Expat’s Guide: RORO Ships

RORO SHIPS. A type of sea transportation in the Philippines. Photo grabbed from skyscrapercity.com

Want to know about RORO Ships? Here’s a brief overview about this kind of sea transportation in the Philippines.

Roll-on, Roll-off ships, known as RORO, are ships which are designed to carry wheeled cargo such as cars, trucks, or railroad cars which are driven on and off by using ramps. It is different from LoLo (lift on, lift off) vessels which use crane to load and unload a type of cargo.

There are various types of RO RO vessels, namely ferries, cruise ferries, cargo ships, barges, and RORO service for air deliveries. Ferries are used to carry passengers, which is also a public transport system. A Cruiseferry is used for a cruise experience, cargo ships are for carrying cargo, goods and materials, while a barge is used for transporting heavy goods built for river and canals. However, for transporting new automobiles, another type of RORO called PCC or pure car carrier or pure car/truck carrier is being used.

In the Philippines, RORO ships are also available. The routes start from Southern Luzon to Visayas. The usual ones are from Bicol to Samar and Leyte islands. There are also routes available from Visayas to Mindanao. To view a list of RORO ships in the Philippines and their specified routes, click here.

RORO Ships are very helpful in terms of transporting not only passengers, but also large items such as vehicles. If you wish for your new automobile to be transported into one place to another, you can opt to have it transported through RORO Ships. There are various RORO ferries that are really trusted when it comes to cargo so better check the list for their website and processes.

Have you tried using RORO? Tell us your experience about it by commenting below!