Ferry ticket bargains

Ferry company Armas is offering tickets at discounts of 30% off and up to 45% off on all their routes, including their high-speed ferry to La Gomera, for bookings made until Monday 1st of December 2025. You can book ahead for sailings until June 15th 2026. The discount is applied in the final step of booking before you pay when you enter the discount code BLACKFERRIDAYS. Here's the link to the offer in English...

Keep the fingers crossed !

Lower Valle Gran Rey with the port of Vueltas (top)

Yesterday the parliament of La Gomera approved a government motion calling for the reopening of the ferry service between Los Cristianos in Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey in La Gomera which had recently been suspended indefinitely by shipping company Naviera Armas (see previous post). The motion also calls for the port of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey to be included in the list of Canary Islands ports with an 'obligatory public service' (Obligación de Servicio Público, OSP) by the Canarian ministry for transport, which would mean that a ferry connection will have to be provided.

Further, the approved motion also calls on the port authority to further improve the harbour of Vueltas and integrating it better into the town.

In an interview La Gomera's president Casimiro Curbelo also said that ferry company Armas was already actively looking 'in all of Europe' for a suitable ship to charter with which the ferry connection can be reopened viably.
In 2018 the service transported more than 170.000 passengers and 30.000 vehicles, most of which would have passed through the national park in the mountains had the ferry not been there.

Just after the announcement of the suspension of the service about 1.200 signatures for a petition in support of the ferry line were collected in Valle Gran Rey in a very short time and presented to the local mayor.

Keep the fingers crossed...

Bad News

It has recently been announced by the ferry company Naviera Armas that the ferry service between Los Cristianos in Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey in La Gomera has now been suspended indefinitely. The direct service between the two ports by high speed catamaran was introduced two years ago, but since this summer only sailed at weekends. The company has also stated that it will study the viability of a similar ferry service to be reinstated in the future, possibly with a smaller vessel. 

This is sad news for Valle Gran Rey and bad news for the forest in the national park which is experiencing higher volumes of traffic since the ferry stopped operating as all goods and traffic have to go across the mountain through the park on that road now.
Read more with an update ...

Ferry to VGR back in service

The direct ferry between Los Cristianos and Valle Gran Rey which had been out of service for some time due to the annual testing and inspection of the vessel in Santa Cruz de Tenerife, arrived back in the port of Vueltas late last night and is operating scheduled sailings from today and bookings can be made through the Armas website once again.

Fred Olsen now offering service to Spanish mainland

The Fred. Olsen ferry company is now connecting the Canary Islands with Huelva on the Spanish mainland in competition with FRS-Iberica which sail the same route, previously operated by Naviera Armas ferries and still listed in their schedule. Queenie's Tenerife blog has more:

''Fred Olsen Express has launched a new triangular route to mainland Spain, with the collaboration of the Baleària shipping company and now links the port of Huelva with the two main ports of the Canary Islands, Puerto de la Luz on Gran Canaria and Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

This new route will be operated aboard the ship ‘Martín i Soler’, owned by Baleària. The ship is to depart the Puerto de la Luz, in Las Palmas, every Tuesday and Sunday, at 12 noon and will take 44 hours to reach its final destination the Andalusian port of Huelva, after a 4-hour stopover in Santa Cruz de Tenerife.

The ship will set sail from the Peninsula on Fridays at 8:00p.m. and head to Gran Canaria where it will have a four-hour stopover then return to its moorings in Tenerife.

The route will offer various services including a restaurant, bar, shop, internet connection, outdoor areas, a children’s area and a pool as well as cabins and various seating options either tourist or superior.''

New vessel to connect Valle Gran Rey with Tenerife

HSC Champion Jet 1 arriving in La Gomera yesterday. (Images: puentedemando.com)

The rapidly expanding ferry company Naviera Armas will be introducing yet another vessel on the route between Los Cristianos on Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey on La Gomera island from today. The high speed catamaran (HSC) Champion Jet 1 has been chartered by the Canarian ferry company Armas from the Greek/Cypriot shipping company Seajets to replace the Trasmediteranea Alcantara 2 which sailed on this route up to last night (see my recent post).
Champion Jet 1 was built in Tasmania by Incat as hull number 044 in 1997 and has just  undergone a complete refurbishment (see image below). This latest vessel on the LC-VGR route can accommodate about 750 passengers and 200 cars and offers all the usual facilities such a bar cafeteria, shop, etc. while achieving a top speed of 36 knots, which makes her faster than the previous vessel on this route and should ensure more realistic arrival times (ETAs). The 285ft long vessel with a beam of 85ft once operated in the Channel islands and later connected Poole with Cherbourg for Brittany Ferries as 'Condor Vitesse' before being sold to Seajets in Greece in 2015, where she was renamed Champion Jet 1 and operated from Piraeus and Heraklion.

Now the chartered HSC is expected to also connect Los Cristianos with Santa Cruz de La Palma once trials there have been completed and hopefully the fast ferry will connect La Palma with La Gomera as well.

Tickets for sailings between Los Cristianos and Valle Gran Rey can now be booked well in advance on the Naviera Armas website. Presently two return trips are offered on most days until the 10th of February 2019 and further schedules are expected to be published soon.
Update: This morning's first Champion Jet 1 scheduled sailing from Valle Gran Rey arrived in Los Cristianos on time, covering the distance in just 90 minutes. The previous ferry was always very late arriving at its destination. The new vessel seems to achieve the ETAs, making the service more reliable which is crucial when you have to catch a flight from Tenerife.

Latest (summer 2019): This service temporarily only operates Saturday/Sunday due to fleet restructuring. A new service is likely to begin at the end of summer and is expected to connect Los Cristianos with Valle Gran Rey and  the island of El Hierro. Update to follow...
UPDATE OCT. 2019: 
This service has now been suspended indefinitely. Read more...

Direct ferry between Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey

The Alcantara 2 in the port of Valle Gran Rey 

For some time now the ferry company Naviera Armas has covered the route between Los Cristianos on Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey on La Gomera. Different vessels were used and some days stopovers and even a change to another of their ferries in San Sebastian de La Gomera were involved making the the whole journey a bit cumbersome at times.

Presently the company offers a twice daily direct connection between the two ports in both directions with the fast catamaran ferry 'Alcantara 2'. The service is bookable with Canarian ferry operator Naviera Armas (see the Travel, etc., page of this blog), even though this ferry still sails in the colours of the ferry company Trasmediterranea. The explanation for this is that Naviera Armas bought 92,71% of Trasmediterranea which was owned by yet another company, Acciona. This € 260 million deal, which had to pass Spanish and European competition legislation, makes Armas now the largest passenger and freight ferry operator in Spain.

The Alcantara 2 previously served the connection to El Hierro island in 2013, that time chartered by Armas. The 240 ft vessel was built in Freemantle, Australia in 1995 with a top speed of 32 knots. It can accommodate over 500 passengers and 120 vehicles while offering the usual services such as a bar/cafeteria, a shop and a children's play area.

The journey between Los Cristianos and Valle Gran Rey according to the ferry schedule should only take an hour and a half, but that seems a bit over-optimistic as most of the sailings have taken about two hours. Please note that ALL ferry companies seem unable to achieve their ETA (estimated time of arrival) - the sailings usually take a fair bit longer.

Anyway, the service is most welcome and avoids the long haul by bus or car across the mountains and the whole island of La Gomera. The hope is that more delivery trucks will use this service instead of driving through the national park.

When you're planning your trip to the south-west of La Gomera, please note that the Naviera Armas schedule is only available 1-2 weeks ahead of the sailing and even if it hasn't changed much in recent weeks, this makes it difficult to plan ahead. However, there's no shortage of places on this service and it can be booked prior to sailing in Armas' port terminal offices where English is spoken.
UPDATE 23-11-18:
The above ferry service is now bookable well in advance, presently until the 10th of February 2019. As it is 'Black Friday' today, there's a 50% discount available on all bookings with Naviera Armas until a minute before midnight Sunday 25th of Nov. 2018. To avail of this discount you must tick-click the second box under the acceptance of their terms and conditions, which states in Spanish only that you wish to avail of their 'promocion Black Friday'. It is easily overlooked and the booking will proceed at the regular price if you don't tick the second box, but that extra click just gave me 50% off the fare for two.
+UPDATE Dec. 15th 2018: A faster vessel will operate this ferry route from today. Read more...

Benchi Express ferry winter timetable

 Benchi Express passenger ferry in the port of San Sebastian de La Gomera

The new passenger ferry which connects the La Gomera ports of Valle Gran Rey, Playa de Santiago and San Sebastian de La Gomera on the so-called  interior line has now become more reliable with three return trips a day and a fixed winter schedule (see below). Sailings are mostly on time, weather permitting. The only gripe is that some sailing don't directly connect with ferries to Tenerife, but the new ferry must firstly serve commuters between the three towns. They do serve good coffee, though, and lots of tourists too are using the service for excursions and exploring and to start or finish loop walks.

The Benchi Express winter schedule

Update on the new ferry connections

So now that I've had the pleasure of travelling on the Armas car ferry to Valle Gran Rey, which took just over thirty minutes to get from San Sebastian de La Gomera to Valle Gran Rey, let me tell you that all here in VGR are delighted and the lorry drivers of the the regular delivery services are most happy that they now can have a cup of coffee aboard the ferry instead of driving for up to two hours through the mountains and the national park on narrow winding roads. The HSC Alboran has been refurbished in recent times and all services are of a high standard. The food and drink on offer aboard is of good quality and very competitively priced.

The passenger ferry Benchi Express, which so far has only been running two return sailings daily, has proven a success, too, and over 8.000 passengers have travelled on it in the first few weeks. About two thirds of this number have been locals and the remainder tourists. The Fred. Olsen company has announced that from next week the service which connects the ports of San Sebastian de La Gomera, Playa de Santiago and Valle Gran Rey will begin its winter schedule with three return sailings daily.

Cars bound for VGR boarding in San Seb. de L.G.

The high-speed car ferry Alboran which will connect San Sebastian de L.G. and V.G.R. with Los Cristianos on Tenerife is still in the initial phase of operation and schedules are only issued for the week ahead. Some adjustments have to be made to the docking ramp in San Seb. and some sailings involve changing from the vessel Volcan de Taburiente to the Alboran there, but soon all trips will be direct which will make this the fastest connection from Tenerife to Valle Gran Rey ever.

And now there's a 'well-informed' rumour that the Fred. Olsen company will also bring a high-speed car ferry to Valle Gran Rey. I'll keep you posted...

NOTE: Both ferry services are still frequently adjusting schedules and may experience some 'teething problems', so it is advisable to keep checking their websites before travelling. It is best to book your trip just before intending to travel, or at the port offices prior to departure - until the dust has settled.
Click for UPDATE  

HSC Alboran in San Sebastian de La Gomera 

Car ferry in Valle Gran Rey

First of all let me apologise for not having posted any updates this week, but the storm resulting from hurricane Ophelia which hit Ireland on Monday left me without broadband internet until this morning. There's another storm named Brian arriving here later today, so I might lose the internet again as all the infrastructure has been weakened by the previous blow...

The big news on La Gomera is that the first ever regular car ferry arrived in Valle Gran Rey yesterday and was open to the public. There were cheers and applause from the local population who'll now be able to bring their cars to Tenerife and back without driving through the mountains and the national park.

The connection will now be served initially by the large high speed catamaran HSC Alboran and not the HSC Volcan de Teno as previously reported. The later vessel is still in Cadiz and rumour has it that this is being held by the Spanish security forces for a possible takeover of Catalonia. They've even commissioned cruise ships...

Anyway the car ferry Alboran, owned and operated by Naviera Armas will now connect Valle Gran Rey with Los Cristianos in about 90 minutes and can be booked on the Armas website and services are to begin from this weekend. More details and to follow soon, if I have got broadband. Here some images from yesterday's presentation of the service (courtesy of Vino Tinto shop in Vueltas). I'm hoping to travel on it soon and also on the new passenger ferry Benchi Express with special posts on this blog to follow...

Click for latest UPDATE

New ferry connection ''in a few days''

Well, you still can't book the new Naviera Armas car ferry connection from Tenerife to Valle Gran Rey, but the recent post on the company's Facebook page (below) states ''In a few days we start !!!! Valle Gran Rey, welcome to our route network''. However, as of this morning the vessel is still in Cadiz. Hurry up, I want to book...

Naviera Armas

11 October at 21:23 · 

Ferry Valle Gran Rey poniéndose “guapo”.
En unos dias, comenzamos!!!!!
Valle Gran Rey, bienvenidos a nuestra red de rutas.

See Translation
Click for latest UPDATE

COMING SOON

See previous post:

Fast car ferry to connect Valle Gran Rey with Tenerife

Fast car ferry to connect Valle Gran Rey with Tenerife

The wave-piercing fast catamaran HSC Volcan de Teno which will connect Valle Gran Rey (Image: Naviera Armas)

The shipping company Naviera Armas has announced that it will introduce a new ferry service between Los Cristianos on Tenerife and Valle Gran Rey on La Gomera. The direct service between the two ports will be served by their high speed catamaran Volcan de Teno with a top speed of 38 knots (about 70 km/h ) and a capacity of more than 900 passengers and up to 290 vehicles on the cargo deck. It is not clear yet whether this service will also connect neighbouring El Hierro island after stopping in Valle Gran Rey, but this would make economic sense.
The service is to begin in the middle of next month (October 15th, 2017) according to local press reports. The super fast catamaran (HSC) was built in 2000 by Incat in Tasmania and was acquired by Armas last year. The company has just announced the new service through their Facebook and Twitter accounts, but as yet there's nothing on their official booking website.
The Canarian Naviera Armas shipping company has also placed an order worth 74 million Euros for a much larger wave-piercing HSC with the same shipyard and this vessel is currently under construction.

After the recent introduction of the new Fred. Olsen vessel Benchi Express which will serve the 'interior ferry line' of La Gomera this is further very welcome news as it will now offer direct cargo services to Valle Gran Rey which in turn should ease traffic congestion in the national park considerably.

I'll keep you informed when more details emerge, and I'm hoping to be one of the first passengers on the new service...
+UPDATE:
It has now emerged that the new car ferry high speed service will not connect with the island of El Hierro, but will exclusively serve the connection between Los Cristianos on Tenerife and La Gomera, and will connect La Gomera's south-western port of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey for the first time regularly with a car ferry. Naviera Armas have also stated that their existing ferry service served by their slower vessel 'Volcan de Taburiente' which also connects the island of La Palma with San Sebastian de La Gomera and Los Cristianos will continue on that route. El Hierro will continue to be served from Los Cristianos seperately by another Armas vessel.
Wow, for more than five years there wasn't any ferry service to Valle Gran Rey and now there shall be two! Just at the right time, too, because there are major road works with traffic delays being undertaken near Arure on the only road into VGR.
More details on the new car ferry service soon...
Click for latest UPDATE

Part of the interior of 'Volcan de Teno' (Image: ferrybalear)

Welcome aboard the new ferry

Images from yesterday's presentation of the new Benchi Express ferry  in Valle Gran Rey.(Exclusive images courtesy of VINO TINTO)

The half-open upper deck can accommodate 100 passengers

The lower passenger deck seats 150 passengers. There's food on the counter of the cafeteria on right...

Today, Sunday, September 10th 2017, the vessel can be viewed again by the public as follows:

San Sebastián:          from 09:00 to 11:00

Playa de Santiago:    from 12:00 to 15:00

Valle Gran Rey:         from 16:00 to 19:00

The president of the government of the Canary Islands speaking at the official presentation of the new vessel and the interior ferry line in the new port terminal of Valle Gran Rey in Vueltas yesterday. (This image: gomeranoticias.com)

New ferry arrives in Valle Gran Rey

The moment of arrival of the new Benchi Express ferry in Valle Gran Rey a short while ago...

...where she has tied-up at her newly-installed floating berth in Vueltas for the first time, ready for the official presentation ceremony to follow. (Exclusive images courtesy of VINO TINTO)

New ferry to begin service next week. Presentation to go ahead in VGR this Saturday. Revised viewing times

The damage to the new Benchi Express vessel reported yesterday has now been repaired in record time with the help of specialists from the Catalan shipyard that built the ferry. The Fred. Olsen ferry line has announced that the vessel will begin scheduled services on the interior ferry line between San Sebastion de La Gomera, Playa de Santiago, and Valle Gran Rey from the middle of next week and tickets are on sale now.

The introduction ceremony for the purpose-built ferry in Valle Gran Rey will now go ahead as planned on Saturday.

The viewing times when the vessel will be open to the public have however been changed again and the vessel will now open its doors (and hatches, I suppose) on Sunday, September 10th 2017 as follows:

San Sebastián:          from 09:00 to 11:00

Playa de Santiago:    from 12:00 to 15:00

Valle Gran Rey:         from 16:00 to 19:00

Damage to new ferry delays schedule

The new Benchi Express ferry which was to begin regular service from the 10th of September 2017 sustained 'minor damage to the hull' during berthing trials in the port of San Sebastian de La Gomera last night.
The Fred. Olsen ferry company has stated that this will delay the begin of scheduled services, and the presentation of the new vessel in the other two ports it will serve, by 'several days, maximum one week' until repairs have been carried out. 
The new vessel will however be open to the public in the port of San Sebastian over the weekend at the times and dates indicated in the image above.
I will keep you informed on this blog...
+UPDATE:

The damage to the new Benchi Express vessel reported yesterday has now been repaired with the help of specialists from the shipyard that built the ferry. The Fred. Olsen ferry line has announced that the vessel will begin scheduled services on the interior ferry line between San Sebastion de La Gomer, Playa de Santiago, and Valle Gran Rey from the middle of next week and tickets are on sale now.

The introduction ceremony for the purpose-built ferry in Valle Gran Rey will now go ahead as planned on Saturday.

The viewing times when the vessel will be open to the public have however been changed again and the vessel will now open its doors (and hatches, I suppose) on Sunday, September 10th 2017 as follows:

San Sebastián:          from 09:00 to 11:00

Playa de Santiago:    from 12:00 to 15:00

Valle Gran Rey:         from 16:00 to 19:00

NEW FERRY ARRIVED IN LA GOMERA - OPEN TO PUBLIC

The new ferry just off San Sebastian de La Gomera with Tenerife in the background (Image: eltambor.es)

After several stopovers in other Canary Islands ports the brand new Benchi Express ferry joining the fleet of the Fred. Olsen Express ferry company has finally arrived in La Gomera and will begin to service the island's interior ferry route from Sunday, Sept. 10th 2017, connecting La Gomera's ports of San Sebastian, Playa de Santiago, and Valle Gran Rey.

Prior to commencing the service the ferry will be introduced and open all its doors to the public free of charge as follows:

Today, Thursday 7 th of Sept.:

in San Sebastián from 11:30h to 12:30h, in  Playa de Santiago from 14:30h to 16:00h, in Valle Gran Rey from 18:00h to 19:30h

Friday 8th de Sept: Valle Gran Rey 11:00h to 13:15h,  Playa de Santiago 16:00h to 17:30h, and in San Sebastián 18:00h to 19:30h

Sunday 10th of Sept.: San Sebastián 09:00h a 10:00h / Playa de Santiago 12:55h a 14:00, and in Valle Gran Rey 14:40h a 16:30h

On Saturday there will be an official ceremony of presentation and introduction of the vessel with many important Canary dignitaries present, which is open to the public and will take place in the harbour of Vueltas in Valle Gran Rey, the new vessel's home port.

Reduced ticket prices when booking the new service from/to Los Cristianos on Tenerife:

You can now book tickets from Los Cristianos through to Playa de Santiago and Valle Gran Rey and vice versa at a much reduced rate on the Fred. Olsen website. Before selecting the main journey between Tenerife and La Gomera, which will give you times and prices, click on one of the two blue bars below that (one for Playa de Santiago, the other for Valle Gran Rey), and new times and prices for the combination of the two ferry trips will appear. This will give you the combined journey at a bargain price.

+UPDATE:

Damage to new ferry delays schedule
The new Benchi Express ferry which was to begin regular service from the 10th of September 2017 sustained 'minor damage to the hull' during berthing trials in the port of San Sebastian de La Gomera earlier today 'due to strong winds'.
The Fred. Olsen ferry company has stated that this will delay the begin of scheduled services, and the presentation of the new vessel in the other two ports it will serve, by 'several days, maximum one week' until repairs have been carried out. 
The new vessel will however be open to the public in the port of San Sebastian over the weekend
++UPDATE 2:

The damage to the new Benchi Express vessel reported yesterday has now been repaired with the help of specialists from the shipyard that built the ferry. The Fred. Olsen ferry line has announced that the vessel will begin scheduled services on the interior ferry line between San Sebastion de La Gomer, Playa de Santiago, and Valle Gran Rey from the middle of next week and tickets are on sale now.

The introduction ceremony for the purpose-built ferry in Valle Gran Rey will now go ahead as planned on Saturday.

The viewing times when the vessel will be open to the public have however been changed again and the vessel will now open its doors (and hatches, I suppose) on Sunday, September 10th 2017 as follows:

San Sebastián:          from 09:00 to 11:00

Playa de Santiago:    from 12:00 to 15:00

Valle Gran Rey:         from 16:00 to 19:00

The new vessel's wheelhouse with skipper 'Mel' Garcia Bethencourth (Image source: puentedemando.com)

New Ferry now under way to La Gomera

The new Benchi Express ferry which was built near Barcelona is now underway towards La Gomera and should begin the new scheduled services of the interior line in a week's time on Monday, September 10th 2017.

The ferry has been en route since early Saturday and spent last night in the port of Algeciras in southern Spain close to Gibraltar from where she left this morning heading directly for the Canary Islands (see position at 11:20 UTC above). As I write the purpose-built vessel has just left the Mediterranean at a speed of around 14 knots and should soon sail down the Atlantic off the coast of Morocco. We wish her fair winds and a following sea.