Dún Laoghaires former ferry sets sail for Turkey

STENA Line’s HSS vessel, the Stena Explorer, which operated on the Holyhead-Dún Laoghaire route between 1996 and 2014, has embarked on her last journey on the Irish Sea as she travels to her new owners in Turkey.  

The Stena Explorer was first introduced in the middle of the ‘90s when the vessel and her sister ferries – Stena Voyager and Stena Discovery – were unique in their class.  

Since her first sailing almost 20 years ago in April 1996, the Stena Explorer has carried over 15 million passengers, three million cars and over half a million freight units on almost 29,000 sailings between Britain and Ireland.  

The ship’s last commercial journey for Stena Line on the Irish Sea was in September 2014. 

When commissioned by Stena Line, the HSS series of three ships, including the Stena Explorer, helped to revolutionise the look of the ferry industry. With its top speed of 40 knots and high quality onboard travel  experience for 1,500 passengers and car capacity of over 600 vehicles, the ferry became an instant hit with customers.  

It departed Holyhead last Thursday and was escorted by tugs on her journey to Turkey.