Shipping company to keep popular caravan holiday route open
Shipping company Regina Line has announced plans to keep a popular caravan and motorhome route between England and Denmark open after it was scrapped by a rival company. DFDS announced earlier this year that the historic Harwich-Esbjerg ferry route, which opened in 1875, would close on 29 September. The announcement came following the introduction of new environmental laws and subsequent costs that DFDS would be unable to bear, according to a statement from CEO Niels Smedegaard. He added: ”The route is of particular historical significance to DFDS so it’s a very sad day for us all. Our regrets go to our many passengers who must now see the last passenger ferry route between the UK and Scandinavia close.”
The Regina Line has stepped in since then and plans to restart the service from Harwich next year, which is good news for the caravanners and holiday makers regularly going to Denmark. The shipping company, which is based in Denmark, also stated that they plan to offer cost efficient tickets. This could boost the number of caravan holidays and trips taken to Esbjerg, which has dropped from 300,000 annually to 80,000 since the closure of the DFDS ferry service.
The new environmental laws regarding sulphur emissions are set to be enforced by the EU from January 2015, as part of amendments to Sulphur Emission Control Areas (SECA). Travellers on both sides of Harwich and Esbjerg have reportedly been affected, with routes from Scandinavia being diverted through Poland, and British travellers having to travel further to take ferries to Esbjerg and other places in the region.
Have you been affected by the changes or the closure of the Harwich-Esbjerg ferry service?
