UK Ferry Travel, Ferry Crossings and Sailings
Ferry Travel is a great alternative to flying, especially for families or groups where there can be substantive savings.
Check in can be just 30 minutes or less before departure and once boarded you have the run of the ship, on most routes there are shops, restaurants and bars and for the longer routes onboard entertainment and cabins are available.
Tips: If you're looking for the cheapest fares, check prices for sailings in the early hours of the morning, which is when most people don't want to travel!
As with all transport, there are peak times when prices are at their most expensive and being flexible about dates can also help.
Dover is the closest point in Britain to Europe and crossings from Dover are often the cheapest way to cross the channel.
A Ferry from Dover takes about an hour to cross the Channel.
Specialist Ferry Bookers
Ferryonline
Ferryonline specialise in offering ferry tickets at low prices. You can compare ferry prices and book cheap ferries for all popular ferry routes in Europe.
Featuring the very latest deals comparing prices from all the leading ferry operators including P&O Ferries, DFDS Seaways, Stena Line, Brittany Ferries, Condor and many more
FerryCheap
FerryCheap.com has everything you need from budget to full ferry ticket prices and online booking by all the major ferry companies plus in depth destination and port guides
Popular Ferry Companies
Brittany Ferries
Brittany Ferries operate Classic Cruise ferries and High Speed ferry services from Portsmouth, Poole and Plymouth to Cherbourg, Caen, Roscoff, St Malo in France and to Bilbao and Santander in northern Spain
Brittany Ferries also offer a wide range of holidays and breaks throughout France and Spain including self catering Gites and cottages, casas and villas, holiday apartments and resorts, chalet camping, hotel holidays, theme park breaks, boating holidays, car tours and golf holidays and breaks
DFDS Seaways
DFDS Seaways from the UK sales to some wonderful destinations from Newcastle to Holland and Harwich to Denmark.
DFDS Seaways also have a wide range of travel products from mini cruise breaks to self-drive holidays
Stena Line
Stena Line is one of the world's leading ferry companies offering low fares and a speedier ferry travel service to Ireland, Britain and Holland.
Stena Line has an extensive route network giving great flexibility and choice.
Irish Ferries
Irish Ferries offer a variety of services including Ferries from Ireland to Britain return, Ireland to France return as well as some competitive package holiday offers!
Irish Ferries operate the following routes: Dublin City to Holyhead and return; Rosslare to Pembroke and return; Rosslare to Cherbourg and return, Rosslare to Roscoff and return
P&O Ferries
P&O Ferries provide cross channel ferries from the UK crossing to France, Holland, Spain and Belgium plus mini cruises to Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Bruges
Ferries from Southeast and Eastern England to France, Belgium, Holland and Denmark
Dover Ferry Port - Kent
Dover is the closest point in Britain to the European mainland and is the busiest of Britain's Ferry Ports.
Crossings from Dover typically take about an hour although the catamaran services are somewhat quicker.
Road links to and from all these ports are excellent.
DFDS Seaways
Dover to Dunkirk, France (Dunkerque) and Dover to Calais, France
P&O Ferries Dover to Calais, France
Ramsgate Ferry Port - Kent
The Ramsgate to Ostende ferry route is the most popular for those heading into the Netherlands, Belgium or beyond. The crossing time is typically around 4 hours.
Transeuropa Ferries were operating this route, however they went into administration in April 2013
and we are not aware of any other operator picking up this service.
Harwich Ferry Port - Essex
Located on the estuary of the Rivers Stour and Orwell Harwich is an historical costal town and port that serves ferries sailing to Denmark and Holland.
Crossing times are approximately eighteen hours and six and a half hours respectively.
Stena Line Harwich to Hook of Holland
Kingston upon Hull Ferry Port - East Yorkshire
Kingston upon Hull is on the northern bank of the Humber Estuary in East Yorkshire. Crossing times are around ten hours and thirteen hours respectively.
P&O Ferries Hull to Rotterdam, Holland
P&O Ferries Hull to Zeebrugge, Belgium
Newcastle Ferry Port - Tyne and Wear
DFDS Seaways Newcastle to Ijmuiden, near Amsterdam in the Netherlands.
Crossing takes between thirteen and fourteen hours.
Ferries from North Western and Western England to the Isle of Man, Northern Ireland and Ireland
Heysham Ferry Port - Lancashire
Year round Ferries run from Heysham to Douglas on the Isle of Man, and to Belfast in the summer months.
Isle of Man Steam Packet Heysham to Douglas, Isle of Man
Crossing times are around three and a half hours.
Liverpool Ferry Port - Merseyside
Ferries sail from both sides of the River Mersey. Bootle and the Centre of Liverpool are found on the north side of the River Mersey and Birkenhead is on the South Bank.
P&O Ferries Liverpool to Dublin
Isle of Man Steam Packet Liverpool to Douglas, Isle of Man
South West England to Wales, France, Brittany, Northern Spain, Isle of Wight, Isles of Scilly and the Channel Isles
Ilfracombe Ferry Port - North Devon
Ilfracombe in north Devon is linked by a fast catamaran ferry services for foot passengers only to Swansea in south Wales.
Severn Link Ferries Ilfracombe to Swansea, Wales
Penzance - Cornwall
There are seasonal ferries from Penzance to the Isles of Scilly.
Isles of Scilly Travel Penzance to the Isles of Scilly
Plymouth Ferry Port - South Devon
Brittany Ferries Plymouth to Roscoff, Brittany, France
Brittany Ferries Plymouth to Bilbao, Northern Spain
Brittany Ferries Plymouth to Santander, Northern Spain
Weymouth Ferry Port - Dorset
Condor Ferries Weymouth to the Channel Islands of Guernsey and Jersey
Condor Ferries Weymouth to Saint Malo, Brittany France (Via Guernsey or Jersey)
Poole Ferry Port - Dorset
Year round services run from Poole to Cherbourg and in the summer months there are services to St Malo, Guernsey and Jersey
Brittany Ferries Poole to Cherbourg, France
Condor Ferries Poole to Saint Malo, Brittany France (Via Guernsey or Jersey)
LD Lines Poole to Gijon, Spain
LD Lines Poole to Santander, Spain
Lymington Ferry Port - Hampshire
Wight Link Ferries Lymington to Yarmouth, Isle of Wight
Southampton Ferry Port - Hampshire
Red Funnel Ferries Southampton to Cowes, Isle of Wight
Portsmouth Ferry Port - Hampshire
Portsmouth is the busiest port serving Western Channel routes to France, the Channel Islands and Spain.
There are excellent transport links to and from Portsmouth: the M275 starts almost from the port exit and leads to the M27/A27 and the M3 and A3.
Brittany Ferries Portsmouth to Caen, France
Brittany Ferries Portsmouth to Cherbourg, France
Brittany Ferries Portsmouth to St Malo, France
Condor Ferries Portsmouth to Cherbourg, France
Condor Ferries Portsmouth to Guernsey
LD Lines Portsmouth to Le Havre, France
Wight Link Ferries Portsmouth to Fishbourne, Isle of Wight
Wight Link Ferries Portsmouth to Ryde, Isle of Wight
Hover Travel Portsmouth (Southsea) to Ryde, Isle of Wight
Newhaven Ferry Port - East Sussex
LD Lines Newhaven to Dieppe, France
Ferries from North and North East Scotland to the Orkneys and the Shetland Isles
Aberdeen Ferry Port - Grampian
Northlink Ferries Aberdeen to Lerwick, Shetland
Northlink Ferries Aberdeen to Kirkwall, Orkney
Northlink Ferries run ferry services around the Orkneys and Shetland Isles, including Lerwick, Kirkwall, Stromness and Scrabster.
Ferries from the West Coast of Scotland to the Western Isles, Ireland and Northern Ireland
Troon Ferry Port - Ayrshire
P&O Ferries Troon to Larne near Belfast, Northern Ireland
Cairnryan, Stranraer Ferry Port - Galloway
Stena Line
Cairnryan, Stranraer to Belfast, Northern Ireland
Caledonian MacBrayne - Western Isles
Caledonian MacBrayne - Western Isles
Caledonian MacBrayne sail to over twenty destinations around Scotlands West Coast.
Ferries from Wales to Ireland
Irish Ferries
Irish Ferries operate from Holyhead to Dublin City and Pembroke to Rosslare.
Ferry Companies no longer Operating
MyFerryLink
MyFerryLink was an English Channel passenger and freight ferry company which began operating between Dover and Calais in 2012.
It was formed following the Demise of Sea France Ferries,
however the Ferries were owned by Eurotunnel and the UK Competition Commission ruled that Eurotunnel could not operate ferry services from Dover.
After several years of appeals MyFerryLink closed in 2015 and the ships MS Rodin and the MS Berlioz were acquired by DFDS.
Eurotunnel will keep operating Nord Pas-de-Calais (a dedicated Freight Ship) for dangerous goods.
Norfolkline Ferries
Norfolkline were a popular Ferry Operator across the English Channel and around the Irish Sea.
They were aquired by DFDS in 2010 and over the next couple of years their routes were assimilated into the DFDS Brand.
Sea France Ferries
Sea France were a popular Ferry Operator between Dover and Calais who carried more than 3.5 million passengers a year on four Ferries.
Unfortunately Sea France went into receivership in 2010 and in November 2011 all sailings were suspended.
In January 2012 it was confirmed that Sea France could not be saved and that it would be officially liquidated and all activities would cease.
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