The MV Holiday Island is a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 RORO

RORO

Roll-on/roll-off ships are vessels designed to carry wheeled cargo such as automobiles, trucks, semi-trailer trucks, trailers or railroad cars that are driven on and off the ship on their own wheels...

 ferry that operates across the Northumberland Strait

Northumberland Strait

The Northumberland Strait is a strait in the southern part of the Gulf of Saint Lawrence in eastern Canada...

 between the ports of Wood Islands

Wood Islands, Prince Edward Island

Wood Islands is a Canadian rural farming and fishing community located in southeastern Queens County, Prince Edward Island on the Northumberland Strait....

, Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...

 and Caribou

Caribou, Nova Scotia

Caribou is a small Canadian rural community in Pictou County, Nova Scotia.Located on the Northumberland Strait northwest of the town of Pictou, Caribou is named after the Woodland Caribou which used to live in Nova Scotia until European settlers hunted the herds to extinction in the 19th century...

, Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia

Nova Scotia is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the most populous province in Atlantic Canada. The name of the province is Latin for "New Scotland," but "Nova Scotia" is the recognized, English-language name of the province. The provincial capital is Halifax. Nova Scotia is the...

. The vessel is owned by the Government of Canada

Government of Canada

The Government of Canada, formally Her Majesty's Government, is the system whereby the federation of Canada is administered by a common authority; in Canadian English, the term can mean either the collective set of institutions or specifically the Queen-in-Council...

 and is managed and operated by Northumberland Ferries Limited

Northumberland Ferries Limited

Northumberland Ferries Limited is a ferry company operating in eastern Canada and headquartered in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island...

.

Built in 1971 by the Government of Canada for Canadian National Railways (CNR) at Port Weller Drydocks

Port Weller Drydocks

Port Weller Drydocks is a shipbuilder located on the Welland Canal at the Lake Ontario entrance.Founded in 1946, the two drydocks are located on the east side of the canal in Port Weller, Ontario...

 in St. Catharines, Ontario

St. Catharines, Ontario

St. Catharines is the largest city in Canada's Niagara Region and the sixth largest urban area in Ontario, Canada, with 97.11 square kilometres of land...

, Holiday Island is designed for the sheltered waters of the Northumberland Strait; as such, her vehicle decks are open on both sides and she lacks a hurricane bow. She measures 99.06 metres in length, 20.9 metres in beam, and displaces 2775 tons. She has a capacity for 485 passengers and 155 vehicles or 16 tractor trailers. She is a sister ship to the MV Vacationland

MV Vacationland

The MV Vacationland is a Canadian RORO ferry that operated across the Northumberland Strait between the ports of Cape Tormentine, New Brunswick and Port Borden, Prince Edward Island....

.

CNR changed the name of its ferry services to CN Marine

CN Marine

CN Marine was a Canadian ferry company headquartered in Moncton, New Brunswick.-History:CN Marine was created by parent Canadian National Railway in 1977 as a means to group the company's ferry operations in eastern Canada into a separate operating division...

 in 1977 and then to Marine Atlantic

Marine Atlantic

Marine Atlantic Inc. is an independent Canadian Crown corporation offering ferry services between the provinces of Newfoundland and Labrador and Nova Scotia.Marine Atlantic's corporate headquarters are in St...

 in 1986. Holiday Island served on a service at the western end of the Northumberland Strait, crossing at Abegweit Passage

Abegweit Passage

Abegweit Passage is the narrowest part of the Northumberland Strait, comprising the 13-kilometre wide portion between Cape Tryon, Prince Edward Island, and Cape Tormentine, New Brunswick. Tidal currents in this area can reach up to 4 knots...

, between the ports of Cape Tormentine

Cape Tormentine, New Brunswick

Cape Tormentine is a Canadian rural community in Westmorland County, New Brunswick.The community derives its name from a headland of the same name which extends into the Northumberland Strait, forming the easternmost point in the province.-Railway:...

, New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

 and Port Borden, Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island

Prince Edward Island is a Canadian province consisting of an island of the same name, as well as other islands. The maritime province is the smallest in the nation in both land area and population...

.

The opening of the Confederation Bridge

Confederation Bridge

The Confederation Bridge is a bridge spanning the Abegweit Passage of Northumberland Strait, linking Prince Edward Island with mainland New Brunswick, Canada. It was commonly referred to as the "Fixed Link" by residents of Prince Edward Island prior to its official naming. Construction took place...

 on June 1, 1997 saw Marine Atlantic close its ferry service and all of its vessels on this route except Holiday Island were disposed and sold off by the Crown Assets division of the Department of Public Works and Government Services

Public Works and Government Services Canada

Public Works and Government Services Canada is the department of the government of Canada with responsibility for the government's internal servicing and administration....

. Holiday Island sailed 100 kilometres to the east end of the strait and began service that month under the colours of Northumberland Ferries Ltd., replacing two smaller ferries (MV Prince Nova, which was sold to a ferry company operating in Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound

Long Island Sound is an estuary of the Atlantic Ocean, located in the United States between Connecticut to the north and Long Island, New York to the south. The mouth of the Connecticut River at Old Saybrook, Connecticut, empties into the sound. On its western end the sound is bounded by the Bronx...

, and MV Prince Edward, which was sold to the Government of Newfoundland and Labrador).