Displaying items by tag: Cherbourg consolidated

Q: Give examples of marine leisure tourism?

Sports: sailing, surfing, diving and fishing Heritage: Unesco coastal villages, archaeological sites of interest, biospheres and historical points of interest Arts: coastal museums, art galleries, museums, wrecks Education: Eco-tourism, field courses, NGOs. Food: Seafood restaurants, Seafood festivals

6th November 2023

Brittany Ferries Close Le Havre Link, But Boost Ireland-France Capacity on Rosslare-Cherbourg Route

Brittany Ferries has closed its Rosslare-Le Havre route as the operator of the Ireland-France link will not reopen the service in 2024, writes Jehan Ashmore

The weekend only operated Wexford-Normandy link was scheduled to close last weekend, however Storm Ciarán led to cancelled crossings and according to Brittany Ferries the previous weekend sailings were also affected by adverse weather.

It was two years ago when the Rosslare-Le Havre route opened due to significant increase in demand for direct freight links connecting Ireland with France. In March this year the 120 trailer unit freight-ferry, Cotentin (see photo) also took on passengers, their cars and foot passengers on the 20 hour 15 minutes service.

The 22,308 gross tonnage Cotentin, however is to remain with Irish operations by switching to the Rosslare-Cherbourg route this Saturday, 11 November, following a debut crossing to take place overnight from France.

The passenger and freight route was operated by the E-Flexer series cruise-ferry Salamanca, with the ropax Cotentin soon to take over. In addition to be joined by second ship, Santoña which starts service from Rosslare next Monday, 13 November, following a departure France the previous day. Santoña is Brittany Ferries newest LNG powered cruise-ferry.

Brittany Ferries two-ship service will be in direct competition with rivals Stena Line which introduced in June a second ship, the cruise ferry Stena Vision which has helped to achieve a record rise in passenger and car numbers up over 90% on last year. The massive boost in trade along with Stena Horizon, the ropax which launched the link for Stena following its acquisition of Celtic Link Ferries in 2014.

The shorter Rosslare-Cherbourg route of around 17 hours, operated by Brittany Ferries and Stena with two ships each, Afloat highlights will offer customers the most ever range of sailings on the route and of all between Ireland and France, including those connecting Dublin and Cork.

Both Cotentin and the former Rosslare-Cherbourg route serving Salamanca, will be operating out of the Cotentin peninsula in Normandy, as Brittany Ferries also run a Cherbourg-Portsmouth route.

Cherbourg at the northern tip of the peninsula is where Brittany Ferries also have a route to Poole and so the Normandy port is strategically located also to the UK. In addition, Brittany Ferries is to launch next year a new ‘rail-freight motorway’ connecting the port in Normandy and Bayonne in the Nouvelle Aquitaine region in south-western France, close to border with Spain.

The new almost 1,000km rail link will form a natural extension of Brittany Ferries’ existing sea routes linking Cherbourg to Ireland and the UK, cutting the number of lorries transiting France by road by around 25,000 per year. Brittany Ferries will operate and sell the new service, effectively becoming a rail operator.

Published in Brittany Ferries

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Marine Leisure & Aquatic Tourism

Domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million.

Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips.

While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities.

According to the National University of Galway (NUIG) research the average expenditure per coastal day trip in 2018 was calculated at €95. The equivalent for coastal overnight trips was €310. The estimated water-based activity expenditure per person per trip across the sample was €56 rising to €73 for the subsample that actually undertake waterbased activities on their coastal visits. The results also indicate that domestic tourists undertake the majority of their marine activities on the West and South coasts of Ireland and that there are notable differences in participation rates across age groupings, social classes and by family makeup.

A domestic tourist is defined in this report as a person who spends at least one night away from home on their trip. Total expenditure by domestic tourists in coastal areas was estimated to be €698 million in 2018, which represents 35% of the total expenditure by domestic tourists (using the broader Fáilte Ireland measure for domestic tourists that includes business trips equating to 10.92 million in total trips and €2,006 million in total revenue).

The marine-related activity expenditure, or what might truly be referred to as domestic marine tourism, is estimated to generate revenue of €381 million with €172 million being spent on water-based activities. Marine tourism makes up an estimated 19% of total domestic tourism expenditure.

Marine Leisure Tourism - FAQ

What is marine leisure tourism?

Coastal tourism refers to land-based and water-based tourism activities taking place on the coast for which the proximity to the sea is a condition including also their respective services. Coastal and Marine Tourism & Leisure are seen as one of the Blue Economy (BE) sectors that can help unlock the potential of multi-use of space at sea by engaging with Blue Growth (BG) sectors such as Aquaculture and Marine Renewable Energy among others.

Give examples of marine leisure tourism?

Sports: sailing, surfing, diving and fishing Heritage: Unesco coastal villages, archaeological sites of interest, biospheres and historical points of interest Arts: coastal museums, art galleries, museums, wrecks Education: Eco-tourism, field courses, NGOs. Food: Seafood restaurants, Seafood festivals

What marine leisure tourism studies have been conducted in Ireland?

NUI Galway carried out a survey of domestic residents in Ireland in 2019 as part of a survey entitled "Valuing and understanding the dynamics of Ireland's Ocean Economy". The purpose of the household survey was to profile the domestic market for single-day trips (leisure) and overnight trips (tourism) for coastal and marine-related activities in Ireland. The results of the survey are also used to estimate what proportion of an Irish resident's total domestic tourism expenditure is in coastal areas (coastal tourism) and what proportion is spent on undertaking marine-related activities (marine tourism).

What were the results of the NUI marine leisure tourism study?

The NUI results highlight the important contribution that Ireland's marine and coastal resources make to the leisure experiences of the general population and the importance of the domestic tourism market to local coastal economies. The analysis indicates that domestic coastal tourism expenditure was approximately €698 million in 2018, while domestic marine tourism generated €381 million. Activities such as walking/ running along the coast, swimming and beach visitations are among the most popular activities for domestic visitors on both day and overnight trips. While participation rates in pursuits such as bird and wildlife watching in coastal areas and visiting nature reserves, etc. in coastal areas were lower, these activities did see the highest frequency of both day and overnight trips for those active in these activities. Satisfaction with the available marine-related leisure facilities was also found to be very high across all activities.