Tristan da Cunha Shipping Schedules

Cape Town - Tristan da Cunha Shipping Schedule

Scheduled ships run from from Cape Town to Tristan da Cunha and return. All vessels but one are provided by the fishing company Ovenstone Agencies. Presently these vessels are the fishing vessels MFV Edinburgh (which carries out extended fishing trips to the outer islands of Inaccessible, Nightingale and Gough in the fishing season) and MV Lance which undertakes cargo operations. These ships each only carry up to 12 passengers (subject to COVID constraints).

The other ship is the South African Antarctic Research and Supply Vessel SA Agulhas II, which calls at Tristan da Cunha during the outward and return legs of its annual voyage to relieve the metereological station on Gough Island. She carries over 40 passengers to Tristan (42 in 2014).

Ships are booked many months in advance and you are advised to read carefully the 'Passenger Policy' below regarding priorities which may mean that berths may be cancelled at short notice.

Check carefully the visits section to plan your Tristan da Cunha voyage with care!

Find out more about the ships on our separate Ships Page.

Latest Provisional Shipping Schedule

All ships normally carry mail, cargo and passengers. All dates are provisional and to be confirmed.

2022

Itinerary	MV Lance	MFV Edin- burgh	MV Lance	MV Lance	MV Lance	MV Lance	SA Agulhas II	MFV Edin- burgh	MV Lance	MV Lance	MFV Edin- burgh
ETD Cape Town	22 Jan	20 Feb	10 Mar	20 Apr	23 May	04 Jul	18 Aug	01 Sep	17 Sep	16 Nov	19 Nov
ETA Tristan	29 Jan	27 Feb	17 Mar	27 Apr	30 May	11 Jul	23 Aug	08 Sep	25 Sep	24 Nov	26 Nov
ETD Tristan	06 Feb	08 Apr	25 Mar	05 May	07 Jun	19 Jul	15 Sep	01 Nov	07 Oct	05 Dec	14 Jan 2023
ETA Cape Town	12 Feb	14 Apr	31 Mar	11 May	13 Jun	25 Jul	20 Sep	07 Nov	14 Oct	12 Dec	20 Jan 2023

2023

Itinerary	MV Lance	MFV Edin- burgh	MV Lance	MV Lance	Future Voyages
ETD Cape Town	19 Jan	02 Feb	06 Apr	08 Jun	Details will be posted in 2023 as soon as they have been confirmed.
ETA Tristan	27 Jan	09 Feb	14 Apr	16 Jun
ETD Tristan	07 Feb	13 Mar	20 Apr	22 Jun
ETA Cape Town	14 Feb	19 Mar	27 Apr	29 Jun

Important Notes

The current COVID pandemic means that travel dates are more provisional than usual. For the foreseeable future, there will be no passengers other than islanders and those on essential business for the Government of Tristan da Cunha. Note: full COVID vaccination and two weeks' quarantine are required before boarding.

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Epic Journey

	A journey to Tristan da Cunha is always by ship. The 2810 km or 1750 mile journey from Cape Town harbour will normally take six days. A landing after the passage depends on the weather, although the Agulhas II normally flies passengers ashore immediately by helicopter, except in severe weather conditions. All dates are provisional.
The Fair Cape: Tristan journeys start and end in the beautiful Table Bay Harbour Cape Town, South Africa.		Long awaited: The world's most isolated community regards the arrival of every ship as a special occasion.

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Cape Town - Tristan da Cunha Passenger Fares (Subject to confirmation)

SA Agulhas (Updated 28th May 2014)		Single			Return
a. Concession Rate : available to passengers with close family or official links
	Adult :	Rand	1200		Rand	2400
	Child (6 - 15 years) Children under 6 free	Rand	600		Rand	1200
b. Ordinary Rate
	Adult	Rand	4475		Rand	8950
	Child (6 - 15 years) Children under 6 free	Rand	2250		Rand	4500
MV Lance or MFV Edinburgh
a. Concession Rate : Resident Islanders only
	Adult : Medevac	US$	70		US$	140
	Child : Medevac (2 - 15 years) Children under 2 free	US$	35		US$	70
	Adult : Other	US$	87.50		US$	175
	Child (2 - 15 years) Children under 2 free	US$	43.75		US$	87.50
b. Official Rate : Expatriate temporary residents, and any non-resident with close family or official links.
	Adult	US$	250		US$	500
	Child (2 - 15 years) Children under 2 free	US$	125		US$	250
c. Tourist Rate : Passengers with no family or official links with Tristan da Cunha
	Adult	US$	500		US$	1000
	Child (2 - 15 years) Children under 2 free	US$	250		US$	500

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Travel Policy: Passenger Priority Passenger spaces on vessels are limited and are allocated in the following order of priority
1.	Medevac (Priority)	The Chief Medical Officer must give the patient, suffering from serious illness/condition, a formal referral letter to see a consultant overseas
2.	Official (Priority)	The Administrator certifies the need for an official to attend important Island business
3.	Private (urgent business) – Islander & Non Resident Islander	The Administrator recommends that the person attend urgent private business overseas e.g. weddings
4.	Medevac (non priority treatment)	The Chief Medical Officer must give the patient suffering from a less serious illness/condition a formal referral letter to see a consultant overseas
5.	Official (non priority)	The Administrator certifies the need for an official to attend to Island business.
6.	Private (non priority travel) - Resident Islander	Holiday
7.	Private (non priority travel) – Non Resident Islander	Holiday
8.	Private (non priority travel) – Visitor	Holiday/Tourists
If you are in category 4 to 8 above, you may be required to give up your booking and defer your travel to another sailing for those covered by category 1-3.

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Notes

1. All applications to visit Tristan da Cunha should be submitted to the Administrator's Office, and require the prior approval of the Island Council. Subsequent Travel Bookings and requests for concessionary fare rates must also be made via the Administrator's Office. See Arranging a Visit Page
2. Passenger tickets for SA Agulhas will be issued by Table Bay Marine, Cape Town
3. Passenger tickets for Edinburgh / Geo Searcher will be issued by Ovenstones, Cape Town or the Factory, Tristan da Cunha
4. Close family links are understood to refer to a passenger plus spouse and dependants who have parents, grandparents, children, sisters, brothers, aunts or uncles resident on Tristan.
5. For further information on the ships themselves check out the Scheduled Ships Page