on last year, however Dun Laoghaire Harbour will have a repeat of last year with eight calls, writes Jehan Ashmore. As previously reported on…
#FrenchFerry - The first sailing in 2017 of Epsilon on the Ireland-France route of Dublin-Cherbourg operated by Irish Ferries took place yesterday, writes Jehan Ashmore. Under overcast skies yet flat calm seas, Epsilon departed Dublin Bay in mid-afternoon where the…
Achill RNLI volunteers prepping their XP rescue dinghy
#RNLI - Achill RNLI was requested late on Thursday night (5 January) to help locate and rescue two adult male hill walkers who were in distress in the vicinity of Mweelrea mountain in Killary Fjord, Connemara. The Irish Coast Guard…
Brexit Is ‘A Positive’ Says New Lough Erne Resort Manager
#LoughErne - New Lough Erne Resort general manager William Kirby sees Brexit as another opportunity to build the Lough Erne brand and the golf resort’s reputation as a worldwide destination. Speaking to the Belfast Telegraph, Kirby says he is under…
Still from the time lapse video showing one of the massive turbine blades on Galway's dockside
#GalwayPort - The Port of Galway has tweeted a time lapse video of an enormous turbine blade being manoeuvred into position for transport to the new Galway Wind Park project last week. Galway Harbour is playing a key role in…
Cliona Hagan with volunteer crew members Brian Faulkner, Dessie Daly and Mark Vaughan
#RNLI - Country singer and RTÉ’s Best Newcomer 2016 Cliona Hagan is set to perform at the annual Bundoran RNLI dance, which takes place on Friday 27 January at the Great Northern Hotel in Bundoran. The event, now in its…
Connemara Airport at Inverin, near Rossaveal
#AranIslands - Issues remain with the new contract for Aran Islands air services, according to one local senator. As Galway Bay FM reports, Senator Trevor O’Clochartaigh says the new PSO agreement imposes additional fees on flights not specified on the…
Gavan Hennigan
#Rowing: Irish oarsman Gavan Hennigan has crossed halfway on his row across the Atlantic Ocean. The Galway man has had a tough 36 hours, with northerly winds pushing him off his preferred course, but the winds are switching to a…
Dun Laoghaire Harbour
#DLHarbour - Councillors are set to debate a report that identifies issues with the ownership of key parts of Dun Laoghaire Harbour ahead of its transfer to the local authority. According to The Irish Times, the council-commissioned due diligence report…
Afloat.ie adds the above 3-D visualisation of the proposed development at Bulloch Harbour, Dalkey was commissioned by the campaign group, Bulloch Harbour Preservation Association. The BHPA commissioned graphic artist, Dan O'Neill, with the support of an architect, to translate the developer's plans which are currently under planning application.
#BullochHarbour - A major campaign in Dalkey is under way to stop what has been described as the ‘Costa del Sol’ style development at Bulloch Harbour in south Dublin. As The Irish Times writes on the eve of its 200th…
Making the international stage. The start of the Volvo Round Ireland Race 2016 as seen from a typical Wicklow hilltop, with George David’s mighty Rambler 88 dominating the line–up
Wicklow Sailing Club are best-known as the big-hearted little organisation which keeps the iconic Volvo Round Ireland Race show on the road with such style that it is now one of Europe’s premier events, with a stellar international entry list…
Actress Joanna Lumley OBE opens the Sunseeker stand at the London Boat Show 2017, Excel, London.
Actress Joanna Lumley OBE opened today's 2017 London Boat Show at Excel. The Capital city's iconic Show has over 300 exhibitors showcasing the best the marine world has to offer, anticipated debuts to the World and European stage, as well…
Colin Wong (left) with his Kayak4Kuwait teammates
#Kayaking - A Cork man is in the midst of an epic kayaking expedition along the Persian Gulf to raise awareness of the region’s marine environment, as the Evening Echo reports. Colin Wong from Bishopstown is close to Abu Dhabi…
Cruiseship Boudicca became the first caller to visit Dublin Port in this New Year of 2017
#CruiseFirst - A pair of Fred Olsen Lines sisters marked both the last cruise call to Dublin Port in 2016 and as the first of the New Year, writes Jehan Ashmore. The conservative yet handsome profile of Boudicca sailed into…
Enda O'Coineen was dismasted 180 nautical miles south east of Dunedin in New Zealand
#VendeeGlobe - Enda O’Coineen says “it's a real possibility to finish what I started” despite the devastating mast break that took him out of the Vendée Globe on New Year’s Day. The Kilcullen Voyager helm was forced to cut the…
49erFX sailor Saskia Tidey has confirmed her switch to Team GBR as she trains for the Tokyo 2020 skiff event
#SaskiaTidey - Saskia Tidey has begun training with Team GBR with a view to representing Great Britain at the 2020 Olympics in Tokyo, as The Irish Times reports. The move comes after the retirement of Tidey’s 49erFX skiff partner Andrea…
At the keel-laying ceremony of the RSS Sir David Attenborough,after whom the ship is named, at Cammell Laird Shipyard, Birkenhead, Merseyside. In recent days Irish Ferries flagship, Ulysses berthed in the wet basin to await dry-docking for routine annual maintenance overhaul.
#Shipbuilder - UK shipbuilder Cammell Laird saw profits and sales fall last year – but the shipyard on Merseyside which Afloat has noted is where Irish Ferries flagship Ulysses awaits drydocking, remains upbeat that it will win more new contracts.…
#CruiseBerth - The Save-Our-Seafront Dun Laoghaire group was yesterday granted leave by the High Court to challenge An Bord Pleanala’s decision to approve cruiseships docking in the local harbour. As The Irish Times reports, the group, which is an environmental…
The weather Gods are smiling favourably with ideal sailing conditions forecasted for the week at Tralee Bay
Tralee Bay Maritime Centre have over 50 boats on the water this week at Fenit in County Kerry. Brian O'Sullivan, Centre Principal, told Afloat.ie he is delighted with the response to the performance coaching clinic, led by Thomas Chaix, with…
Brittany Ferries announce letter of intent for a new ferry with the same German yard that is constructing ICG's new €144m cruiseferry for Irish Ferries. The announcement from the French operator to have the cruiseferry powered by LNG will be their first such vessel and confirms a commitment to improve on reducing harmful sulphur emissions which has led to the Cork-Roscoff flagship Pont-Aven fitted with 'scrubbers' last year.
#NewLNGbuild - Irish Continental Group (ICG) parent company of Irish Ferries, in May 2016 announced an order for a new cruiseferry in a German shipyard in which Brittany Ferries have also signed a letter of intent with the same yard to…

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