The trainee tall ship Gunilla, which took part as the largest visitor at the recent inaugural Dublin City Council Liffey Festival, departed the capital more than a week ago to arrive at Cherbourg, France, where the ferryport faces new challenges, writes Jehan Ashmore.
Recently, I took a sailing from Rosslare Europort onboard Brittany Ferries' ropax Cotentin, which is aptly named after the peninsula, where at the northern tip is located the port city of Cherbourg. So it was a pleasant surprise to see again three masted barque T/S Gunilla with its youthful trainee crew from the Nordic nation roamed around the centre-ville adding to the atmosphere.
French Connection's past & present
In addition, to see the Swedish flag aloft of the tall ship in the Normandy port seemed also apt, given the same Scandinavian nation’s based Stena Line closed the French connection with Rosslare Europort a year ago. The final sailing took place on this day's date from Cherbourg, with an arrival at the Wexford ferry port on 30 September.
Alongside the attractive waterfront of the Quai Alexandre III, the T/S Gunilla with its Swedish flag aloft, which docked at the innermost basin in Cherbourg, the Bassin du Commerce, located in the 'centre-ville' of the port city.
The withdrawal of Stena Line's only Ireland-mainland-Europe route followed an extensive strategic review, with the company citing that its focus instead was on resources of their six routes between Ireland and Britain.
With Stena no longer present on the scene, Brittany Ferries was quick to step in, having secured additional slots of the former route operator. Despite plans this year to sell the Cotentin as outlined below, the route is well served by Stena chartered-in E-Flexers. In addition to the recent news to introduce a larger passenger ferry, to be renamed Wexford, albeit replacing another chartered ferry, the freight-only Norbay of P&O, which ran the continental route more than two decades ago.
Wexford is to enter service in March 2027, offering three three-weekly return crossings and one English Channel return rotation as outlined below.
Brittany's Cost-cutting challenges at Cherbourg
When Stena Vision made its final departure from Cherbourg, Brittany Ferries ropax Cotentin was berthed ahead at the Quai de France.To mark the occasion, it paid tribute by blasting its horn as a customary send-off. Almost a year later, the company announced the French-flagged ropax is to be sold along with fleetmate Barfleur as part of major cost-cutting efforts and restructuring with the closure of two English Channel routes: Cherbourg-Poole in November and Portsmouth-Le Havre (recently prematurely closed) amid other rising costs that have forced financial pressures upon the Breton-based company.
In addition, the closure of the Poole-Cherbourg link will have an economic impact on English Channel tourism to the port town and region, though Brittany Ferries are to increase sailings from Portsmouth with the introduction of Wexford; however, this will only involve a single weekly round trip between the Cotentin Peninsula and the Hampshire port.
As for Stena Vision, the veteran vessel built in 1987, originally as Stena Germanica, served as an overnight route between Sweden and Germany and daytime crossings from Sweden to Denmark. However, the ship subsequently was refitted in 1999 and 2010 and in that year was renamed Stena Vision and transferred to a Sweden-Poland route, where another of its class, Stena Spirit, formerly Stena Scandinavia, remains (but for how long?). It serves alongside lengthened twin E-Flexers, Stena Ebba and Stena Estelle, which were introduced in 2022.
Stena's Increasing Nordic E-Flexer Fleet
Stena this week announced ordering a further two E-Flexers (version 2.0) as the hybrid-powered newbuilds are to serve the Gothenburg-Frederikshavn route, which has seen increased demand of 12% in volumes at the start of this year, compared to the same period in 2025. The rise occurred despite what the ferry company described as a cautious economic climate for many households.
They are to replace aging tonnage, Stena Danica, built in 1983, is somewhat similar in design era to the ‘Germanica’ and the Stena Jutlandica, built in 1996 at the same Dutch shipyard that too launched Isle of Inishmore, a larger version complete with an observation lounge, and currently runs the Irish Ferries Dover-Calais link.
Vision: Veteran Vessel's 'Med' Service
Last year, Stena Vision was sold to Mediterranean operator Corsica-Sardinia Ferries and was renamed Mega Serena; however, it retained the Cypriot registry and flag. It was deployed on routes connecting both these large islands to ports in their respective mainland nations of France and Italy. At the time of writing, the cruise ferry is berthed in Bastia, Corsica, before it makes a crossing to Toulon, France.
This year the ferry is in its 30th year, but for how long, given its fuel-thirsty engines burn heavy marine diesel oil and its impact from carbon emissions? Having said that, the new owners have increased its speed after retrofitting to improve environmental credentials, as an electrical connection permits ground (shore-to-ship) during the ferry’s stopover whilst in port.
