Arranmore’s ‘Red’ Ferry Service Operator Announced in Tripadvisor Travellers’ Choice Awards Winner 2024

11th July 2024

Busy scene on Saturday as Aranmore Ferry Company's 'red’ hulled fleet of 80-ton twins, Coll and Rhum, when laden and bound for Ireland’s second-largest inhabited island and during the height of the ‘Gaeltacht’ summer student season. Each of the former west of Scotland (CalMac) ‘Island’ class ferries takes almost 100 passengers and can load up to 10 vehicles. Additionally, in this angle can be seen the bow of the Rhum, when off the slipway at Burtonport on the mainland. Credit: arranmoreferryservice-facebook

Arranmore Island Ferry Services, which operates to the island off north-west Donegal on the Wild Atlantic Way, has been announced by US company Tripadvisor as among their Travellers' Choice Award Winners 2024, writes Jehan Ashmore.

For more than three decades, Arranmore Island Ferry Services (Báid Farantóireachta Árainn Mhór), trading as Aranmore Ferry Company, has run the 15-minute route from Burtonport on the mainland to Leabgarrow on the island. The distance involved is almost 5 km, or 3 nautical miles, offshore, and the island is reached by sailing on the red one!

The company's marketing is referring to their two distinctive 'red’ hull ferries, twins Coll and Rhum (originally serving Scottish operator Caledonian MacBrayne), which each can take up to 96 foot passengers and cater for all sizes of vehicles of up to 10 in total. In the summer months, they run on an hourly basis of between 15 and 20 minutes of crossing time by the 8-knot pair.

Afloat was trawling through the Arranmore ferry company’s social media and noted this week a posting whereby the Donegal ferry company, had through reviews from millions of Tripadvisor travellers placed the ferry winner in the top 10% of companies worldwide. The award recognizes businesses that consistently deliver great service.

In response to the award, the company posted, “This was a lovely surprise when we went into our emails this (Monday) morning. We are delighted for our business to get this recognition, but more importantly for our great crew and staff, a great boost after a busy weekend.”.

Following last weekend, the ferry company, also on social media said it had a busy period that required the relief ferry, Coll, which was on standby, to resume service to boost capacity, which enabled them to carry up to 20 vehicles at a time and 190 plus foot passengers.

Otherwise, the Coll operates a cargo ferry service to Tory Island, which lies 14.5 km (12.6 nm) off the coast and is available for charter service to all the islands off Donegal.

The busy traffic load to Arranmore was due to parents visiting their children at Colaiste Arainn Mhoir, Cloughcorr, which teaches the Irish language and promotes culture during the summer holidays. This involves around over 500 students travelling from all over Ireland to Arranmore which is part of the Donegal Gaeltacht, and Ulster Irish (Gaeilge Uladh) which is the main dialect in use.

The ferry company is supported by the Gaeltacht Authority (Roinn na Gaeltachta), a semi-state body responsible for tourism and development in Irish-speaking areas. It has served Arranmore, or Árainn Mhór (large ridge) island, which, at around 20 sq km, with 400 people, is Ireland's second-biggest inhabited island and the largest of the Donegal islands.

Aranmore Ferry Company, in another posting this week, said that for the next parents visiting Colaiste Arainn Mhoir, they are offering discounted tickets. The ‘early bird’ prices are only available for a limited time, and those prices will revert to their original prices once allocated spaces have been filled on the ferries.

Both of these ferries, Coll and Rhum, are named after islands off west Scotland, which, as alluded to, indicate as to their origin. As Afloat highlights, the twins were ordered by operator Caledonian MacBrayne as part of the ‘Island’ class built by James Lamont & Co. Ltd., Port Glasgow.

The same Clydeside yard built more of the Island class, the Canna and similiar Morvern, also for CalMac, which currently operate for the ‘blue’-hulled rival, Aranmore Ferry (Realt Na Maidne Teoranta), which has additional vessels in its fleet.

Afloat will have more to report on the background of these former CalMac 'Island' class small ferries that served the Isles among them Arran on the Firth of Clyde and their role and changes since made in Irish waters.

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About The Author

Jehan Ashmore

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Jehan Ashmore is a marine correspondent, researcher and photographer, specialising in Irish ports, shipping and the ferry sector serving the UK and directly to mainland Europe. Jehan also occasionally writes a column, 'Maritime' Dalkey for the (Dalkey Community Council Newsletter) in addition to contributing to UK marine periodicals.

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Coastal Notes

Irish Sea Ferry Routes

Irrespective of the type of vessel deployed on Irish Sea routes (between 2-9 hours), it is the ferry companies that keep the wheels of industry moving as freight vehicles literally (roll-on and roll-off) ships coupled with motoring tourists and the humble 'foot' passenger transported 363 days a year.

As such the exclusive freight-only operators provide important trading routes between Ireland and the UK, where the freight haulage customer is 'king' to generating year-round revenue to the ferry operator. However, custom built tonnage entering service in recent years has exceeded the level of capacity of the Irish Sea in certain quarters of the freight market.

A prime example of the necessity for trade in which we consumers often expect daily, though arguably question how it reached our shores, is the delivery of just in time perishable products to fill our supermarket shelves.

A visual manifestation of this is the arrival every morning and evening into our main ports, where a combination of ferries, ro-pax vessels and fast-craft all descend at the same time. In essence this a marine version to our road-based rush hour traffic going in and out along the commuter belts.

Across the Celtic Sea, the ferry scene coverage is also about those overnight direct ferry routes from Ireland connecting the north-western French ports in Brittany and Normandy.

Due to the seasonality of these routes to Europe, the ferry scene may be in the majority running between February to November, however by no means does this lessen operator competition.

Noting there have been plans over the years to run a direct Irish –Iberian ferry service, which would open up existing and develop new freight markets. Should a direct service open, it would bring new opportunities also for holidaymakers, where Spain is the most visited country in the EU visited by Irish holidaymakers ... heading for the sun!