Brittany Ferries welcomes Galicia into its fleet during virtual ceremony

Aptly named Galicia after the Spanish region she will soon operate weekly trips to from Portsmouth, the inner workings and facilities of the 215 metre vessel were this morning unveiled to prospective travellers and businesses.

Speaking at the inauguration, the company’s chief executive Christophe Mathieu said: ‘Sadly Covid restrictions mean the events we had planned to celebrate the arrival of our brand new ship Galicia in Cherbourg, Roscoff, Portsmouth and Santander cannot take place.

‘However we wanted to make sure as many people as possible could take part in the discovery of the ship.’

With Brittany Ferries having been badly hit by the Covid pandemic, Mr Mathieu added: ‘She is a symbol of hope, of our confidence in the future and a testament to the great ability of all those who have brought her to life.’

The ship can accommodate one thousand passengers in 340 cabins with three children’s play areas, shopping area and outdoor gym. In keeping with the vessel’s Iberian destination, the decor reflects Northern Spain as does the cuisine served by the two restaurants, one serving tapas and a second serving other traditional Spanish dishes.

Galicia has also been designed with environmental sustainability in mind.

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Brittany Ferries technical director, Arnaud Le Poulichet said: ‘We have an exhaust treatment plant to reduce carbon emissions and the hydrodynamic shape of the ship allows us to operate many sailings on just one engine.

‘Nearly all the ship’s electrical power is generated by recovery energy which means we generate energy without using the fuel.’

As well as operating two weekly services from Portsmouth to Santander, Galicia will also operate a weekly service out of the city’s harbour to Cherbourg. The vehicle decks can house 300 cars and 85 lorries.

The ship’s captain, Christophe Bergeroux commented: ‘I’m very proud to captain Galicia and this wonderful crew and I hope that many of you will be able to take part in this beautiful adventure that is just starting.’

Galicia’s future sister ships, Salamanca and Santona are due to arrive in 2022 and 2023.

A message from the Editor, Mark Waldron

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