At 126 metres (413 ft) long, the ferry is the second-longest type of trimaran in the world, less than two metres shy of the littoral combat ships of the Independence class which were based on Benchijigua Express's design.

The ship's name, derived from the village of Benchijigua on La Gomera where Fredrik Olsen had property, was previously used twice since 1999.

Each of the two diesels in the rear engine-room drive one Kamewa 125 SII[5] steerable waterjet propulsion from Rolls-Royce.

The overall performance of both machines at the front engine room is transferred to a Kamewa 180 BII booster waterjet.

The second Benchijigua Express (IMO No: 9213337) started its service between Los Cristianos and San Sebastián in January 2000.