Stena Plus Lounge from Harwich to Hook of Holland

Stena Hollandica at sail

I've travelled on Stena Line's Harwich to Hook of Holland service a few times before, but it's fair to say Eurostar's introduction of direct London to Amsterdam trains in 2018 took away the shine of the old 'dutchflyer'. It falls short on both travel time and ticket integration. 

Whilst the overnight sailing has a unique selling point, the day sailing can feel quite arduous, requiring an early start in London to achieve an evening arrival time in Amsterdam.

The rail and sail offer from Liverpool Street used to be replicated on the Dutch side with onward travel anywhere in the Netherlands included in a single ticket. Unfortunately NS (Nederlandse Spoorwegen) withdrew from this arrangement a few years ago, and the track from the port has been converted into a line of the Rotterdam Metro.

But a recent flash sale from Stena Line offering £15 foot passenger fares on all of their Irish and North Sea routes piqued my interest. As I was looking to make a trip to Germany, I made use of this circuitous route and stayed the night with a friend in Amsterdam, before continuing on Deutsche Bahn's new direct day train to Bavaria.

Travelling on Tuesday 15 April, my ticket didn't include connecting trains. The 06.30 from Liverpool Street is the one rail and sail passengers are encouraged to use, but Greater Anglia don't offer advance tickets for this service, resulting in a steep £30.30 fare with a railcard. That would have wiped out the saving from the sale. Instead I forced myself to wake up for a train leaving half an hour earlier that would require a change in Manningtree. This cost only £10.10 in comparison.

Waiting area at Harwich International

With an on-time arrival at Harwich International, I found myself waiting for check-in to open with a few other passengers, although some turned out to have recently disembarked from the night sailing. The waiting area is integrated into the station building, a seamless transfer for rail passengers. There's not much to keep you entertained, aside from a television switched to Good Morning Britain, a couple of vending machines and local tourism leaflets. A postbox is also available, as well as a 'dog waste station', a reminder that this route is probably the easiest for foot passengers travelling to the continent with their pup.

Soon we were called to check-in, which opens shortly before the later train arrives from London. A large security area was largely empty with only two agents filtering the handful of us through. I do wander whether this big space is ever even half-utilised. There was a short wait before we could board via the passenger footbridge, but once we did the ship was basically empty whilst vehicles were slowly being loaded. It gave me an opportunity to wander around the ship's facilities, featuring the usual duty free shop, a small cinema, a HGV drivers private area, a luggage storage area, cafe, bar and canteen, and gaming area. A recent refit of the ships on this route offered a fresher feeling to the interiors and there's plenty of space to wind away the hours onboard.

Entrance to the ship for foot passengers (top); Family Hub (second top); Playstation in the Family Hub (second bottom); cafe (bottom)

However with such a cheap fare I decided it was worth testing out the Stena Plus Lounge, as recommended by The Man in Seat 61, who I'm indebted to for so many travel adventures. As a cost-conscious traveller I had to really consider this additional £25, but considering the sailing takes almost seven hours I think the premium for this length of time is justified. The lounge is located just beyond the canteen area and is accessed via a code provided at check in. As you wander in one of the attendants will tick your name off their list. 

Stena Plus Lounge

Aside from being in a quieter area of the ship (children aren't admitted), the main benefits are complimentary drinks and a range of light food. Breakfast was laid out when I arrived, consisting of a few pastries, fruits, and granola shots. A transition took place around 11am with cheeses, cakes, olives, and savoury pretzels. It's all self-serve, which also extends to the tap pumping out red and white wine, the fizzy drink dispenser and coffee machine. You can also order more substantial meals from the attendants for an additional charge. There's an option when booking the ferry to pre-order these, but it seems to work out cheaper to purchase onboard. 

Menu onboard

The seating in the plus lounge is mostly soft furnishings, with a mix of sofas and recliners. I found myself on a sofa, and as my tiredness set in I began to stretch out for a light snooze. I was a bit unsure if this would be frowned upon in the lounge, especially as I took my shoes off for added comfort, but given that the lounge wasn't too busy I got away with it. 

To Stena Line's credit free wifi is available on the sailing, not always a given on ferry trips. With that said the speeds are pretty diabolical, which acts as a great advertisement for the premium package. With a lounge ticket you would hope this could be included, but it is a payable extra. Again to Stena's credit the rate is reasonable at €5, which covered me for the long journey, and the speed was excellent, allowing me to stream and download.

Disembarkation was pretty speedy. The walkway is pretty lengthy to ground level, but once there the Metro station is just a couple of strides outside. Excellent timing meant I stepped straight on to a Metro rather than wait twenty minutes. That meant I eventually arrived in Amsteradm a full hour earlier than I was expecting.

The long passenger walkway at Hook of Holland's port

As a lover of slow travel, the continued existence of not one, not two, but three direct UK-Netherlands ferries is reassuring. I have yet to try P&O's service from Hull, but have used DFDS on their Newcastle (kind of) to Amsterdam (kind of) route. Whilst that overnight cruise is more of a full-service option, and could even be classed as a bit of a party boat with its onboard 'nightclub', Stena Line's twice daily route is a nice option to have too. It's unlikely to be the most convenient option - unless you're travelling with a bike or pet - but I sincerely hope it's here for the foreseeable. Considering the numbers I saw on my journey that is something I would be concerned about. So use it, or lose it.