Rail Sail attracts the young and adventurous

"Young, well informed professionals", "trendy city dwellers" and "city adventurers" are increasingly choosing to travel to the continent by rail and sail, according to Stenaline, the North Sea ferry operator.

Of course they would say that, wouldn't they, but their evidence is compelling... Bookings for rail and sail packages to Holland have risen by 23 per cent this year and there has been a 39 per cent annual growth in dutchflyer traffic year-on-year from January to June 2009.

The dutchflyer service takes passengers by rail from London Liverpool St and East Anglian rail stations to Harwich, then by ferry across to the Hook of Holland and onward travel to any station in Holland.

According to market research analyst Experian, over 26 per cent of those using the service fell into the "urban intelligence" group, which subdivides into two main types of traveller:

Counter cultural mix - young, well informed professionals; trendy city dwellers; some in good jobs and others with lower incomes
City adventurers - 20-something high-flying singles with pressurised, high-salary jobs; often London-based

According to a statement released by Stenaline, "Previously, travellers using Stena Line’s dutchflyer service had been predominantly cash-poor students and backpackers".

The company also pointed out that "the success of the dutchflyer rail and sail package comes against the backdrop of a 2.8 per cent year-on-year decline in passengers leaving the UK out of BAA’s seven airports, Eurotunnel’s 15.8 per cent dip and a 5.3 per cent decrease in English Channel ferry traffic from 2007 to 2008."

Lars Olsson, Stena Line’s commercial manager for travel on the North Sea, said, “The rising popularity of Stena Line’s rail and sail service over the past year has been a significant trend in itself, but it’s interesting to note that the main travellers contributing towards dutchflyer’s growth are now young, trendy city-dwellers and ambitious, workaholic singles. "These groups have started considering alternatives to air travel because they’re less cash-rich and even more time-poor than in the past, so the overcrowded chaos at airports and exorbitant departure taxes are deterrents.

The dutchflyer service links London and East Anglia with Dutch cities via rail stations and ferry decks from £35 one-way.

"We’re seeing a particular increase in dutchflyer passengers taking the overnight ferries so that they arrive at their end destination early the next morning without having had to pay accommodation costs in euros or endure 4am check-in for a flight". Useful info: Stena Line offers two daily crossings on its Harwich to Hook of Holland route as well as over 30 daily crossings on its five different routes to Ireland (Stranraer to Belfast, Fleetwood to Larne, Holyhead to Dublin, Holyhead to Dun Laoghaire and Fishguard to Rosslare) Stena Line’s dutchflyer service by rail and ferry provides city-to-city travel between the UK and Holland, starting from £29 one-way. Read more about the Dutch Flyer.

The service, bookable in one ticket, comprises train travel from any National Express East Anglia station to Harwich International port where one of two daily Stena Line ferry services continues the six-hour crossing to the Hook of Holland. Onward travel is included to any rail station within the Netherlands with Holland’s NS railway system (www.ns.nl/en).

National Express East Anglia departure stations include major stations, such as: * London Liverpool Street (1:25 hrs) * Cambridge (2:10 hrs) * Colchester (0:25 hrs) * Ipswich (0:28 hrs) * Norwich (1:08 hrs) Times are average journey times to Harwich International Port. For a complete list of National Express East Anglia stations, visit www.nationalexpresseastanglia.com

Stena Lines ferries leave Harwich daily at 09.00 (arr. 16.30) and 23.45 (arr. 07.45+1). In Holland the train station is conveniently located outside the Hook of Holland port, with Rotterdam and The Hague accessible in under an hour on the NS rail systems, and Amsterdam less than 90 minutes away. Return Stena Line services from the Hook of Holland to Harwich leave daily at 14.30 (arr. 20.00) and 22.00 (arr. 06.30+1).

Prices dutchflyer services from Harwich International Port to any Dutch station are from £29 one-way dutchflyer services from any National Express East Anglia station to any Dutch station are from £35 one-way Cabins are from £10.50 per person (day sailings) or £18 per person (overnight) one-way based on two sharing To make a booking visit Stenaline's Dutch Flyer website.