Ferry Port to Belfast
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Travel & Leisure > Destinations
Jun 19, 2007
amarticles-linda
Ferry Port to Belfast
Stranraer is a town in the south of Scotland in the west of the region of Dumfries and Galloway and in the county of Wigtownshire. It is best known as a ferry port connecting Scotland with Belfast in Northern Ireland. Stena Line operates two types of ferry between Stranraer and Belfast. The Stena Voyager is a high speed catamaran which travels at 40 knots. It is 127 metres long and is propelled by water jets. Stena Voyager carries up to 1,500 passengers and 350 cars from Stranraer port to Belfast port in only 105 minutes. The town dates back nearly 500 years to the building in 1511 of Stranraer Castle, also known as the Castle of St John. This now stands in the centre of the town, but it was originally built behind the broad beach at the head of Loch Ryan. Only later did a settlement begin to grow around it. The Castle of St John now houses a museum. The Castle of St. John is alternatively known as the Chapel or Stranraer Castle and is located in the centre of Stranraer in Dumfries and Galloway. Restored by Wigtown District Council and open to the public since 1990, the castle was built in 1510 by Ninian Adair of Kilhurst, one of the most powerful Lairds of Wigtownshire. It passed to the Kennedys in 1591, was a Dalrymple of Stair property from 1680 and eventually passed to public ownership in 1815 when it was purchased by the Burgh of Stranraer. Standing four storeys tall, it was also used as the town gaol between 1815 and 1907. The Castle of St. John was restored in 1988/89 and reopened as a Visitor Centre in 1990. Stranraer has several beaches, but travel a few miles out side the town to Sandhead and New England Bay for miles of sand, or all around the loch for pebbly beaches. The Sailing Club at Wig Bay is a haven for yachts of all sizes. The town centre today is attractive and bustling, with the whites and bright colours of many of the buildings particularly stunning on bright days. The people are warm and welcoming with a history of making visitors feel at home. Stranraer's historic Old Town Hall, built in 1776, is the home of Stranraer Museum. Step inside and discover Wigtownshire's fascinating past. See one of Scotland's oldest ploughs, look at Victorian Wigtownshire in 3D photographs and follow in the footsteps of Stranraer's own Polar explorers. Plus displays on archaeology, local history, farming and dairying. The Museum is on George Street in the centre of town and only a short walk from the ferry terminals.
Douglas Scott writes for The Car Hire Specialist. and is a free lance writer for The Stranraer Rental Site
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