If you want to ship containers continentally, you might have encountered the term “short sea shipping”. Here, you get all the relevant information you are looking for.
What's the definition of short sea shipping?
So, let’s first take a look at what short sea shipping (SSS) actually means… According to Eurostat, it is “the maritime transport of goods over relatively short distances, as opposed to the intercontinental cross-ocean deep-sea shipping”. So, it doesn’t transit oceans or deep waters like ocean freight but uses coastal and inland waterways to transport goods to ports. Therefore, short sea shipping represents a reliable alternative to road transport across land borders.
“At Twill, we believe that short sea shipping is a strong and competitive mode of transportation for intra-regional supply chains. We are happy to support you as our customers and offer an extensive network of routes and schedules in Europe, the Americas and Asia. With the possibility to book their containers continental and intra-continental with us, we are helping customers to achieve their ambitions, whether it's to take their business global or expand it locally.”

What are the benefits of short sea shipping with one logistics provider?
When booking it with a one-stop-shop logistics provider like Twill, there are several benefits. When it comes to key factors such as reliability, emissions, and cost, short sea shipping is a highly competitive method to ship your containers continental. Here’s a more detailed overview:
Reliable end-to-end logistics: By choosing short sea shipping, you will experience reliability when it comes to your container transportation. Sea freight provides you with security, scalability, and economic efficiency. Meanwhile, road and rail freight gives you the ability to reach rural areas. Our combination of ocean freight and short sea shipping services connected to our inland transportation services enable reliable door-to-door deliveries for your goods. This means that your containers will keep moving if you choose short sea shipping with Twill.
Fewer emissions: Short sea shipping provides a greener alternative to conventional, inland transportation with significantly smaller CO2 emissions per tonne/kilometre carried. With the right solutions, sea freight can contribute tremendously to reducing the carbon footprint of intra-regional transportation, for example within Europe, the Americas or Asia.
Time savings: Whether you want to ship containers continental or intra-continental – with Twill you can do both. We are your one-stop-shop solution for your end-to-end logistics services. This also means you can save time when choosing one logistics provider for all your needs. We take care of your whole supply chain and ensure that your containers are loaded, and transported from origin to destination – either globally or within a specific region. And then you can stop spending time on complex booking processes but use it to develop your business instead.
Cost savings: Last but not least, when using short sea shipping, you can also save costs, as it is a cheaper way to transport a large number of goods.
Does this sound like the perfect match for your business? Then, find out how you can simply add short sea shipping services to your booking on our platform below.
How to book short sea shipping services?
At Twill, you can easily book short sea shipping services in just a few steps. Our short sea shipping services provide you with fully multimodal transport solutions from door-to-door, combining sea freight with road and/or rail freight.
On our online platform, you can manage and track your cargo 24/7 and with our loading priority, you get space and equipment prioritisation for your containers. That’s how your container booking process becomes really easy. Sign up for free now and explore prices and schedules at your fingertips.