Spirit of Tasmania
Spirit of Tasmania has been part of the name of four different ships which have served as tourist passenger/vehicle ferries on Bass Strait, between Tasmania and the Australian mainland. The ships have all been owned and operated by the Tasmanian Government operated TT-Line.
Spirit of Tasmania (1993-2002)
The first ship, Spirit of Tasmania started sailing in 1993. It sailed three return trips a week to between Devonport, Tasmania and Melbourne, Victoria. The crossings were overnight and took approximately 15 hours. In 2002, Spirit of Tasmania was de-commissioned, and sold to the Fjord Line company in Norway.
Spirit of Tasmania I and II (2002-)
The original Spirit was replaced with two ships Spirit of Tasmania I and Spirit of Tasmania II, which were purchased from SuperFast ferries in Greece - formerly Superfast III and Superfast IV. They travel the same Devonport-Melbourne route, however each ship makes one trip each night, taking only ten hours. In peak periods, the ships also make day crossings.
Spirit of Tasmania III (2004-)
The fourth ship Spirit of Tasmania III began service in 2004. It is also a SuperFast ferry, formerly called Superfast II. It is a slightly smaller ship than the other two ferries in service. It travels a new route, the Devonport-Sydney route. It makes a one-way trip each day, which takes approximately 20 hours.