Irish Ferries
Irish Ferries
Irish Ferries is the trading name of Irish Continental Group (ICG) and is Ireland’s leading ferry company, carrying passengers and freight between Ireland, Great Britain and Continental Europe. They are a division of Irish Continental Group. Over recent years, Irish Ferries has invested over €500 million in new fleet and port facilities, and they now have the most modern fleet in Europe.
Irish Ferries’ new Ireland/France cruise ferry ‘Oscar Wilde’ entered service between Rosslare and Cherbourg on 30th November 2007. Considered one of the most luxurious vessels of its type, the ‘Oscar Wilde’ was purchased by Irish Ferries in January 2007 at a cost of €45 million. The vessel has greater car and freight capacity than the one it replaced, more berths and a wider choice of cabin accommodation.
History
The Irish Ferries company can be traced back to May 17 1968, with the Irish Continental Group’s first sailing from Roslare to Le Harve. This was a joint operation by Normandy Ferries (owned by P&O) and the shipping line Saga (owned by the Rothschild family). A series of mergers and takeovers down the years culminated in 1995 with the Irish Ferries title and logos being adopted.
Irish Ferries’ investment programme of over €400 million in the past ten years across all of its routes has helped secure its position as Dublin Port’s premier passenger ferry operator. The major part of this investment has been spent on the construction of a new modern fleet of ferry vessels. Significant amounts have also been invested in the development of its service through Dublin including the purchasing of freight handling equipment.
In March 2001, Irish Ferries’ biggest ferry investment so far was demonstrated with the introduction of Ulysses - the World’s Largest Car Ferry, which services the Dublin/Holyhead route.