Nanaimo-Vancouver ferry service takes another step towards launching
A new foot passenger-only ferry service between Nanaimo and Vancouver has marked another milestone towards starting operations.
The new company, called Hullo, says its first 354-passenger catamaran has left its shipyard in Vietnam and is heading to Vancouver Island.
Hullo held a ground-breaking ceremony in Nanaimo in April, where a new terminal at 100 Port Dr. is under construction.
A total of two ferries will sail between downtown Nanaimo and downtown Vancouver, with the other dock located at the Vancouver Harbour Flight Centre at Burrard Landing, located at 1055 Canada Pl.
Sailings are expected to take 70 minutes, according to the Vancouver Island Ferry Company (VIFC), which is launching Hullo.
VIFC says there will be up to seven round-trip sailings planned seven days a week, and free Wi-Fi is available on board.
There's still no word yet on when Hullo will officially launch, though the company says it hopes to begin sailing in late summer 2023.
VIFC has yet to release details on pricing as well, though it says more information will be coming soon about its three different tiers of seating, ranging from comfort to premium and business.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories

WATCH LIVE Nearly half of Canadians have no plans to mark National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
A new survey found that 48 per cent of Canadians say they won’t be taking any specific action to recognize National Day for Truth and Reconciliation.
WATCH LIVE 'Stories of resilience and survival': Indigenous-led tourism is one way to support communities in Canada
A growing number of businesses popping up across Canada are offering unique experiences that invite tourists to dive into the history, language and culture of Indigenous communities.
W5 Ferraris worth nearly $1M seized from Edmonton men linked to Pivot Airlines drug-smuggling scandal
Two Edmonton men at the centre of an international cocaine-trafficking scandal that led to the detainment of a Canadian airline crew in the Dominican Republic last year are back in the spotlight. They're facing numerous charges after police seized a pair of stolen Ferraris worth roughly $1 million.
Almost all of Nagorno-Karabakh's people have left, Armenia's government says
An ethnic Armenian exodus has nearly emptied Nagorno-Karabakh of residents since Azerbaijan attacked and ordered the breakaway region's militants to disarm, the Armenian government said Saturday.
Putin marks anniversary of annexation of Ukrainian regions as drones attack overnight
Russian President Vladimir Putin on Saturday insisted that the residents of four Ukrainian regions that Moscow illegally annexed a year ago 'made their choice -- to be with their Fatherland.'
What do Indigenous Peoples across Canada really need and want?
The federal Liberal government has made a lot of promises to Indigenous Peoples. But do those promises line up with what communities on the ground really want and need, or reflect their diversity?
Canada’s greenhouse gas emission up 2.1 per cent from last year due to oil and gas production, cold winter: report
New data from the Canadian Climate Institute shows that emissions from the oil and gas industry and buildings continued to climb in the previous year, undercutting Canada's overall emissions reduction progress.
When Kula needed water to stop wildfire, it got a trickle. Many other U.S. cities are also vulnerable
Hours before devastating fires scorched the historic town of Lahaina on Maui, Kyle Ellison labored to save his rental house in Kula, a rural mountain town 24 miles away, from a different blaze.
The Dianne Feinstein they knew: Women of the Senate remember a tireless fighter and a true friend
When Washington Sen. Patty Murray received a call early Friday morning that Sen. Dianne Feinstein had died, she immediately started calling her fellow female senators.