TRAVEL writers, bloggers and influencers from all over Ireland have voted Stena Line Best Ferry Company for the seventh year in succession.

 Stena Line’s Diane Poole (second from left) and Jill Kelleher (second from right) receive the Best Ferry Company award at the 2019 Travel Media Awards from Fran Lambert, Atout France, and event hosts Alex Gibson and Ed Finn. 

More than 200 guests gathered at the Shelbourne Hotel in Dublin for the 2019 Travel Media Awards, which 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.

Stena Line is the largest ferry operator on the Irish Sea, offering the biggest fleet and the widest choice of routes between Ireland and Britain including Dublin to Holyhead, Rosslare to Fishguard, Belfast to Liverpool. Belfast to Heysham, and Belfast to Cairnryan – with a total of 232 weekly sailings.  The company is the only operator to offer a direct service from Rosslare to Cherbourg with three return crossings a week.

Stena Line

About the Author: admin