Stena Line winning over Ryanair passengers
Ferry Online Travel News 06/04/2009
Ryanair's customer service is said to be so bad that passengers are travelling by ferry instead.
According to Stena Line, one of the leading ferry companies in Europe, the number of travellers preferring to avoid the Ryanair experience is on the rise – and they are choosing instead to make the three-hour Irish Sea crossing by ferry.
The ferry operator reported an increase of 10 per cent in passenger traffic on its Dublin to Holyhead service in February. It claims that passenger displeasure with air travel conditions has added significantly to the switch.
Gunnar Blomdahl, who is the chief executive of Stena Line, noted that his company has worked to improve service standards, while Ryanair, the predominant carrier between Dublin and London appears to have gone in the opposite direction – even tolerating "insulting" staff.
"I think we have benefited from all the trouble you have at the airport. First you are insulted by a Ryanair person, then you have to get through security," Blomdahl said. "We have gone the other way and made it easier. The ferries are also much better than they were four or five years ago."
In the past, the crossing from Dublin to Holyhead was not a pleasant one for passengers due to rough seas and poor facilities. Typically, only those who were unable to afford the high airfares charged by Aer Lingus and British Airways would opt for the ferry.
According to Blomdahl, in the last five years Stena Line has made dramatic improves to its ships and its service levels.
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