The first day of Isle of Man Steam Packet Company bookings for the 2015 TT saw a substantial increase compared with last year, with almost 7,000 passengers booked to travel in just 10 hours.
The Company started taking reservations at 8.30am on Bank Holiday Monday (26th May), and by 6.30pm more than 2,500 bookings had been made. That is an increase of more than 41% compared with the first day of TT bookings in 2013.
Initial figures show 6,957 passengers booked for the 2015 TT when reservations opened, compared with 4,314 last year. The number of motorcycles booked increased to 3,452, from 1,966, and the number of other vehicles, including cars and vans, increased from 647 in 2013 to 935 this year.
Almost 1,500 reservations were made by phone or in person, with more than 1,000 made through www.steam-packet.com.
Despite being a Bank Holiday, the Isle of Man Steam Packet Reservations Office and phone lines were fully staffed throughout the day, with extra staff brought in to help deal with the anticipated demand.
Isle of Man Steam Packet Chief Executive Mark Woodward said: ‘I would like to pay tribute to all our staff who worked flat-out throughout the day to assist as many TT fans as possible to secure their travel for the 2015 TT.
‘We experienced an increase in bookings of more than 41% compared with the same time last year, which is testament to the continued growth in popularity of the TT. Demand remained high on Tuesday, when in the first few hours of the day we processed several hundred more bookings in person, on the phone and online.
‘Due to the extremely high level of inquiries, I appreciate there will have been frustration for some customers who could not immediately get through on the phone or experienced delays online. Our website experienced 638% more page views on Monday than it did on the corresponding Monday in April, which shows just how busy the site was.
‘Despite the volume of reservations we have already handled, there are still places on sailings to the Isle of Man during the 2015 TT, so it is worth checking on line or with our reservations team.’
