At the 2019 Travel Media Awards, travel writers, bloggers and influencers from all over Ireland have voted Stena Line Best Ferry Company for the seventh year in succession.

More than 200 guests gathered at the Travel Media Awards event which was held in the Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin. They are the only awards that call on members of the media to vote for their favourite travel companies.

Now in their ninth year, the awards comprise of 26 categories which are voted for by a wide cross section of media in Ireland, independently audited and managed by Technological University Dublin (TUD).

Diane Poole OBE, Stena Line’s Travel Commercial Manager, Irish Sea South, was thrilled to pick up the award on behalf of Ireland’s market leading ferry company.

“This award is very special to us as it is voted for by travel media across Ireland, who play such an important role in communicating what the travel industry has to offer Irish holidaymakers,” said Diane.

“To know that media have travelled with us, sampled our service and hold us in such high regard is very pleasing and this award is a fantastic independent endorsement of the Stena Line product, the quality of our service and our facilities on-board.

“I’d like to take this opportunity to thank all of the journalists, bloggers and influencers who voted for us – and also pay tribute to our amazing employees who go the extra mile every day to make sure that our customers have the best possible travel experience.

“At Stena Line, we never stand still and are always looking at ways to improve our service for travel and freight customers – which is reflected by continued investment in our routes and fleet. In this respect, we’re all looking forward to welcoming three new E-Flexer ships on our Irish Sea routes over the next couple of years, starting with the Stena Estrid which is on schedule to enter service on our Dublin to Holyhead route in early 2020,” concluded Diane.

The three new E-Flexer vessels, currently under construction in China, represent a significant multi-million pound investment by Stena Line in the Irish Sea region.

The Stena Estrid will be first to arrive on the Dublin to Holyhead route early next year, followed by the Stena Edda on the Belfast to Liverpool route in spring 2020. The third ship will also be introduced on the Belfast to Liverpool route in 2021.

All three vessels will be larger than today’s standard RoPax vessels at 215 meters long with a freight capacity of 3,100 lane meters and the space to carry 120 cars and 1,000 passengers.

The company is the largest ferry operator on the Irish Sea, with routes as mentioned above between Ireland and Britain and also Belfast to Heysham, Belfast to Cairnryan and Rosslare to Fishguard.

In addition they are the only operator to offer a direct service from Rosslare to Cherbourg with three return crossings a week on the Ireland-France route.

#FirstFerryAward – Stena Line became the first ferry operator to be voted in a new ferry category at the annual Blue Insurances Travel Media Awards.

The prestigious awards ceremony held in the Shelbourne Hotel, Dublin last week drew more than 170 guests and VIPS from the travel trade and media throughout Ireland. The annual awards were created to acknowledge outstanding performance in the travel and tourism industry.

Now in their third year, the awards comprised 21 categories which were voted for by a wide cross section of media in the Republic of Ireland and independently audited by the Department of Tourism at Dublin Institute of Technology.

Diane Poole OBE, Stena Line Head of PR and Comms UK and Ireland, accepted the award on behalf of the company commenting: "We are delighted to have been voted Best Ferry Company and it's particularly gratifying that these awards are voted for by the Irish journalists as they play a vital role in informing listeners, viewers and readers about the travel and tourism industry.

To receive the recognition of the media in this important market is a tremendous accolade for Stena Line and one which underscores the hard work which has gone into developing the Irish market in recent years. Engaging with the media on a regular and consistent basis has been at the forefront of our activities in recent years and this award pays testimony to the importance of ensuring the media are built into our business development strategy."

Diane concluded: "The ferry industry provides us with the opportunity to engage with an array of journalists across print, broadcast and online media and I am delighted that the Stena Line approach to these highly influential professionals has been recognised with this prestigious accolade."