River Link is a

ferry A ferry is a boat or ship that transports passengers, and occasionally vehicles and cargo, across a body of water. A small passenger ferry with multiple stops, like those in Venice, Italy, is sometimes referred to as a water taxi or water bus ...

, cruise boat, and

bus A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a motor vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van, but fewer than the average rail transport. It is most commonly used ...

operator, based in

Devon Devon ( ; historically also known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial county in South West England. It is bordered by the Bristol Channel to the north, Somerset and Dorset to the east, the English Channel to the south, and Cornwall to the west ...

, England. The company is owned by Dart Valley Railway plc, who also own and operate the

Dartmouth Steam Railway The Dartmouth Steam Railway, formerly known as the Paignton and Dartmouth Steam Railway, is a heritage railway on the former Great Western Railway branch line between and in Devon, England. Much of the railway's business is from summer touri ...

Services

River Link operates the Dartmouth Passenger Ferry, which connects the terminus of the steam railway at Kingswear station to the waterfront at Dartmouth, on the opposite bank of

River Dart The River Dart is a river in Devon, England, that source (river), rises high on Dartmoor and flows for to the sea at Dartmouth, Devon, Dartmouth. Name Most hydronyms in England derive from the Common Brittonic, Brythonic language (from which ...

. It also operates river and coastal cruises from Dartmouth, including a cruise the length of the tidal Dart to the Steamer Quay in

Totnes Totnes ( or ) is a market town and civil parish at the head of the estuary of the River Dart in Devon, England, within the South Devon Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. It is about west of Paignton, about west-southwest of Torquay and ab ...

. The railway between

Paignton Paignton ( ) is a seaside town on the coast of Tor Bay in Devon, England. Together with Torquay and Brixham it forms the unitary authority, borough of Torbay which was created in 1968. The Torbay area is a holiday destination known as the Engli ...

and Kingswear, the ferry from Kingswear to Dartmouth, and the river cruise from Dartmouth to Totnes form three segments of a heavily promoted round-trip known as the ''Round Robin''. In order to close the loop, River Link operates a bus service, often using

open top bus An open top bus is a bus, usually but not exclusively a double-decker bus, which has been built or modified to operate without a roof. Early buses were constructed without roofs but in more recent times they have only been built for tourist and s ...

es, between Totnes and Paignton.

Current fleet

Dart Pleasure Craft currently operates a fleet of eight vessels. *''

Kingswear Castle Kingswear Castle is an artillery fort, built to protect Dartmouth harbour in Devon, England. It was constructed between 1491 and 1502 in response to the threat of French attack and was one of the first purpose-built artillery forts in Britain. ...

'' :''Kingswear Castle'' is on long-term loan from the Paddle Steamer Preservation Society. She was built in 1924 at Philip and Sons shipbuilders, using components from an older vessel of the same name. She primarily operates the one hour harbour cruises from Dartmouth, making occasional trips to Totnes. She was out of service for the 2022 season, while undergoing a major refit, but was expected to return for 2023. She re-entered service in June 2024, and is the only coal-fired paddle steamer operational in Britain. *''

Cardiff Castle Cardiff Castle () is a medieval castle and Victorian Gothic revival mansion located in the city centre of Cardiff, Wales. The original motte and bailey castle was built in the late 11th century by Norman invaders on top of a 3rd-century Roma ...

'' :The largest vessel in the fleet, carrying 400 passengers. Built in 1964 for the River Dart Steamboat Company, she was operated for the Millbrook Steamboat and Trading Company out of

Plymouth Plymouth ( ) is a port city status in the United Kingdom, city and unitary authority in Devon, South West England. It is located on Devon's south coast between the rivers River Plym, Plym and River Tamar, Tamar, about southwest of Exeter and ...

from 1977. In 1985, she returned to the Dart, and has operated for Dart Pleasure Craft ever since. Presently mainly used on the Totnes service. *'' Dart Explorer'' :A modern

catamaran A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...

, carrying 300 passengers and built for the company in 1991 as ''Devonair Belle''. She is mainly used on the Dartmouth Day Cruise service, as well as the one hour harbour cruise, and also operates most of the private charters. *''

Dartmouth Castle Dartmouth Castle is an artillery fort, built to protect Dartmouth harbour in Devon, England. The earliest parts of the castle date from the 1380s, when, in response to the threat of a French attack, the civic authorities created a small enclos ...

'' :Built in 1947 by Philip & Son Ship Builders and Engineers, she was previously operated by the Millbrook Steamboat and Trading Company. Although she was originally intended to be built as a

paddle steamer A paddle steamer is a steamship or steamboat powered by a steam engine driving paddle wheels to propel the craft through the water. In antiquity, paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, whereby the first uses were wh ...

, she was fitted with twin diesel engines just before completion. She now operates on the River Dart, mostly on the hour harbour cruises, with occasional trips to Totnes, and as an extra vessel on the Dartmouth passenger ferry. *'' Dart Venturer'' :Originally built as ''Plymouth Venturer'' for Plymouth Boat Cruises in 1982, this 300 passenger vessel ran for them until 2002, when it was "swapped" with Dart Pleasure Craft's smaller ''Plymouth Belle''. She normally works the Western Lady Ferry service between

Torquay Torquay ( ) is a seaside town in Devon, England, part of the unitary authority area of Torbay. It lies south of the county town of Exeter and east-north-east of Plymouth, on the north of Tor Bay, adjoining the neighbouring town of Paignt ...

and

Brixham Brixham is a coastal town and civil parish in the borough of Torbay in the county of Devon, in the south-west of England. As of the 2021 census, Brixham had a population of 16,825. It is one of the main three centres of the borough, along with ...

. *'' Dittisham Princess'' :Built as the flagship of

G.H. Riddalls and Sons G.H. Riddalls and Sons was a passenger boat operator on the River Dart, in South Devon, England. It operated on the route from Dartmouth to Totnes, on circular cruises from Dartmouth and also ran the ferry service from Dartmouth to Dittisham. Th ...

' fleet in 1995, this 181 passenger vessel was taken over in 2000. She normally works the Western Lady Ferry service between

and

. *'' Dartmouth Princess'' :Built as the ''Devon Belle II'' in 1990, she joined the G.H. Riddalls fleet in 1995. Since being taken over by Dart Pleasure craft in 2000, she has become the main ferry on the short Dartmouth-Kingswear route. *''Kingswear Princess'' :Built in 1978 at Conyer Marine in

Kent Kent is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Essex across the Thames Estuary to the north, the Strait of Dover to the south-east, East Sussex to the south-west, Surrey to the west, and Gr ...

as ''Twin Star II'' for the

Ford Ford commonly refers to: * Ford Motor Company, an automobile manufacturer founded by Henry Ford * Ford (crossing), a shallow crossing on a river Ford may also refer to: Ford Motor Company * Henry Ford, founder of the Ford Motor Company * Ford F ...

factory ferry in

Dagenham Dagenham () is a town in East London, England, within the London Borough of Barking and Dagenham. Dagenham is centred east of Charing Cross. It was historically a rural parish in the Becontree Hundred of Essex, stretching from Hainault Fo ...

, the ''Kingswear Princess'' was bought by the Dartmouth Riverboat Company in 2010. She is now used in ferry service in tandem with ''Dartmouth Princess''.

External links

River Link

References

{{River Dart Water Transport Bus operators in Devon Ferry companies of England Ferry transport in England Transport in Devon Companies based in Devon River Dart

Services

Current fleet

See also

External links

References