Shipping company Stena Line plans to launch a temporary ferry service between Belfast and Holyhead in Wales later this month to cash in on growing demand.
Stena confirmed on Tuesday that it will sail the two ports from Friday June 25th until Sunday July 18th, offering both passenger and freight services.
The company noted that demand for its services from Belfast to Cairnryan in Scotland and Liverpool was very high, so the new service would provide extra capacity to and from Northern Ireland.
With ongoing restrictions on travel from Britain to the Republic, Stena added that the service would offer customers the option of visiting Northern Ireland, Britain or Wales.
Paul Grant, Stena Line trade director, Irish Sea, said the company found recent booking trends encouraging.
“The current travel restrictions between Britain and Ireland have created a lot of pent-up travel demand,” he said.
“So hopefully the addition of this new route will help provide another option for people visiting friends, relatives or taking a break as well as being an attractive option for our freight customers.”
Stena is the biggest ferry operator on the Irish Sea.