An intense Atlantic depression dubbed Storm Goretti barrelled across the Irish Sea late on 10 January, unleashing 120 km/h gusts that prompted marine and aviation operators to cancel key services. Irish Ferries pulled its 02:15 Dublin–Holyhead sailing and the corresponding evening return, while Stena Line scrubbed its morning Fishguard–Rosslare crossing amid seven-metre swells. London Heathrow imposed flow-rate restrictions that forced Aer Lingus, British Airways, KLM and Air France to axe dozens of flights, including multiple Dublin rotations. ([visahq.com](https://www.visahq.com/news/2026-01-10/ie/storm-goretti-grounds-ferries-and-flights-forcing-irish-travellers-to-re-plan-weekend-itineraries/?utm_source=openai))
Corporate travellers heading for Monday meetings found themselves re-routing via Manchester, while leisure passengers extended hotel stays. Rail links between Holyhead and London also suffered knock-on delays due to debris on the North Wales line.
Amid such upheaval, many travellers suddenly discover they need fresh transit visas or alternative entry documents for newly chosen routes; VisaHQ’s Ireland portal (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) can expedite applications, track embassy requirements in real time and flag the paperwork most likely to be requested, easing the administrative burden while passengers focus on rearranging flights and ferries.
![Storm Goretti Grounds Ferries and Flights, Disrupting Irish Weekend Travel Plans]()
Travel insurers have declared the storm a 'known event', meaning new policies taken out after 11 January may exclude cover for related delays. Mobility managers should therefore review force-majeure clauses in assignment letters and advise employees to keep receipts for accommodation and sustenance.
Met Éireann warns that the Atlantic 'mobile regime' will persist through mid-week, raising the prospect of further short-notice cancellations. Companies running just-in-time supply chains between Ireland and Britain—especially in pharma and agri-food—are advised to shift sensitive cargo onto earlier sailings or airfreight flights once operations resume.
The episode underscores the vulnerability of Ireland’s connectivity to meteorological shocks and may add impetus to long-mooted plans for a second deep-water port on the east coast.
Corporate travellers heading for Monday meetings found themselves re-routing via Manchester, while leisure passengers extended hotel stays. Rail links between Holyhead and London also suffered knock-on delays due to debris on the North Wales line.
Amid such upheaval, many travellers suddenly discover they need fresh transit visas or alternative entry documents for newly chosen routes; VisaHQ’s Ireland portal (https://www.visahq.com/ireland/) can expedite applications, track embassy requirements in real time and flag the paperwork most likely to be requested, easing the administrative burden while passengers focus on rearranging flights and ferries.
Travel insurers have declared the storm a 'known event', meaning new policies taken out after 11 January may exclude cover for related delays. Mobility managers should therefore review force-majeure clauses in assignment letters and advise employees to keep receipts for accommodation and sustenance.
Met Éireann warns that the Atlantic 'mobile regime' will persist through mid-week, raising the prospect of further short-notice cancellations. Companies running just-in-time supply chains between Ireland and Britain—especially in pharma and agri-food—are advised to shift sensitive cargo onto earlier sailings or airfreight flights once operations resume.
The episode underscores the vulnerability of Ireland’s connectivity to meteorological shocks and may add impetus to long-mooted plans for a second deep-water port on the east coast.
