After more than a decade of service, Stena Line’s only Ireland-mainland Europe route of Rosslare-Cherbourg finally came to an end with the last sailing inbound from France completed this week, writes Jehan Ashmore.
The 39,191 gross ton cruise ferry Stena Vision, which had a major refit in Poland, where it was built in 1987 (originally as Stena Germanica), before it made its Irish debut of recent years, featured a unique Nordic spa, sauna, and jacuzzi on the 18-hour route.
Since entering service in 2023, the 175.5 m ferry, however, was withdrawn the following year but re-entered service earlier this year. In that timeframe, this led to varying levels of sailing frequency, from a minimum of 3 up to 6 sailings in both directions weekly. This was all made possible when operating in tandem with the route’s longer-running partner, Stena Horizon, until its redeployment to the Baltic earlier this year, leading rival Brittany Ferries to sweep in by further increasing sailings this month and significantly becoming the route’s sole operator.
On board the Stena Vision were a crew of more than 15 nations, adding interest to the voyage, as they hailed from Portugal in western Europe to Ukraine and from the Baltic States to the Mediterranean nation of Italy and beyond the continent to Thailand, as such a variety is also commonplace with cruise ships.
The veteran cruise ferry routinely had a layover period in the Port of Cherbourg on Sundays, and as such, its last call took place last weekend, before resuming service the next day with the ferry’s final overnight passage culminating with an arrival to Rosslare Europort on Tuesday. There were just 153 passengers and several dogs and their owners accommodated in pet-friendly cabins, and making a first arrival to Ireland was a French cat!
Whereas on the penultimate outbound sailing to Cherbourg, only days before the end of the shoulder season, there were just over 200 passengers: motorists, foot passengers, truck drivers, and yes, pets again. The weather was a force 3-4, and so conditions were slight to moderate seas, not surprisingly when heading to the more exposed Land’s End, Cornwall. Overall, it was a pleasant passage while in the early hours observing buoys and lighthouses, among them Wolf Rock, marking the hazardous rock 8 nm offshore of England’s southwest coast.
Emotional Send-Offs
There were scenes of emotion throughout the final round trip from Rosslare, notably with the first recognition of the service’s demise upon arrival in Cherbourg as the Stena Vision berthed alongside the Quai de France, where numerous classic ‘liners,’ such as the notable Normandie, had also docked adjacent to the former art deco passenger trans-Atlantic (Gare Maritime) railway terminal. A rail line out to the pier quay had connected Normandy with Paris' Gare Saint-Lazare, whereas the current station is located ‘centre-ville’ of the port town on the Cotentin peninsula.
Captain Humbento Ballirano, master of the Stena Vision, briefly took time to bid farewell Stena shore staff and Port of Cherbourg dockers at the linkspan prior to the final sailing on the route.
Passengers heard songs played out throughout the cruise ferry’s public address system. They were ‘Ce n'est qu'un au revoir’ (It's only a goodbye), lyrics by Jeane Manson, followed by ‘Con te partirò’ (Time to Say Goodbye), sung by Sarah Brighton & Andrea Bocelli—of worldwide fame and written by Francesco Sartori and Lucio Quarantotto. Following that was a round of applause from passengers in the Metropolitan Restaurant/Taste Causing Dining areas on the main deck.
Likewise, on the return final crossing, the departing sailing saw Stena shore staff from the ferry terminal especially joined Port de Cherbourg dockers and personnel, who blasted horns from their quayside-based ‘tugmaster’ vehicles, which tow unaccompanied freight trailers on and off the ferry.
Brittany Ferries' aptly named ropax Cotentin, which was berthed ahead, paid tribute to the occasion by blasting its horn as a customary send-off, along with the Stena Vision, while smoke rose from its distinct lattice-topped funnel. While below decks, there was a replay of ‘Time to Say Goodbye,’ whereas when the ferry approached Rosslare, the PA system was back in action with a final tribute, as passengers and crew alike heard ‘The Final Countdown’ ironically by Europe and somewhat less apt given the ship’s hull tagline is ‘Connecting Europe—for a Sustainable Future.’ The company, however, continues with the Rosslare route to Fishguard and operates a UK-mainland Europe service to the Netherlands through the Harwich-Hook van Holland route.
Stena Vision was easily the ferry firm's largest to serve the Ireland-France route, with more than 1,300 passengers significantly boosting capacity and offering a wider and more luxurious choice of facilities utilised during the key summer months. Compared to the smaller and basic offering of its 720-capacity predecessor, Stena Horizon, which, as alluded to, went to the Baltic, serving on the Travemunde, Germany-Liepaja, Latvia link.
In addition, Stena Vision’s fuel-thirsty appetite and aging made for an increasingly expensive ship to operate on the direct continental link, coupled with having limitations in freight, resulting in less revenue generated. In contrast to the more suitable long-running freight-oriented ‘ropax’ Stena Horizon, which had been in service since 2014.
The Swedish company cited its withdrawal following an extensive strategic review and instead is to focus resources on six Irish Sea routes between Ireland and Britain. This features more modern, fuel-efficient, greener E-Flexer series ships and two freight-only routes. One of which was recently introduced with the first of twin new hybrid-powered tonnage along with terminal investments in Belfast, Birkenhead (Liverpool) and plans for an infrastructure upgrade at Fishguard.
Stena Horizon was previously with Celtic Link Ferries, where Stena Line in 2014 acquired the route and charter of the Celtic Horizon, competing with Irish Ferries, before they relocated its Irish port to Dublin Port several years later with its first cruise ferry operation from 2019 following a ropax-only service started several years previously.
However, Brittany Ferries came on the Rosslare scene in 2021 with their service to Normandy, and with Stena’s withdrawal, they exclusively are the route’s only operator. As of this month, they have stepped in by filling the void by increasing from five to seven departures weekly. These sailings are operated by their route’s first ferry to serve the French connection, the aforementioned Cotentin, the name of the peninsula where the port of Cherbourg is located at the northern tip jutting into the English Channel.
In addition, Brittany Ferries has at their disposal the E-Flexer series ships serving sailings and the ropax Commodore Clipper, formerly of Guernsey-based Channel Islands operator Condor, which the French company acquired last year. Also, despite controversy, they were awarded the ferry contract to run services to the island from the UK and St. Malo, Brittany.
