Holland Norway Lines: The Short-Lived Netherlands To Norway Ferry Service

A new travel option for bringing your car to Norway began operations in April 2022, but is no more. Here’s the story of the Netherlands to Norway ferry.

Travelling to Norway by car should have been that little bit easier when in 2022, a new car ferry service from startup company Holland Norway Liines was launched.

The new service competed with existing lines from Denmark and Germany. One of our writers tested the service and experienced a few issues.

Even so, we were surprised when the ferry hit financial trouble and the company went bankrupt a little over one year later.

“Holland Norway Lines deeply regrets the bankruptcy and wishes to extend its sincere gratitude to all parties involved for their support and understanding during this challenging period,” said a company statement.

An ideal slow travel option

The route connecting the Netherlands’ Eemshaven (Groningen) with Norway’s Kristiansand took 18 hours and provides a rare new option for traveling between northern and western Europe without flying.

THe service used the MS Romantika, a vessel previously used on the popular Riga-Stockholm route. It was also used to provide extra accommodation during the COP26 climate summit to provide extra accommodation for the Glasgow event.

The service departed Eemshaven in Groningen at 3pm on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays, arriving in Kristiansand at 9am the following day. The return journey departed from Kristiansand at 3pm on Wednesdays, Fridays and Sundays.

Kristiansand is an attractive tourism destination, with Norway’s best summer weather, good beaches and the Dyreparken zoo and theme park on offer. It also serves as a great base from which to explore Norway’s southern coastline.

While the new route opened up new self-drive options for vacations in southern Norway, the company hoped that Norwegians would also embrace the route. From Eemshaven, it is just a two hour drive to Amsterdam, six hours to Berlin and seven hours to Paris.

A new option for UK travellers

The route was also an interesting if indirect option for traveling between the U.K. and Norway.

Since the 2008 closure of a historic route from Newcastle to Bergen and Stavanger, the two countries have lacked a direct ferry connection despite campaigns and several attempts to restart the service.

While far from an ideal solution, the ferry did shorten the travel time for those travelling by car, and provided a new route for regular drivers planning a European road trip.

A modern ‘cruise ferry’

Holland Norway Lines is hedged its bets at launch by chartering out the MS Romantika from Tallink Group subsidiary Tallink Latvija for a three-year period. It has room for 1,500 passengers and 350 cars.

Previously a stalwart on the Riga-Stockholm route, the vessel is well-suited to the European long-distance ferry market where a ‘cruise ferry’ experience is the norm.

For those wanting a true ‘Nordic experience”, there was an onboard sauna resort. It includes saunas, hot tubs and sun decks with ocean views.

For dining, guests could choose between a buffet restaurant or several a la carte options. Nighttime entertainment ranged from a sports pub to shows in the Starlight hall.

So, what went wrong?

The ferry service, launched in 2022, initially gained popularity as an alternative to flying, attracting nearly 400,000 passengers and rapidly growing to a company with almost 400 employees.

However, earlier this year, the service faced challenges when it had to leave its original port at Eemshaven due to capacity issues, leading to canceled departures and mass refunds.

Although the service resumed in June from a nearby port in Emden, Germany, the financial impact of the disruptions was significant, contributing to the company's eventual bankruptcy.