Dover Calais Ferry
The Dover Calais Ferry Crossing is the shortest route between the UK and the continent, and also the busiest. The Eastern Docks at Dover are large enough to berth several big ferry operators, each having a fleet of super ferries, dwarfing anything sailing on the longer sea routes and it’s for this reason that the Dover Calais Ferry fares tend to be the most competitive. AT the peak of the holiday season however, even the largest ships on the route are sailing at full capacity round the clock so the fares tend to be much higher than in the low season, especially on daytime sailings. Nobody wants to sail in the dead of night if they can avoid it but If you can manage to plan your journey to make the channel crossing either early morning or late evening then it’s more likely you will find one of the most affordable Dover Calais ferry fares.
Leaving England in daylight on the Dover Calais Ferry
White Cliffs and Castle seen from the Dover Calais Ferry
SeaFrance on the Dover Calais Ferry Route
SeaFrance have been running ferries between Dover and Calais since 1996 following the end of a pooling agreement with Sealink, by then known as Stena Sealink Line. The service initially began with the former Sealink vessels Fiesta and Côte d’Azur which became SeaFrance Cézanne and SeaFrance Renoir respectively after extensive refurbishments to create a distinctive French atmosphere on board. Former Sealink train ferry Nord Pas-de-Calais became the SeaFrance Nord Pas-de-Calais and operated as a freight only ferry though SeaFrance did market the ship to passengers as a quiet ship. The three vessels were later joined by the former Stena Londoner which became the SeaFrance Monet. SeaFrance quickly became the second busiest operator on the Dover – Calais route after P&O European Ferries and ahead of their former partners now known as Stena Line. In 1997 the SeaFrance Manet entered service after a five year charter to Stena Line for the Newhaven-Dieppe service, the ship essentially replaced the Monet which was later sold after being damaged in Calais. SeaFrance took delivery of the SeaFrance Rodin in 2001, their first new ship and the fastest
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- Crossing time: 90 minutes
- Vehicle check-in: closes 30 mins before departure
- Foot passenger check-in: closes 45 mins before departure
Dover-Calais ferry. She was joined in 2005 by the SeaFrance Berlioz, a sister ship built at a different yard.
P&O Ferries, the main Dover-Calais ferry company
News from P&O Ferries is of increased passenger numbers in the 2009 season. Cross-channel ferry services to France are carrying more passengers than last year ( 2008) as Britons head abroad for the warmer climate and outdoor lifestyle. A rainy July is said to have contributed to the exodus so that ferries departing from Dover docks have been regularly more than five per cent busier than last summer, before the recession really started to hit home.
P&O Ferries, the principal Dover-Calais ferry company, reported brisk business at the end of July as the UK school holidays have started. In one weekend, the Dover Calais fleet carried 54,000 passengers and 18,000 cars on the route, an increase on the equivalent weekend last year of more than five per cent for passengers and six per cent for cars.
The P&O spokesman said:
We’ve seen a strong reaction to the poor British summer with more people determined to have their holidays abroad come what may. Things may be tough at home but the British have a strong attachment to the Continental lifestyle and just love hitting the open road in search of the sun instead of dodging the downpours at home. In a recession people look for value for money and with fares from £30 each way for a car and passengers, it makes France by ferry extremely affordable compared, say, to flying a family to the Mediterranean. We think those popular destinations on the doorstep of the UK, where the cost of travel to get there is low, prove resilient during an economic downturn.
