Ferries vs tunnel

[Bjohnson]

We are off to France later in the summer, traveling from Bristol to central/southern France.

Having spent weeks trawling the net for ferry prices, routes and a myriad of options,we've decided on the euro tunnel!

Our reasoning;

I had planned to go plymouth Santander, drive across Spain to France, then at the end of our stay drive up through France to Le Havre, coming back to Portsmouth or Poole.

I've studied various routes through Spain and France and looked at the distances involved, then looking at the ferry prices.

Ferry costs were coming out at circa £700 for the two crossings compared with a euro tunnel return of circa £160!!

The extra distance and diesel cost from Bristol to Folkestone, plus approx an extra 180km on the French side still doesn't come close to the cost of the original ferry costs, so it's worked out a no brainer to go on the eurotunnel!

Thought this might be a useful reference for anyone considering a similar trip.

 

[Martin]

We always used to use Brittany Ferries and pay the premium for going Western Channel but then did the sums and the savings were in excess of £200 so we now suffer the hassle of driving to Folkstone, also its much easier to take the dog on the tunnel. The frustrating thing is I only live 15 mins from Portsmouth ferry port!

 

[HistoryBob]

Do you book your Cali as a Camper, a Van, Motor Home, or a Van conversion on the Tunnel? There seems to be a wide variation in price.

 

[Bjohnson]

Do you book your Cali as a Camper, a Van, Motor Home, or a Van conversion on the Tunnel? There seems to be a wide variation in price.

The price I mentioned above was based on a van. There are a few suggestions on the forum that its cheaper.

I'll chance it and book as a van and see how we get on!

 

[Leo K]

Do you book your Cali as a Camper, a Van, Motor Home, or a Van conversion on the Tunnel? There seems to be a wide variation in price.

Yes, I noticed a price difference of about 20%. There can be no doubt however about the choice you should make:

Van: Any van (including roof box, roof rack or cycles) over 1.85m in height, used for private, tourist or leisure travel. This excludes minibuses, campervans, trailers, caravans, motorcycles and any light commercial goods vehicles carrying commercial goods for resale. Please note, the maximum laden weight for a van on our Passenger service is 3.5 tonnes.

Campervan: Any vehicle which includes living accommodation (including (without limitation) seats, table, sleeping, cooking and storage facilities).

The reason may be less clear. Also, I see one can take up to 8 kids for free, but a chihuahua is 46 euro (return ticket).

 

[Andresz]

Do you book your Cali as a Camper, a Van, Motor Home, or a Van conversion on the Tunnel? There seems to be a wide variation in price.

Yes, I noticed a price difference of about 20%. There can be no doubt however about the choice you should make:

Van: Any van (including roof box, roof rack or cycles) over 1.85m in height, used for private, tourist or leisure travel. This excludes minibuses, campervans, trailers, caravans, motorcycles and any light commercial goods vehicles carrying commercial goods for resale. Please note, the maximum laden weight for a van on our Passenger service is 3.5 tonnes.

Campervan: Any vehicle which includes living accommodation (including (without limitation) seats, table, sleeping, cooking and storage facilities).

The reason may be less clear. Also, I see one can take up to 8 kids for free, but a chihuahua is 46 euro (return ticket).

Just check whichever option is cheaper, Cali easily can act as a van or, camper or motorhome. Last time I declared it as a motorhome which was almost twice cheaper than a van on P&O Ferries

 

[briwy]

Did you check out LD Lines Portsmouth to Le Havre.
We use them a lot for trips to the Pyrenees and they tend to be considerably cheaper than Brittany Ferries. We usually go overnight Friday (with a cabin)and then it's an easy one day run down to the south. Return on a Sunday evening and the cost has varied from around £240 to £400 depending on the time of year. Just checked our next trip for Sat night with a cabin late August, return Sun mid Sept, £325, booked as a motorhome.

 

[frigorifix]

I would be greatly interested to know the pricing differences in the eurotunnel depending on the type of vehicule you declare !

 

[ChrisandPenney52]

Did you check out LD Lines Portsmouth to Le Havre.
We use them a lot for trips to the Pyrenees and they tend to be considerably cheaper than Brittany Ferries. We usually go overnight Friday (with a cabin)and then it's an easy one day run down to the south. Return on a Sunday evening and the cost has varied from around £240 to £400 depending on the time of year. Just checked our next trip for Sat night with a cabin late August, return Sun mid Sept, £325, booked as a motorhome.

+1 used them at Christmas and thought they were good value. Port facilities were pretty functional and I think you may queue for a while to check in. Cabins were excellent - clean and quiet. No entertainment but not something I was looking for. They seem to charge pretty much the same for most classes of vehicle

 

[swigle]

I would be greatly interested to know the pricing differences in the eurotunnel depending on the type of vehicule you declare !

At least £9 extra each way for declaring as a campervan. (This is the price differential on the Frequent Traveller account.)