Holyhead ferry port closes after berthing incident

The UK’s second busiest passenger ferry port has been forced to close after a berthing incident as a ship docked.

It is the second time in a year that Holyhead has been closed to ferries.

Stena Line, which operates the port, said the incident happened as its vessel Stena Estrid arrived on Wednesday morning from Dublin.

All services on both Stena and Irish Ferries have been either cancelled or delayed.

The port operates Terminal 3 and Terminal 5.

However, Terminal 5 was closed following an incident in December as one of the ferries docked in the port.

Poor weather conditions delayed underwater surveys, with repair work expected to get underway this month.

In the meantime, both Stena Line and Irish Ferries were sharing Terminal 3, after altering their timetables to accommodate both services running from a single terminal.

But with Terminal 3 now out of action, it means no ships can dock.

The Stena ship Estrid was travelling from Dublin at 04:30 on Wednesday and was due to dock at 08:00.

The ferry company said all passengers and freight operators “disembarked as normal”.

A Stena spokesperson said: “A berthing incident occurred on Wednesday 7 January 2026 as the Stena Estrid berthed at Holyhead Port.

“The incident is currently being investigated.

“Holyhead Port is temporarily closed and ferry operators are notifying customers.”

The decision to close the port comes a year after it was shut due to another berthing incident ahead of Storm Darragh in December 2024.

The port was closed until 16 January, when they were able to re-open Terminal 5 to traffic.

It was only able to return to full operations in July, following extensive repairs to Terminal 3.

The incidents led to calls for action to improve resilience at the port.

At just over 100 miles (161km) between Holyhead and Dublin, the three-hour and 15-minute crossing from north Wales is the quickest route between the UK mainland and the Republic of Ireland.

With more than 400,000 lorries and 400,000 cars a year using it every year, Holyhead is the second busiest passenger ferry port to Dover.

It is Wales’ biggest international transport hub with almost double the amount of annual passengers of Wales’ only major airport in Cardiff.