Connemara

On March 28 Maritime NZ has detained the 'Connemara' at its Wellington berth after a technical fault forced the suspension of the ship's services. The 'Connemara', which usually sailed four times daily', has not crossed the Cook Strait since March 21, with cancelled sailings leaving passengers frustrated and scrambling to find alternative travel. The results of the findings identified from the inspection process led to the decision to detain the ferry. StraitNZ Bluebridge hoped to return the 'Connemara' to scheduled services by the evening of March 31 after completion of repairs. Once the issues have been rectified and checked and approved by its classification society surveyor, its flag state (Bahamas), and the inspectors, Maritime NZ intended tol remove the detention.

Maritime NZ confirmed it would undertake its own inspection of the'Connemara', which remained sidelined the eighth consecutive day on March 27. Maritime New Zealand announced an own inspection to ensure safety standards were being met, but did not provide a timeframe. Bluebridge issued an alert on its website informing passengers that the only remaining ferry, the 'Livia', was running four hours behind schedule due to re-accommodating of 'Connemara' passengers. All affected customers were kept up to date with email and text notifications with revised sailing and final check in times. On March 30, the sailings were cancelled until March 31 with the ferry no longer expected to resume services until at least Tuesday evening.

The 'Connemara' suffered a technical issue on the morning of March 21, which led to the cancellation of the sailings between Picton and Wellington in the Cook Strait throu8gh to March 22. Cancelled sailings included the 8.15 a.m. Wellington to Picton service on both days, as well as Picton to Wellington sailings scheduled for 2.30 a.m. and 2 p.m. on March 21, and 2 p.m. on March 22. Affected passengers were rescheduled to other sailings by Strait NZ, while engineers were working to resolve the issue as quickly as possible, while the ferry remained sidelined in Wellington, after Bluebridge cancelled the ship's trips between Wellington and Picton up to March 25. The cancelled sailings on March 24 were Picton-Wellington at 2 p.m. and Wellington-Picton at 8.30 p.m., and on March 25 Picton-Wellington at 2.30 a.m., and Wellington-Picton at 8.15 a.m. Customers are being told by email and text messages, while there were limited re-booking options.

A technical issue on board the 'Connemara' has caused cancellations on March 12, 2026, and the morning of March 13, starting with the 8.15 a.m. departure from Wellington, while the mechanical fault was fixed. Additional sailings were added on March 14 for affected passengers, when repairs were expected to be completed and traffic resumed. All customers affected by the cancellations have been automatically transferred to an alternative sailing and will receive an updated e-ticket with revised sailing and check-in time. The failure came just days after all sailings for the Interislander ferry 'Kaiārahi' were cancelled after an intermittent technical fault recurred in Picton. The ferry had already faced disruption over the weekend after the fault was first detected while the 'Kaiārahi' was berthing in Wellington early on March 7. morning. The vessel safely docked but several sailings were cancelled while engineers carried out investigations, repairs and sea trials during a scheduled maintenance layby. It returned to service on March 10 before the fault resurfaced later that evening in Picton, after the vessel had completed berthing.

The' Connemara', operating betweem Wellington and Picton, had to return to Wellington shortly after departure. with 200 passengers on board. on Jan 8, 2026, at 8.30 p.m. following the discovery of a fault with the ramp. The crew was working with specialist crane operators to lower the ramp which was taking time, resulting in passengers and freight remaining on the vessel overnight. The passengers were accomodated as comfortable as possible and serving refreshments. There were eight cabins available for people onboard, so most were sleeping in the kitchen or on a recliner. The ramp was down on Jan 9 by 10 a.m. There would be an extra sailing on the 'Livia' on Jan 10 at 2 a.m. to accommodate the backlog. Reports with photos: https://www.odt.co.nz/star-news/star-national/ferry-passengers-stranded-after-ramp-failed-rnz https://www.odt.co.nz/news/national/passengers-stranded-after-ferry-ramp-fails-rnz

The 'Connemara' was stuck in Picton after an issue with the ramp has left passengers unable to disembark on Nov 19, 2025. The ferry left Wellington shortly after 8 a.m. and arrived in Picton just before midday. Staff had been working for 2.5 hours to free the back door ramp, the pins being stuck that lock the door into position. The engineers worked as quickly as possible to rectify the problem but it did mean passengers were delayed in disembarking the vessel. Report with photos: https://amp.rnz.co.nz/article/2ef7fe9a-20ea-4f58-9208-10dfd04318c5

A sailing of the 'Connemara' on Oct 12 has been cancelled yet again. The return freight sailing between Wellington and Picton had been cancelled on the night due to engineering checks in port taking longer than expected after the ferry lost power on one of its engines in Wellington Harbour on Oct 11.

On Oct 11 the 'Connemara' lost power just after 5 p.m. in one of its engines. The ferry was anchored in Wellington Harbour near the northern tip of Miramar Peninsula.The power was eventually restored, while a tug remained on standby in case the ferry needed assistance to berth. There were 435 people onboard the ferry.

The 'Connemara' allided with the Waitohi Wharf in Picton while berthing in strong winds on the morning of Oct 8. A strong wind gust caused the ferry to make contact with fendering on the wharf. There was no damage to the ship but that a fender attached to the wharf needed repairs. The ship was delayed from berthing while repairs were carried out. The ferry was doing laps before dropping anchor in the Queen Charlotte Sound. Report with photos and video: https://www.rnz.co.nz/news/national/530153/bluebridge-ferry-connemara-damages-wharf-in-picton-in-berthing-mishap