Superfast Ferry: Rosyth, Scotland - Zeebrugge, Belgium
Sailings - Photos - News - Ships - Scotland - Belgium - Translate - Feedback
Here are photos from the first Superfast Scotland sailing on Friday 17 May 2002 from Rosyth to Zeebrugge. The Superfast ships are very impressive and the whole trip was very enjoyable. Good food, drink and very comfortable accommodation. Staff were friendly and efficient. Cabin was spacious with good beds, a toilet and a power shower. There are two restaurants, two bars and a sauna and Jacuzzi. Overall it is incomparable to other ferries I have travelled on.
I wholly recommend this service as a gateway into Europe from Scotland and vice versa. Note I have no connection to any companies involved. I hope some of the information on this site is useful. All links open in same window. All links are to pages from which you can use the 'Back' button.
This site is experiencing substantial traffic but little feedback! Please supply any feedback on the site or views or experiences of the Superfast Scotland service. Or submit photos, solely for credited use on the site (800 × 600 and 120 × 160).
Important update Oct 2005: Sailings reduced to three a week.from 8 November 2005. See BBC News story Firm cuts Europe ferry sailings. The route will now be serviced by a single ferry, sailing from the Rosyth every Tuesday, Thursday and Saturday; and returning from Zeebrugge every Monday, Wednesday and Friday. The lack of freight traffic is blamed for this reduction.
Departure from Rosyth, Scotland (Tue, Thu & Sat): 17:00. Arrival Zeebrugge, Belgium 11:30.
Departure from Zeebrugge, Belgium (Mon, Wed& Fri): 18:00. Arrival Rosyth, Scotland: 10:30.
Please check the Superfast web site to confirm sailing times, check in times and dates. No departures on some dates during low and shoulder season for maintenance.
Check Zedis site for Zeebrugge port Expected ships; Ships in harbour; and Ships sailed (set language top right of page, select from menu under 'General lists').
Zeebrugge Port site.
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17
May 2002: Rosyth
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18
May 2002: Zeebrugge
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May 2002: Zeebrugge
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21
May 2002: Rosyth
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All
photos (except top photo) are © 2002 Roy Brown
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Here are some beautiful photos submitted by C. P. Cosgrove:
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18
October 2002: Rosyth / Forth Bridges
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Above
photos are © 2002 C. P. Cosgrove
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Norway ferry may aid exports and tourism The Scotsman 5.1.2005
A NEW ferry route to Norway is being planned as Scotland’s second direct European sea link.
A twice-weekly service between Rosyth and either Kristiansund or Trondheim in mid-Norway is being considered that would serve both the tourism and freight markets.
Ferry firm sails off with award The Evening News 11.11.2004
SCOTLAND’S only ferry service to continental Europe has received a top industry accolade. Superfast Ferries, which runs the service between Rosyth and Zeebrugge, has been voted Best Ferry Operator by the Scottish Passenger Agents’ Association.
Crowds mistake Rosyth ferry for QM2 The Evening News 15.7.2004
ONE is the world’s largest, longest, tallest and most expensive ocean liner. The other is a standard car ferry which completes a daily trek from Rosyth to the Belgian port of Zeebrugge.
Spotting the difference between the two ships should be easy.
But hundreds of people missed the boat when they lined the Capital’s coast to admire the Queen Mary 2 as she set sail from the Firth of Forth on Tuesday evening.
Ferry firm floats idea of link with Shetland The Evening News 18.6.2004
FERRY operators are to explore launching a new route between Rosyth and Shetland in what could be the first step in a major expansion of seaborne trade and tourism.
NorthLink Ferries, which currently runs between Shetland and Aberdeen, said it would look at the option of starting a freight ferry from Shetland to the Fife port, where it would link up with Superfast’s Rosyth-Zeebrugge ferry.
Ferries go Forth and keep multiplying The Evening News 18.5.2004
WHEN it was launched two years ago, it looked like it was sailing straight into stormy waters - and could even end up being sunk.
Rosyth ferry hits 300,000 mark The Scotsman 19.2.2004
SUPERFAST Ferries announced yesterday that it had notched up 300,000 passengers on the Scotland-Belgium service, with the total almost doubling last year.
Scottish ferry link rated one of North Sea's best The Scotsman 15.1.2004
SCOTLAND'S new ferry link between Rosyth and Zeebrugge has been rated one of the best North Sea services by the consumer magazine Holiday Which?
Ferry company checks out new tartan for European route The Scotsman 27.10.2003
A FERRY company today launched a new tartan for its European ferry service.
Tourism Minister Frank McAveety officially launched the new brand on board Superfast's Superfast X ferry.
Port
wins £2m Euro grant for roads and industry The Scotsman
13.10.2003
NEARLY £2 million in European grants will be invested in improving road
links and industrial development around Rosyth, Deputy Minister for Enterprise
and Lifelong Learning Lewis Macdonald said today.
Ferry firm sails past targets for bookings The Evening News 7.8.2003
SUPERFAST Ferries are celebrating record bookings for both passengers and freight traffic on their Rosyth to Zeebrugge route.
Rising passenger numbers mean the ferry operators now expect to have carried 250,000 passengers by the end of the autumn, rather than by the end of the year as initially predicted.
Crucially freight bookings have also shot up to two-and-a-half times the level they were a year ago.
July
record for Scots ferry link BBC News 6.8.2003
The operator of Scotland's continental ferry service have revealed that July
was its best month so far for freight traffic.
Ferry
service to hit freight targets for first time The Scotsman
6.8.2003
SUPERFAST Ferries yesterday predicted it would hit vital freight targets for
the first time this autumn on the Scotland-Belgium route after record cargo
figures for last month.
150,000
have made use of first ferry link to Europe The Scotsman
17.5.2003
SOME 150,000 passengers have been carried on Scotland’s first ferry link
to Europe but the route has yet to meet its freight targets, its operators admitted
as the service celebrated its first birthday today.
Chancellor
is the ferry man for ceremony The Evening News 3.5.2003
Chancellor Gordon Brown will be guest of honour at the official opening of the
Rosyth ferry terminal later this month. He will be performing the opening
ceremony on May 23, as well as making a presentation to the first couple
who used the passenger ferry, Jim and Doreen Mundie of Portknockie, Aberdeenshire.
Ferry
cruises past 100,000 mark The Scotsman 26.2.2003
THE owner of Scotland’s first direct ferry link to the Continent has confirmed
that more than 100,000 passengers used the service in the first seven-and-a-half
months of operation.
Ferry
link secures £70m boost BBC News 5.10.2002
Ferry operator Stena Line has unveiled a £70m investment in the crossing
between Scotland and Northern Ireland. The firm announced that it will build
new terminals at Cairnryan and Belfast - cutting 30 minutes off the journey
time.
Belgium
by boat The Scotsman 1.2.2003
If you haven’t used ferries for a while, a journey like this comes
as a bit of a culture shock, but you quickly realise you are on holiday from
the minute you board.
Tourist
boards get £9.4m boost The Scotsman 24.1.2003
Tourist boards in the east of Scotland have been given a £9.4million
cash injection from the European Union which is expected to generate an additional
£100million in tourism spending in the area over the next three years.
Part of the money is to be
spent building on the success of the Rosyth to Zeebrugge ferry as a key entry
point for continental visitors coming to Scotland.
High-spending
foreign visitors vote ferry service a success The Scotsman
3.12.2002
Foreign visitors using the new ferry link between Scotland and the continent
spent almost £600 each in the country, according to research published
yesterday.
Freight
firms warm to Rosyth ferry link The Scotsman 29.11.2002
Freight firms are at last flocking to use Scotland’s first direct sea link
to the Continent after the first official passenger figures showing ferries
ran two-thirds empty overall during the summer.
Freight
boost for ferry link BBC
News 5.10.2002
The amount of freight traffic using Scotland's first ferry link with mainland
Europe is increasing. Superfast's latest figures suggest that cargo traffic
has increased substantially and that several extra hauliers have begun using
the link.
Scotland
on board Faroe ferry service 21.9.2002 Sunday Herald
Following the successful introduction in May of the Superfast Ferries from Rosyth
to Zeebrugge, a Faroese shipping company is to run a direct service from Edinburgh
to the Faroes, Iceland, Denmark, and Norway.
Islands’
ferry freight link hits choppy seas The Scotsman 17.9.2002
From 1 October, a £100 million fleet of three purpose-built super-ferries
operated by Northlink will take over the sea routes between the Scottish mainland
and the Northern Isles from P&O, with Aberdeen as the primary operations
hub.
Ferry
call for Scots truckers BBC News 15.8.2002
Haulage companies are being urged to use Scotland's first direct ferry link
to mainland Europe - because they cannot afford to lose it.
This
ship will not founder The Scotsman 13.7.2002
The facilities are exceptional, and there is an atmosphere of good living, a
mini-cruise rather than a ferry ride.
SNP
calls for rail link to ferries at Rosyth Evening News 10.7.2002
SNP transport spokesman Kenny MacAskill said plans to reopen the Stirling-Alloa-Dunfermline
rail line should include extending it to the port.
Superfast IX and Superfast X are currently being used on the Rosyth to Zeebrugge route. Built by Howaldtswerke Deutsche Werft (HDW), Kiel, Germany, and delivered in January and February 2002. Both ships can carry 626 passengers, over 100 private vehicles and 110 large trucks. The overnight crossing takes 17½ hours at a speed of up to 30 knots. Ships are 204 meters in length 30m breadth and have 10 decks. Ship specifications IX & X.See technical specifications.
Attica
Group is the parent company of the Superfast
Ferries and the Blue
Star Ferries.
Rosyth: MultiMap - StreetMap - Fife Council
Edinburgh: MultiMap - For Visitors - WebCam
Booking
Superfast booking page.
Viamare Travel are booking agents for passenger and freight services.
A1 Holiday Breaks offer packages to Bruges, including ferry, transfer and hotel.
Osprey Holidays also offer packages using the SuperFast ferry.
Transport
Please also see the Travel Guide (450KB pdf) produced by Fife Council for details of connecting bus and train services.
Traveline Scotland 'where you can plan any public transport journey within Scotland and from Scotland to main points in the UK.'
Rail
First ScotRail provide around 95% of all train services within Scotland. Other services from Virgin Trains (West Coast) and GNER (East Coast).
Check train times at Railtrack Timetables Online.
Sea
Forth
Ports operates Rosyth
Port. Site has a plan
of the port. The new terminal was due to be operational by the third week of
August 2002.
Caledonian MacBrayne ferry company with a fleet of 28 ferries that link 23 islands to the mainland and each other via 52 ports and terminals.
John O' Groats Ferries operate a passenger ferry service from John O' Groats in the Far North of Scotland to Orkney. Every day from May to September.
NorthLink Ferries now operate ferry services from the Scottish mainland to Orkney and Shetland with new ships.
P&O Irish Sea operate between Cairnryan and Larne and - from April 2003 - Troon and Larne.
SeaCat
and the Isle of Man Steam Packet Co offer fast ferry crossings across the Irish
Sea, including Troon to Belfast..
Smyril Line runs a service between the Shetland Islands, Norway, Iceland, Denmark and the Faroe Islands. Smyril Line has launched a new ship Norröna which will be introduced in April 2003. This service connects with the new NorthLink ferries to Lerwick in Shetland.
Stena Line operate fast ferries between Stranraer and Belfast.
Road
Bicycles go free! Rosyth is next to National Cycle Route 1 which goes from Dover to Edinburgh and on to John o'Groats, the Orkneys and the Shetlands. See the Sustrans web site. Also see Fife Cycleways, Cycling Scotland, Spokes and CTC.
GoByCoach Web site including National Express bus services.
Scottish Citylink Scotland's leading provider of Express Coach services.
Tourism
Visit
Scotland (Scottish Tourist Board)
Weather - Forecast for Inverkeithing which is 2 miles (3 kilometers) East of Rosyth.
Zeebrugge: MultiMap
Port of Zeebrugge site includes arrival and departures information.
Rail
Rail Europe - The European Railway Server
Road
Coach booking with Eurolines or Busabout
Norway (future destination?)
Kristiansund port webcam.
Accommodation
Highland holiday cottage to let: Bruach, Carrbridge, Inverness-shire, Scotland.
Weather
- Note: Oostende Airport is 25 miles (40 kilometers) West of Zeebrugge.
Rosyth Map
Image produced from the
Ordnance Survey Get-a-map
service.
Image reproduced
with kind permission of Ordnance
Survey
and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland.
Any problems, suggestions or comments regarding this web site, please e-mail: Roy Brown. I have no connection with Superfast or any other company mentioned except:
And if you are going skiing in Meribel Valley visit ChaletFood who deliver your food and drink direct to your apartment or chalet.
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you can try using their Superfast
feedback form.
Last updated 21.3. 2005.
© 2005 Roy Brown
Scotland
Belgium