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Dublin Bay Boating News and Information

Displaying items by tag: Cunard Building Centenary

#ProposedTerminal - According to CruiseEurope authorities in Liverpool last month approved a £950,000 (€1.12m) feasibility study into a proposed new cruise terminal development.

The west coast UK port has long held ambitions to expand its offer with the construction of a purpose-built facility capable of attracting additional turnaround business and handling up to 3,600 passengers.

Afloat.ie adds that the proposed development has already led to the Manx Government voting that a site be acquired as the existing Isle of Man ferry berth would need to be relocated for the new development. 

Liverpool’s existing cruise berth opened nine years ago with the aim of securing day calls. A temporary passenger facility was subsequently added in 2012 and the city now attracts turnaround as well as transit business. The River Mersey terminal is this year scheduled to handle 61 vessels and 76,000 passenger who are able to disembark directly onto the city’s world famous, UNESCO World Heritage Site waterfront.

A report to the City Council’s ruling Cabinet set out the next steps in the development plan and the need for detailed investigations, impact assessments and surveys. Councillors gave the go-ahead to the work which will be led by a consortia of technical specialists including Ove Arup & Partners, Royal Haskoning DV, Tuner and Townsend and KKA Architects.

A footprint for the planned development has already been identified. It will require demolition of a former timber landing stage, which once handled Liverpool’s transatlantic services until the late 1960s, and construction of a platform in the river to accommodate the new terminal. It is envisaged that this building will be on two levels built on reclaimed land.

Mayor of Liverpool Joe Anderson said: “I am determined that we find solutions to continue the growth we have seen in cruise business. What is holding us back at the moment is the limited space we have in the existing facility. To deliver on our ambitions, we would need to invest in a new terminal building which will bring bigger liners carrying more passengers, meaning a bigger boost for the local economy.”

Liverpool’s 2016 cruise schedule is estimated to generate an income of £6.5m (€7.7m) for the city’s economy. Mayor Anderson added: “We have various options of funding the scheme which we will be exploring, but the figures speak for themselves in terms of jobs supported and created by passengers and crew spending money when they visit the city.” Timescales for the phase of work approved today have not yet been set.

On July 2 the centenary of one of Liverpool’s Three Graces, the Cunard Building was celebrated. To mark the occasion that morning, Queen Elizabeth sailed up the River Mersey heralding the start of a series of events marking the centenary of this iconic venue. These included two ‘Best of British’ celebratory concerts which took place on the world heritage waterfront at Pier Head. 

The weekend also saw the Cunard Building opening its doors to a brand new exhibition charting the rise and success of The Jam. With more plans in the pipeline, the Cunard Building is once again opening for the public.

In June Disney Magic (see first ever call by Disney Cruise Lines to Dublin Port) was met by 100,000 people on Liverpool Pier Head. Adults and children dressed up in Disney outfits for a day of Disney-themed activities to celebrate the ship’s return to Liverpool for the second time. Disney Magic returns in 2017 when the city will repeat the event as a result of the positive feedback from those attending.

Fred Olsen is offering a total of 16 sailings from Liverpool in its 2016 cruise season. Head of sales Neil Herbert commented: “Fred Olsen is a frequent visitor to the Merseyside region and in 2016 is offering one of the highest number of cruise calls, allowing guests from the North West a greater choice of destinations and holiday duration.”

Published in Cruise Liners

Dublin Bay

Dublin Bay on the east coast of Ireland stretches over seven kilometres, from Howth Head on its northern tip to Dalkey Island in the south. It's a place most Dubliners simply take for granted, and one of the capital's least visited places. But there's more going on out there than you'd imagine.

The biggest boating centre is at Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the Bay's south shore that is home to over 1,500 pleasure craft, four waterfront yacht clubs and Ireland's largest marina.

The bay is rather shallow with many sandbanks and rocky outcrops, and was notorious in the past for shipwrecks, especially when the wind was from the east. Until modern times, many ships and their passengers were lost along the treacherous coastline from Howth to Dun Laoghaire, less than a kilometre from shore.

The Bay is a C-shaped inlet of the Irish Sea and is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and 7 km in length to its apex at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south. North Bull Island is situated in the northwest part of the bay, where one of two major inshore sandbanks lie, and features a 5 km long sandy beach, Dollymount Strand, fronting an internationally recognised wildfowl reserve. Many of the rivers of Dublin reach the Irish Sea at Dublin Bay: the River Liffey, with the River Dodder flow received less than 1 km inland, River Tolka, and various smaller rivers and streams.

Dublin Bay FAQs

There are approximately ten beaches and bathing spots around Dublin Bay: Dollymount Strand; Forty Foot Bathing Place; Half Moon bathing spot; Merrion Strand; Bull Wall; Sandycove Beach; Sandymount Strand; Seapoint; Shelley Banks; Sutton, Burrow Beach

There are slipways on the north side of Dublin Bay at Clontarf, Sutton and on the southside at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, and in Dalkey at Coliemore and Bulloch Harbours.

Dublin Bay is administered by a number of Government Departments, three local authorities and several statutory agencies. Dublin Port Company is in charge of navigation on the Bay.

Dublin Bay is approximately 70 sq kilometres or 7,000 hectares. The Bay is about 10 kilometres wide along its north-south base, and seven km in length east-west to its peak at the centre of the city of Dublin; stretching from Howth Head in the north to Dalkey Point in the south.

Dun Laoghaire Harbour on the southside of the Bay has an East and West Pier, each one kilometre long; this is one of the largest human-made harbours in the world. There also piers or walls at the entrance to the River Liffey at Dublin city known as the Great North and South Walls. Other harbours on the Bay include Bulloch Harbour and Coliemore Harbours both at Dalkey.

There are two marinas on Dublin Bay. Ireland's largest marina with over 800 berths is on the southern shore at Dun Laoghaire Harbour. The other is at Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club on the River Liffey close to Dublin City.

Car and passenger Ferries operate from Dublin Port to the UK, Isle of Man and France. A passenger ferry operates from Dun Laoghaire Harbour to Howth as well as providing tourist voyages around the bay.

Dublin Bay has two Islands. Bull Island at Clontarf and Dalkey Island on the southern shore of the Bay.

The River Liffey flows through Dublin city and into the Bay. Its tributaries include the River Dodder, the River Poddle and the River Camac.

Dollymount, Burrow and Seapoint beaches

Approximately 1,500 boats from small dinghies to motorboats to ocean-going yachts. The vast majority, over 1,000, are moored at Dun Laoghaire Harbour which is Ireland's boating capital.

In 1981, UNESCO recognised the importance of Dublin Bay by designating North Bull Island as a Biosphere because of its rare and internationally important habitats and species of wildlife. To support sustainable development, UNESCO’s concept of a Biosphere has evolved to include not just areas of ecological value but also the areas around them and the communities that live and work within these areas. There have since been additional international and national designations, covering much of Dublin Bay, to ensure the protection of its water quality and biodiversity. To fulfil these broader management aims for the ecosystem, the Biosphere was expanded in 2015. The Biosphere now covers Dublin Bay, reflecting its significant environmental, economic, cultural and tourism importance, and extends to over 300km² to include the bay, the shore and nearby residential areas.

On the Southside at Dun Laoghaire, there is the National Yacht Club, Royal St. George Yacht Club, Royal Irish Yacht Club and Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club as well as Dublin Bay Sailing Club. In the city centre, there is Poolbeg Yacht and Boat Club. On the Northside of Dublin, there is Clontarf Yacht and Boat Club and Sutton Dinghy Club. While not on Dublin Bay, Howth Yacht Club is the major north Dublin Sailing centre.

© Afloat 2020