MV ''Ulysses'' is a

RORO Roll-on/roll-off (RORO or ro-ro) ships are cargo ships designed to carry wheeled cargo, such as cars, motorcycles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, buses, trailers, and railroad cars, that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels or usi ...

car

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

currently owned and operated by

Irish Ferries Irish Ferries is an Irish ferry and transport company that operates passenger and freight services on routes between Ireland, Britain and Continental Europe, including Dublin Port–Holyhead; Rosslare Europort to Pembroke, Pembrokeshire, Pembr ...

. The ship was launched on 1 September 2000 at

Aker Finnyards STX Finland Oy, formerly Aker Yards Oy, was a Finnish shipbuilding company operating three shipyards in Finland, in Turku, Helsinki and Rauma, employing some 2,500 people. It was part of STX Europe, a group of international shipbuilding compani ...

shipyard in Rauma,

Finland Finland, officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe. It borders Sweden to the northwest, Norway to the north, and Russia to the east, with the Gulf of Bothnia to the west and the Gulf of Finland to the south, ...

and services the

Dublin Dublin is the capital and largest city of Republic of Ireland, Ireland. Situated on Dublin Bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the Provinces of Ireland, province of Leinster, and is bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, pa ...

–

Holyhead Holyhead (; , "Cybi's fort") is a historic port town, and is the list of Anglesey towns by population, largest town and a Community (Wales), community in the county of Isle of Anglesey, Wales. Holyhead is on Holy Island, Anglesey, Holy Island ...

route. The vessel stands 12 decks high, at a height of 167.5 feet (approx 51 metres) from keel to mast. The vessel has five vehicle decks, including a stowable mezzanine deck consisting of two 'swing decks', called 'Plates', which are lowered to accommodate a greater number of 'low vehicles' (i.e. vehicles up to 2 metres high)—these swing decks are primarily used in holiday seasons when there is a much greater number of passenger vehicles. When launched she was the world's largest car ferry in terms of vehicle capacity.

Design

''Ulysses'' was designed by Aker Finnyards and based on their Cruise Ferry 4000 concept design. She measures 50,938 GT, and is long, with a beam of and a draft of . She can carry 2,000 passengers and crew, 1,342 cars or 241 articulated trucks and trailers (or a mix of cars and freight vehicles). She has 228 passenger berths in 96 cabins, with passenger space spread over 12 decks. She is powered by four MaK M43 diesel engines, each delivering at 500rpm for a total power output of , that give her a service speed of via two propellers. She also has three thrusters at the bow and one at the stern to aid in maneuvering.

History

Irish Ferries ordered ''Ulysses'' from Aker Finnyards in late 1999. She was laid down on 24 January 2000 and launched on 1 September. She was handed over to her owners, Irish Continental Group, at the Rauma yard on 22 February 2001, leaving under the command of Captain Peter Ferguson on 28 February and arriving in Dublin Bay at 07:00 on Sunday 4 March. The

naming ceremony A naming ceremony is a stage at which a person or persons is officially assigned a name. The methods of the practice differ over cultures and religions. The timing at which a name is assigned can vary from some days after birth to several months ...

was undertaken by swimmer

Mairead Berry Mairead Berry (born 1975) is a former Irish people, Irish Paralympic swimming, Paralympic swimmer who competed in international level events. In 2001, Berry ship naming and launching, officially launched and named a 50,000-ton ship, ''MV Ulysse ...

. Following the 2003 sailing season, ''Ulysses'' underwent a refit at the

A&P Group A&P Group Ltd is the largest ship repair and conversion company in the UK, with three shipyards located in Hebburn, Middlesbrough and Falmouth, Cornwall, Falmouth. The company undertakes a wide variety of maintenance and repair work on commerci ...

's Birkenhead shipyard. She has sailed on Irish Ferries' Dublin–Holyhead route for her entire career, uninterrupted until the 2018 season when she suffered mechanical problems with her starboard propeller, requiring drydock repairs that took several weeks in June and July. On 12 December 2024 she serviced the Dublin-Cherbourg route for the first time, docking in Cherbourg on 13 December 2024.

Gallery

Poolbeg Generating Station as seen from MV Ulysses (2000), an Irish Ferries ship leaving Dublin 04.jpg, The ship passing by the Poolbeg chimneys as it leaves Dublin in 2022 Dublin Port as seen from the back of MV Ulysses (2000), an Irish Ferries ship leaving Dublin 02.jpg, Dublin Port as seen from the back of the ferry MV Ulysses 3.jpg, Smokestacks MV Ulysses 6.jpg, Passenger seating on the 9th deck MV Ulysses 5.jpg, Leopold Blooms Bar on the 9th deck MV Ulysses 7.jpg, Vehicle deck 5 MV Ulysses 4.jpg, Lifeboats MV Ulysses 1.jpg, Helicopter deck

References

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External links

M/F Ulysses - The ferry siteUlysses - Irish Ferries
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ulysses Ships built in Rauma, Finland Ferries of the Republic of Ireland 2000 ships Ro-ro ships