Port accessThis modern ship offers an excellent alternative to explore Ireland in comfort, with your vehicle, your family and friends, and your pet.
Brittany Ferries’ Salamanca has docked today at the Port of Bilbao after completing its first crossing between Ireland and Spain. This vessel, the first natural-gas powered ferry of the fleet, will leave Bilbao on Sundays and Thursdays for the Irish port of Rosslare.
The inclusion of this vessel on the route with Ireland will expand and improve the offer for both freight and passengers, and will provide a much more comfortable crossing. “The Salamanca is more like a cruise ship than a simple ferry, which means that our passengers can enjoy themselves in facilities designed to make the most of the crossing”, Roberto Castilla, Director of Brittany Ferries in Spain, explained. The vessel is considered a cruise ferry and has a capacity for 1,050 passengers, as well as spacious lounges to relax in, bars, restaurants, games rooms for the little ones, shops and decks where you can play sports or simply enjoy the sea breeze.
In total, the Salamanca has 343 cabins with bathroom and 37 cabins for lorry drivers. Some of the 343 cabins are specially adapted for passengers with reduced mobility, and others are reserved exclusively for passengers travelling with their pets.
The increase in passenger capacity will also mean a greater number of tourists coming to the Basque Country. “We believe that the port of Bilbao will be a strategic gateway for many Irish tourists to come to the Basque Country to enjoy its natural areas, both inland and on the coast, its cultural heritage, its rich and varied gastronomy and many other attractions that the region has to offer”, Mr. Castilla added.
For his part, the President of the Port Authority of Bilbao, Ricardo Barkala, highlighted the close relationship with Brittany Ferries and the company’s major commitment to the port. “We have”, he said, “an excellent relationship based on trust, and we share the same vision of commitment to the customer and to social and environmental responsibility. Brittany Ferries’ commitment to the port of Bilbao is very important to us, and today has once again demonstrated this with the improvement made to a line that is strategic for the port of Bilbao”. Barkala added that, despite the fact that the line has only been in operation for two years, “it is a service which has been growing in terms of cargo and passengers, and with this magnificent ship we are convinced that we will attract more freight and more tourists by sea”.
A more sustainable ship
The Salamanca is the French shipping company’s first LNG-powered vessel. LNG is a cleaner fuel which reduces carbon dioxide emissions by 20%, as its combustion process is more efficient than that of traditional fossil fuels. “This step represents a firm commitment as part of our long-term plan to connect Spain and Ireland, tripling the passenger capacity on one of the largest ships in the fleet”, said Roberto Castilla, adding that “the commissioning of the Salamanca on the Ireland route is a further sign of our commitment to Bilbao and, in short, to sustainability, to the environment and to the comfort of our passengers”.
Investing in a cleaner fleet
Fleet renewal is one of the cornerstones of Brittany Ferries’ recovery process from the Covid pandemic. The Salamanca is the first of four new LNG-powered vessels that are due to arrive at the company. The next will be the Santoña, scheduled to join the fleet in 2023, and both vessels will service the Spain-England routes. The Salamanca will operate the route from Bilbao, and the Santoña from Santander.
However, this investment does not stop with these two ferries. Brittany Ferries is also investing in two hybrid LNG-powered vessels, due to arrive in 2024 and 2025, and which will replace two of the oldest vessels in its fleet, the Bretagne and the Normandie, covering routes between the UK and France. These new vessels will operate on the same principle as a hybrid car: at sea, they will be powered by LNG, but during docking and departure manoeuvres, the vessels will also be powered, partly or entirely, by batteries that can be recharged whilst at dock, and which will be used to power systems such as air conditioning, heating and on-board lighting.
Rosslare, the starting point on a journey through Ireland
The destination of the which starts in the port of Bilbao is the town of Rosslare, the gateway to the ancient east of Ireland. This wonderful part of the country combines some of the greatest treasures of the island: 5,000-year-old monuments, spectacular green valleys and charming villages. Stories, myths and legends accompany travellers on the journey through the green landscapes and along the wild coastline of the East of Ireland.
The best way to get around the Ancestral East is by car or caravan, which is made possible by ferry travel. For the sports enthusiast, the area has the Greenway, a 46 kilometre long cycle path linking Dungarvan with Waterford, but the area also boasts numerous walking routes such as Glendalough, the valley of two lakes in the Wicklow Mountains.
In addition to all that the area around Rosslare has to offer, this harbour town is just over 2 hours from the main cities on the island, such as Dublin, Cork and even Limerick.
