paul_richardson Posted January 11, 2018 Share Posted January 11, 2018 Hi Guys, Continuing my preparation for our first European trip, I have turned my attention to finding the cheapest ferry. As I live so far away from the main ports, it won't make much difference were I sail from/to. Also as we are retired the exact day/time of travel is VERY flexible. I'm looking for a ferry comparison site that will give me the cheapest option with the most flexibility. Has anyone found a good one? Looking forward to hearing from you. Regards, Paul Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
crocs Posted January 11, 2018 Share Posted January 11, 2018 Best way to get that kind of info is by Googling it, then take your pick. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Derek Uzzell Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 Paul You could try this website https://www.aferry.co.uk/ but I’m not sure how useful it will actually be. Although you are a long drive away from the UK’s south-eastern corner where the Channel crossings are short and relatively cheap due to the competition element (and there’s the Tunnel option) you are only an easy 100-odd miles from Plymouth from where Brittany Ferries sails to Roscoff. It’s certainly not a cheap route, but Plymouth is the UK-to-France port closest to your home and Poole and Portsmouth are a good deal closer than Dover. We travel regularly to France and we could Channel-cross very inexpensively from Dover with P&O Ferries as we still have ’stockholder’ rights. However we much prefer to use the Brittany Ferries Portsmouth-Caen route and, as members of that operator’s travel-club, we obtain a substantial discount on the standard price plus other benefits. Although the Portsmouth-Caen route is not cheap, Portsmouth is (normally) a relaxed drive from where we live, the crossing times are convenient for us and the Ouistreham arrival-port in France suits where we want to go. If we really wanted ‘cheap’ or intended to travel to (say) Germany or north-eastern France, we’d cross from Dover instead. If the ferry-cost is to be critical to your plans, this will mean using a Dover route and accepting the over-200 mile drive to the port. Plymouth, Poole and Portsmouth will all be easier for you to reach (and save you time and fuel) but the ferry costs will be significantly higher. When choosing a crossing you’ll need to decide how much the ferry-cost should influence your European itinerary, or how much your itinerary should influence your choice of ferry route. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tracker Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 When I used to do this exercise I found little price difference between the comparison sites and the ferry company's own website so having found a price on a comparison site it might be worthwhile checking with the ferry company before booking. A lot depends where you are going on t'other side. If heading West or South a Westerly port can cut the time and miles, similarly if heading East an Easterly port can help! For example the drag west from Dunkerque can be tiresome if heading to Spain! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Don636 Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 We always use Direct Ferries. Good for obtaining options but I don't think this gives you any saving over going direct to the ferry company - it is just more convenient for comparing rather than doing it yourself. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StuartO Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 Derek Uzzell - 2018-01-13 4:46 AM..... We travel regularly to France and we could Channel-cross very inexpensively from Dover with P&O Ferries as we still have ’stockholder’ rights. However we much prefer to use the Brittany Ferries Portsmouth-Caen route and, as members of that operator’s travel-club, we obtain a substantial discount on the standard price plus other benefits. Although the Portsmouth-Caen route is not cheap, Portsmouth is (normally) a relaxed drive from where we live, the crossing times are convenient for us and the Ouistreham arrival-port in France suits where we want to go. If we really wanted ‘cheap’ or intended to travel to (say) Germany or north-eastern France, we’d cross from Dover instead..... This is a key point - unless you are on a very tight budget, take into account the convenience/enjoyment factor. We used to cross Hull - Hook of Holland when we lived up North because it provides a really nice way to start and end a holiday. Now we're in East Anglia there's less choice and we bite the bullet, brave the M25 and drive to Dover because the Harwich crossing doesn't really help much. We pay a little more to use the Tunnel rather than a ferry because it's quicker and easier - and much better if there's a gale blowing. Last October we abandoned our paid-for ferry crossing and paid for the Tunnel because it was blowing force 9! Last year we used Portsmouth - Bilbao to get to Iberia but drove back to Calais and will drive to Iberia through France both ways next time because the ferry was expensive and wasn't that good for the dog. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brians dad Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 You can often get 5 - 10% off by booking with the Caravan or Camping clubs. The only problem is if you want to change your booking - you cannot do this by ringing the ferry company direct, you have to do it by contacting the agent. Try ringing one of the clubs at 5.30 pm on a Friday night, as somebody we knew tried from a French site did - only to be told by a recorded message to ring again on Monday morning - not much use as they wanted to bring forward their ferry to Sunday night! I do not know if the other agencies have such restricted opening hours, but it has led us to book direct with the ferry company now. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickt Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 Don,t forget if you have Tesco vouchers use them on Eurotunnel Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbo Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 Another factor to consider when booking a channel crossing is.......how easy is it to amend your return journey. Is this free of charge or will you be expected to pay a supplement. Generally, if you are able to amend the booking, the cost of the return leg will be based on the current ticket price, less the price already paid. I personally hate having to nominate a return date as you never know if you may need to change your plans for a variety of reasons. Frequent traveller tickets (bought in packs of at least 5 returns per year) appear to be the only type of ticket where you can amend departure and return times without any additional charge, providing you don't return during specified peak times. Frequent traveller tickets used to be offered for motorcaravans by P&O ferries but this has been withdrawn. For a single return journey, with a certain degree of flexibility, it's probably difficult to beat Euro tunnel. Especially, if you have £60 in Tesco vouchers which would pay for a £180 return ticket. As the OP lives in the West country, a ferry crossing closer to home may well prove to be more economical overall, depending on his ultimate destination. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mikebeaches Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 paul_richardson - 2018-01-11 8:57 PM Hi Guys, Continuing my preparation for our first European trip, I have turned my attention to finding the cheapest ferry. As I live so far away from the main ports, it won't make much difference were I sail from/to. Also as we are retired the exact day/time of travel is VERY flexible. I'm looking for a ferry comparison site that will give me the cheapest option with the most flexibility. Has anyone found a good one? Looking forward to hearing from you. Regards, Paul Paul - I think most points have been covered by the folk on here that have responded to your request. However, I also live in North Somerset and we normally use the Channel tunnel, mostly for the reasons that have already been provided. Namely, it is very flexible, there are up to 4 trains per hour so if you miss your scheduled crossing you'll likely be able to just go on the next one without any extra charges. It's quick, at 35 minutes, and there are no concerns about the sea conditions. The 'Frequent Traveller' account has been mentioned, and this provides even further flexibility - we share an account with a friend and normally do 2 returns a year, and they do 3. It works out at £55 each way with a motorhome, regardless of size. Yes it's further to drive to Folkestone than say Portsmouth or Plymouth, and the M25 can occasionally be a pain, but on balance it works best for us. Of course if you want to go to Spain and reduce the amount of driving, then Plymouth to Santander, or Portsmouth to Bilbao or Santander is well worth considering. It's expensive but it is very convenient, and we occasionally go that way. Have a great trip whichever way you decide to cross the water. :-) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ronnieus Posted January 12, 2018 Share Posted January 12, 2018 Hi Paul We live in Sandford just down the road from you. Did our first trip to France last year and it was great. We will be doing the same again this year as we have friends in Marseillan in the south. Not the cheapest probably but we liked the Poole Cherbourg route as it is only a 4 1/4 hours crossing and gets there around lunchtime. We have a dog so the quicker route is best for us. We stayed at Lychett Manor CS in Poole the night before as otherwise we would have had to be up too early! Think cost was around £175 thru C&C or C&M Club cant remeber which one sorry, one way. We didnt book a return until we were ready to come back (retired so no hurry!). We booked direct with Brittany Ferries so it was a little more expensive. If i can be of any more help please get in touch. Good Luck Phil Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek500 Posted January 13, 2018 Share Posted January 13, 2018 I tend to use aferry to compare prices of the different sailings over a few days and then book chosen crossing with C&CC to get the discount. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aandy Posted January 13, 2018 Share Posted January 13, 2018 "I personally hate having to nominate a return date as you never know if you may need to change your plans for a variety of reasons." I don't know how other operators work, but on P&O Dover-Calais there is no need to. I buy a one-way ticket going out and then book the return crossing when I'm ready to come home. So long as each booking is made more than 24 hours in advance it costs no more than booking both crossings together. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derek500 Posted January 13, 2018 Share Posted January 13, 2018 Ronnie&us - 2018-01-12 8:30 PM Hi Paul We live in Sandford just down the road from you. Did our first trip to France last year and it was great. We will be doing the same again this year as we have friends in Marseillan in the south. Not the cheapest probably but we liked the Poole Cherbourg route as it is only a 4 1/4 hours crossing and gets there around lunchtime. We have a dog so the quicker route is best for us. We stayed at Lychett Manor CS in Poole the night before as otherwise we would have had to be up too early! Think cost was around £175 thru C&C or C&M Club cant remeber which one sorry, one way. We didnt book a return until we were ready to come back (retired so no hurry!). We booked direct with Brittany Ferries so it was a little more expensive. If i can be of any more help please get in touch. Good Luck Phil You can park overnight at the port for £5, payable at the café by the check-in lanes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Keith T Posted January 14, 2018 Share Posted January 14, 2018 aandy - 2018-01-13 10:13 AM "I personally hate having to nominate a return date as you never know if you may need to change your plans for a variety of reasons." I don't know how other operators work, but on P&O Dover-Calais there is no need to. I buy a one-way ticket going out and then book the return crossing when I'm ready to come home. So long as each booking is made more than 24 hours in advance it costs no more than booking both crossings together. living as we do in Devon the only 'sensible' route is Plymouth to Roscoff...and its fair to say that we really enjoy arriving (and departing) through Brittany. There is no point to us in driving halfway or more across the Uk south coast just to save a few pounds on the fare, as it would more often mean an overnight stop in UK and using UK priced fuel!! What I have discovered through talking to BF on the phone is that rather than book an outward and return crossing, there are significant benefits in booking them as two separate tickets. This enables you to get the best prices initially, but also have flexibility in changing g the return crossing date without penalty.. As a member of the BF Club we get the standard 30% discount, but can change the date of either crossing on line much nearer the original date booked, otherwise if you book a return crossing initially there are penalties if you wish/need to change the return part once you have travelled on the outward crossing. I guess the answer to the OP is probably an easier choice given his location, and I doubt there is much difference in driving mileage and time to any of the south coast crossing points. In terms of comparison site,when we lived in Sussex, I always used to check via the CMC website, but often you could find just as cheap by going direct to the ferry companies. We also found there were very much 'market' rate factors with the number of crossings available, and obviously with Plymouth its whatever time the sailing is on a particular day (or night) which determines the price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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