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| ==Spirit of Tasmania III (2004-2006)== | ==Spirit of Tasmania III (2004-2006)== | ||
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| The fourth ship ''Spirit of Tasmania III'' began service in ]. It is also a ] ferry, formerly called ''Superfast II''. It is a slightly smaller ship than the other two ferries in service. It travels a new route, the ]-] route. It makes a one-way trip each day, taking approximately 20 hours. | The fourth ship ''Spirit of Tasmania III'' began service in ]. It is also a ] ferry, formerly called ''Superfast II''. It is a slightly smaller ship than the other two ferries in service. It travels a new route, the ]-] route. It makes a one-way trip each day, taking approximately 20 hours. | ||
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Spirit of Tasmania has been part of the name of four different ships that have served as passenger/vehicle ferries on Bass Strait, between Tasmania and the Australian mainland. The ships have all been owned and operated by the Tasmanian Government operated TT-Line.
Spirit of Tasmania (1993-2002)
The first ship, Spirit of Tasmania started sailing in 1993. She was built as the peter pan (3) for the TT-line (Germany) at Schichau Seebeckwerft AG, Bremerhaven in 1986. she was the first of four sisters being the Nils Holgersson (87) she was sold to Brittany ferries in 1993 renamed the Val de loire. The Val de loire was sold to DFDS sea ways to serve the Ijmuiden (Netherlands) – Newcastle (Britain) as the King of Scandinavia. The olau Hollandia was the third of the sisters (89) and the olau Britannia the fourth. The two olau sisters where charted in 1994 to P&O renamed pride of Portsmouth & Pride of le harve in 2005 they stoped operating for P&O and have now gone to SNAV in Italy renamed SNAV Lazio & SNAV Sardegna. The peter pan began oparations for the TT-line (Germany) on the Travemünde – Trelleborg route on the 2/6/86. In 1990 TT-line (Tasmania) decided it was time to replace the current ferry Abel Tasman so they arranged to but the large ferry but it was expected they could get the ferry in late 1992 but TT-line Germany could not let her go until 1993. She sailed from Germany in October 1993 and began Devonport- Melbourne late November. She sailed four return trips a week the crossings were overnight and one day/night and took approximately 14 hours. In 2002, Spirit of Tasmania was de-commissioned, and sold to Nordsjøferger and charted to Fjord line. she sailed from sydney on 24/12/02 as the m/s SPIR on arrival in Denmark she was refitted at Frederikshavn yard. She was then renamed Fjord norway and began on the Bergen - Haugesund - Egersund – Hanstholm route until 17/11/05/when she took over the Bergen - Stavanger - Newcastle rout from the M/S Jupiter.
Spirit of Tasmania I and II (2002-)
The original Spirit was replaced with two ships Spirit of Tasmania I and Spirit of Tasmania II, which were purchased from SuperFast ferries in Greece - formerly Superfast III and Superfast IV. They travel the same Devonport-Melbourne route, however each ship makes one trip each night, taking only ten hours. In peak periods, the ships also make day crossings. The introduction of these two ship have played a major role in giving the Tasmanian tourism industry a much needed boost. Before the introduction of these two vessels, many potential travellers had difficulty booking on the old "Spirit of Tasmania" due to capacity constraints. These new vessels have removed the bottleneck for tourists trying to reach the state and their unhindered access has resulted in a thriving tourism industry.
Spirit of Tasmania III (2004-2006)
The fourth ship Spirit of Tasmania III began service in 2004. It is also a SuperFast ferry, formerly called Superfast II. It is a slightly smaller ship than the other two ferries in service. It travels a new route, the Devonport-Sydney route. It makes a one-way trip each day, taking approximately 20 hours.
Due to lack of passengers due to rising airfares and other factors, this service is due to be cancelled from 28 August 2006 onwards.