Irish Ferries 2021 schedule delay?

[Shipmate]

Anyone any idea why the long delay with the 2021 timetable?

[Chef]

Brexit and Covid spring to mind .

[Shipmate]

Covid and Brexit huge, but the other companies all have timetables and bookings open.

[IFPete]

They may delay releasing anything until Brexit is known.

Isle of Inishmore needs to go for Scrubber Installations so a replacement ship will be leased in for Drydock period.

[Cupcoffee]

IF schedules Dublin Cherbourg out now. But no cabins and only 9 reclining seats available to book on each sailing!!!
What is going on?

[Shipmate]

I made a few bookings, all cabin options were there for me. Maybe website struggling with user numbers?

[IFPete]

Irish Ferries Timetable for January is 7 round trips per Forthnight on Dublin - Cherbourg.

The timetable states that the service is a freight service with Cabins available upon boarding.

At the moment Epsilon is doing the sailings. Given the fact that Drydocking is happening i am wondering if Stena Baltica or Stena Energia are being leased in to take over the route until IOI comes back from Scrubber Installation in April 2021.

[Chef]

Stena Baltica is returning to France at the moment and  back wearing Brittany Ferries livery she will revert back to her previous name of Cotentin .

[ferryfan]

Not sure why (covid perhaps) but bookings are open for France until end January on Epsilon (no cabins available) and from 25 May 2021 to 2 October 2021. Current Brexit negotiations could be causing a delay in finalising the service  for March to May or the dates for dry-docking may not yet be sorted. A couple of years ago neither IF nor Stena provided a relief vessel when their southern corridor vessels were dry docked instead they entered into an agreement to serve each others passengers.

[IFPete]

Most probably Irish Ferries will operate a freight only service on Dublin - Cherbourg from end January to 25 May 2021 while Drydocking takes place and IOI goes for Scrubber Installation.

I suspect Covid demand is also factored into this decision.

[awaityourreply]

[PR] Dear Summer. We missed you! ? Irish Ferries launches Summer '21 schedule to France with FREE Flexibility on all bookings

Press ReleaseNovember 19, 2020Last Updated: November 19, 2020 1 minute read


Source: https://www.niferry.co.uk/
https://www.niferry.co.uk/pr-dear-summer-we-missed-you-irish-ferries-launches-summer-21-schedule-to-france-with-free-flexibility-on-all-bookings/