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See their website - http://www.condorferries.co.uk
Condor Ferries was founded in 1964, and since then has become a major operator of fine ships with a great reputation for service. The routes that they operate go from Weymouth, Poole and Portsmouth in the UK to Jersey, Guernsey as well as St Malo and Cherbourg in Western France.
In 1964, the first ship was commissioned - an Italian-built PT50 hydrofoil called Condor 1. Passenger numbers grew from 10,000 in 1964 to 60,000 in 1966. Throughout the 1960s and 1970s Condor invested in new ships and technology. In mid 1987 Condor developed their business to operating for the first time a scheduled service between the UK and the Channel Islands, using a new ship called the Condor 7. Eventually, Condor 5 and Condor 7 were used for a regular service.
Condor have found the 1990s to be very successful, starting off in 1991 with the introduction of the revolutionary catamaran which pierced the waves between the UK and the Channel Islands, which attracted a good deal of interest from passengers and media. This was for passengers though, but in 1993 Condor 10 was launched, which was a catamaran that carried cars.
The Condor Vitesse and the Condor Express have been introduced since 1994, which are two of the world's most advanced car ferries. These express services offer journey times of 2 hours between Guernsey and the UK, 3 hours between Jersey and the UK, and less than an hour in between the two channel islands.
In the Autumn of 1999 a new all-weather traditional ferry service was introduced to offer a reliable all year round service as a back up for when the faster Condor ferries were not able to operate.
The all-year-round conventional ferry operates every day apart from Sunday between the Channel Islands and Portsmouth at night and between Portsmouth and the UK during the day. This is ideal for larger vehicles, or when you have a driver who needs to deliver early in the day in the UK and you want them to arrive fresh following a comfortable crossing in a cabin berth.
Condor aim to compete in the quality of their customer service. They send all of their staff on the English Tourist Board's training course in customer care and service excellence - the "Welcome Host Programme'. They also meet the requirements of ISO 9002, a sign of quality refereed by the British Standards Institute.
There are three types of ship. First is the Condor Express and the Vitesse. These go between the Channel Islands, the UK and France with a very smooth journey. The Commodore Clipper provides a year round all-weather service between Portsmouth and the Islands. Meanwhile, the Condor 10 takes the Channel Islanders to St Malo in France.
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