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Irish Sea

Cairnryan to Belfast, into the city in ten minutes.

Two and a quarter hours on the biggest ships in the North Channel, landing inside Belfast Harbour. Stena sails from Loch Ryan Port, a different site from the P&O terminal down the road.

BritainIrelandLarneHolyheadDublinLiverpoolFishguardRosslarePembroke DockCairnryanBelfast

Timetables checked August 2026, and how they are checked

2 h 15at sea6sailings a dayYear roundStena Line

The crossing

Two and a quarter hours, six sailings a day, all year.

Operator
Stena Line
Sailings
6 sailings a day
Crossing
About 2 h 15
Check-in
Vehicle check-in opens two hours before and closes 30 minutes before departure. Cairnryan has almost no services, so fuel up in Stranraer on the way.
Gas bottles
Up to three cylinders, 47 kg between them, valves closed for the whole sailing. Stena also wants a call to its contact centre before you travel, about 24 hours ahead, and then a second declaration at check-in.
Pets
Three ways to do it. The dog stays in the vehicle free, or in a free onboard kennel booked ahead, or in the Pet Lounge on Deck 7 of the Superfasts at 24 euros a pet, two pets maximum and a carrier required. The kennels sit on the car deck, so they can't be visited at sea.Paperwork: a dog, cat or ferret needs a free Northern Ireland Pet Travel Document and a microchip. No rabies vaccination or tapeworm treatment is required on this movement. Apply before you travel; it's a form, not a vet appointment.
Book with
Stena Line (opens in a new tab)Fares and availability live with the operator, not here.

Seasons, weather and operators all move these, so confirm with the operator before you book.

Getting there

Glasgow is 1 h 40 away, London 6 h 30.

Typical driving hours to Cairnryan with light traffic
Starting fromDriving hours
Glasgow1 h 40
Edinburgh2 h 30
Manchester3 h 30
Leeds4 h
Newcastle upon Tyne4 h
Liverpool4 h
Birmingham5 h
London6 h 30

Ashore

You land inside the harbour, ten minutes from the centre.

You come off inside Belfast Harbour. Titanic Belfast is five minutes and the city centre ten. The M2 runs north to Carrickfergus in about twenty minutes and Larne in thirty five for the Antrim coast, and the M1 heads south towards the Mournes and Dublin. Strangford Lough and Hillsborough are inside ninety minutes.

If not this boat

Larne is shorter and sails from the other port. Liverpool trades the drive north for a night at sea.

Every crossing on the map

Still asked

The other Cairnryan port, and the A75 is slower than the map says.

Loch Ryan Port at Old House Point, the purpose-built terminal north of Cairnryan village. The P&O terminal for the Larne boat is a separate site about five minutes down the A77. Arriving at the wrong one costs you the sailing.

Slower than the mileage suggests. The A77 from Ayr and the A75 from Dumfries are largely single carriageway and shared with Belfast freight, and the A75 alone runs about 95 miles from the Gretna end. Add an hour to whatever the map says, more on a summer Friday.

Not for yourself. This is a domestic UK crossing inside the Common Travel Area, so photo ID is enough, though carrying a passport makes check-in simpler. The Stena change from 28 September 2026 that asks for passports at check-in applies to the Republic of Ireland routes from Wales, not to this one. A dog is the exception: since 4 June 2025 it needs a free Northern Ireland Pet Travel Document, which is paperwork even though you're not leaving the UK.

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Cairnryan to Belfast in one page: the times, the sailings, the port and the first hour ashore. Free to read, no account needed.

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