A new flagship ferry of the Isle of Man Steamship Company which is the biggest in the history of the operator is to make its maiden voyage next week.

The £76m newbuild Manxman is due to make its first passenger sailing from the Douglas to Heyham in Lancashire on 17 August, the Steam Packet have confirmed.

Since the South Korean built ferry arrived to the Isle of Man on 2 July, the 950 passenger and crew capacity newbuild has not been in service due to undertaking berthing trials and pre-passenger service checks and checking of emergency systems.

The 24,161 gross tonnage Manxman which has also carried out berthing trials in Belfast Harbour, is scheduled to make the maiden sailing with a departure from Douglas Harbour at 08:45 bound for Heysham. The corresponding return crossing from the English north-west port is at 14:15.

Manxman directly replaces the Isle of Man-England route serving ropax Ben-my-Chree, though initially the 12,747 gross tonnage 600 passenger ferry which entered service in 1998, will remain in service when operating overnight sailings for a month.

For more, BBC News reports on the 'time to bed-in' of the newbuild.

#NewCMVflagship – UK operator, Cruise & Maritime Voyages (CMV) are to introduce Magellan in Spring 2015 as their new flagship and like the Marco Polo, Astor and Azores, she will operate as an adult-only friendly ship, writes Jehan Ashmore.

At 46,052grt Magellan is the largest member of the CMV fleet which in association with sister company TransOcean Kreuzfahrten operate a trio of river-based cruise vessels in Europe.

Magellan is to replace Discovery, which as previously on Afloat.ie, opened the Belfast Harbour cruise season this year and she is no stranger to other ports on this island. Launched in 1971 as Island Venture, she would later feature with her sister in the US TV series the 'Love Boat'. 

As for the Magellan her most recent career was with Costa Crociere serving as their Grand Holiday.  In 2010 there was a rebuild and capacity is for approximately 1,250 adult passengers (16 years plus). Accommodated is provided in 726 cabins (incl. 14 Balcony Suites) spanning nine passenger decks and are serviced by eight lifts.

She features wide corridors and stairways and expansive deck areas with wood type decking in many areas. In addition a wide choice of well-appointed lounges and panoramic seating coupled with observation area suited to the operator's scenic cruise programme.

CMV claim that Magellan offers a feeling of intimacy and personal attention when compared with the 'mega' resort style ships built today. They also say that there fleet have no climbing walls or ice-skating rinks and no kids!