The Isle of Man Sea Terminal ( Manx: ''Boayl Troailtee Varrey Vannin'') is the arrival and departure point for all passenger and car ferries operating to and from the

Isle of Man ) , anthem = " O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europ ...

, and is located in

Douglas Douglas may refer to: People * Douglas (given name) * Douglas (surname) Animals *Douglas (parrot), macaw that starred as the parrot ''Rosalinda'' in Pippi Longstocking * Douglas the camel, a camel in the Confederate Army in the American Civil ...

, the island's capital. It is one of the two main gateways to the

, the other one being the

Isle of Man Airport Isle of Man Airport ( Manx: ''Purt Aer Vannin'', also known as Ronaldsway Airport) is the main civilian airport on the Isle of Man. It is located in the south of the island at Ronaldsway near Castletown, southwest of Douglas, the island's c ...

. It is operated by and is the main hub for the

Isle of Man Steam Packet Company An isle is an island, land surrounded by water. The term is very common in British English. However, there is no clear agreement on what makes an island an isle or its difference, so they are considered synonyms. Isle may refer to: Geography * Is ...

, which runs year-round sailings to Heysham, and seasonal sailings to

Liverpool Liverpool is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in Merseyside, England. With a population of in 2019, it is the List of English districts by population, 10th largest English district by population and its E ...

Belfast Belfast ( , ; from ga, Béal Feirste , meaning 'mouth of the sand-bank ford') is the capital and largest city of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan on the east coast. It is the 12th-largest city in the United Kingdom ...

and

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 ...

in the summer and

Birkenhead Birkenhead (; cy, Penbedw) is a town in the Metropolitan Borough of Wirral, Merseyside, England; historically, it was part of Cheshire until 1974. The town is on the Wirral Peninsula, along the south bank of the River Mersey, opposite Liv ...

at weekends in the winter. The Sea Terminal is located on the near side of

Douglas Harbour Douglas Harbour ( gv, Purt Varrey Ghoolish) is located near Douglas Head at the southern end of Douglas, the capital of the Isle of Man. It is the island's main commercial shipping port. The Port of Douglas was the first in the world to be equ ...

, closer to the promenade. It also houses the Isle of Man Welcome Centre, which is the main visitor centre for the island, a theatre box office, and the Department of Infrastructure's Licensing Office. The Douglas Harbour Control Unit is also located on the upper level of the Sea Terminal.

History

Before the mid-60s, ferry passengers to and from the Isle of Man would simply get on and off. No major security procedures were in place, and passengers would not need any specific identification: all they needed was a valid ticket. The Isle of Man Sea Terminal was built in 1965 by McCormick and Davies, to accommodate rising passenger numbers, and also for security reasons. At that time, the Isle of Man was a major holiday destination, with thousands of holidaymakers flocking from Britain and Ireland during the summer months. Along with All Saints Church, Douglas, the Sea Terminal is one of the few Modernist buildings on the Isle of Man. Circus Beach Marshaling Area - Douglas Harbor - Isle of Man - kingsley - 20-APR-09

Circus Beach Marshaling Area - Douglas Harbor - Isle of Man - kingsley - 20-APR-09

Facilities

Only the ground floor space in the terminal building is used for passengers. Upstairs there are offices and the Douglas Harbour Control Unit. In the main departure lounge, there is a

Costa Coffee Costa Coffee is a British coffeehouse chain with headquarters in Dunstable, England. Costa Coffee was founded in London in 1971 by Sergio Costa as a wholesale operation supplying roasted coffee to caterers and specialist Italian coffee shops. I ...

café,

WHSmith WHSmith (also written WH Smith, and known colloquially as Smith's and formerly as W. H. Smith & Son) is a British retailer, headquartered in Swindon, England, which operates a chain of high street, railway station, airport, port, hospital and m ...

store, a Steam Packet ferry travel shop, a play area for children, toilet facilities, foot passenger check in area and a model of the

Laxey Wheel The Laxey Wheel (also known as Lady Isabella) is built into the hillside above the village of Laxey in the Isle of Man. It is the largest surviving original working waterwheel in the world. Designed by Robert Casement, the wheel has a diameter ...

. Outside the main departure lounge, there is the arrivals hall with baggage belt and the Isle of Man Welcome Centre. At one point, there was a restaurant on the top floor called the Crow's Nest. This is now used as the harbour control unit. The restaurant was quite popular, as it gave views over the main harbour. Next to the terminal is the vehicle check-in and marshalling area, where all vehicles must wait until the ship is ready for boarding. The Sea Terminal is sometimes used as a waiting point for passengers travelling on the Laxey Towing Company's Karina pleasure cruiser. It operates daily trips to Port Soderick, Laxey and other destinations from the cruise ship landing stage in the harbour next to the Victoria Pier.

Connecting island transport

Lord Street, about 5 minutes walk from the Sea Terminal, is the terminus for bus routes provided by the island's government-owned bus operator,

Bus Vannin Bus Vannin ( gv, Barroose Vannin) - styled as ''bus'' vannin - is the government-owned and operated bus service on the Isle of Man. The name was adopted in June 2009 to replace Isle of Man Transport. The company was founded on 1 October 1976,< ...

, From here, buses serve most major destinations on the island, as well as destinations within Douglas. Douglas has no bus station now. The

Douglas Bay Horse Tramway The Douglas Bay Horse Tramway ( gv, Raad Yiarn Cabbyl Vaie Ghoolish) on the Isle of Man runs along the seafront promenade for approximately , from the southern terminus at the Victoria Pier, adjacent to the Isle of Man Sea Terminal, to Derby Ca ...

operates in summer from the Sea Terminal along Douglas Promenade to Derby Castle, which is the Manx Electric Railway's southern terminus, enabling passengers to travel from the Sea Terminal to

Ramsey Ramsey may refer to: Geography British Isles * Ramsey, Cambridgeshire, a small market town in England * Ramsey, Essex, a village near Harwich, England ** Ramsey and Parkeston, a civil parish formerly called just "Ramsey" * Ramsey, Isle of Man, t ...

. The

Isle of Man Railway The Isle of Man Railway (IMR) ( gv, Raad Yiarn Vannin) is a narrow gauge steam-operated railway connecting Douglas with Castletown and Port Erin on the Isle of Man. The line is narrow gauge and long. It is the remainder of what was ...

operates from the nearby Douglas Station to Port Erin. The station is about a ten-minute walk from the Sea Terminal.

Photo gallery

File:Manannan Douglas.jpg, Manannan on the Victoria Pier with the Laxey Towing Company's '' Karina'' on the cruise ship landing stage in the foreground.

References

External links

Isle of Man Steam Packet websiteIsle of Man Department of TransportIsle of Man Department of Tourism and Leisure
{{coord, 54.148, N, 4.474, W, region:IM_type:landmark, display=title Transport in the Isle of Man Buildings and structures in the Isle of Man