Opinion: The Yarmouth ferry rant

The Nova Star docked in Yarmouth on June 1, 2014 in her inaugural year of operation

Alright, time to break my silence on the Yarmouth ferry and before I start, we are all entitled to an opinion and not everything will please everyone.  In fact, I am "monkey in the middle" in this issue because I'm neither against or for it.  Sure, the Nova Scotia Government has put a lot of money ($41.5 million over 2 years) and the ship may be too big (161m/528ft), however, at the same time, the ship brings tourists from America to our shores and creates economic spinoffs.  There will always be good or bad points no matter how you look at the issue.  For the moment, having the Nova Star running between Yarmouth and Portland is better than no ferry at all and their service will improve with each passing year (should they continue operating in 2016 and beyond).  One thing that has improved was the on-time reliability as the ship arrived and departed on schedule this year as opposed to last year. Passenger numbers were down from last year as about 52,000 passengers traveled aboard compared to a little more than 59,000 last year.  A bit less of Canadian travelers were aboard this year and it might not be all linked to the Canadian dollar.  Looking through Nova Star's website, there was some vacation packages to Maine lacking (trips to LL Bean in Freeport or a getaway to Portland as examples).  Maybe something to look into for next season.  As for my experience aboard last fall, I did favor Marine Atlantic's Atlantic Vision as she boasted more outdoor viewing deck space.  There was also no live entertainment on my trip over to Maine and back, however, it was the shoulder season and what there was lacking for that, was a great customer service experience from the crew. I'm very confident the service will improve with time and passenger numbers will go up on the route, maybe not next year but in a few years.  Now it's a question of who will operate the run in 2016 and beyond.

   A better cruise experience:  I took the Atlantic Vision in 2010 on a round trip sailing between North Sydney, Nova Scotia and Port aux Basques, Newfoundland and Labrador, scoring way better in experience and comfort for me.  Photo taken in July 2013.

A note from the blogger: the experience aboard Nova Star was based on my trip in the fall of 2014.  Experiences aboard the ship could have improved during the 2015 operating season, however, I never had the chance to try the service this year.  I'm also looking forward to the Province's decision on who will operate the route in 2016.  Stay tuned to this blog in the coming weeks (if not months) for more news on this.