Channel ferries: find the crossing that fits your trip

The Strait of Dover is the conveyor belt of the Channel. DFDS, Irish Ferries and P&O Ferries share up to 31 departures a day on the 90-minute run to Calais, and DFDS adds around ten more on the two-hour crossing to Dunkirk, whose port sits closer to Belgium and the roads north. Frequency is the point here: miss a boat and the next one is rarely far away. The detailed guide to the Calais run - terminals, check-in, foot passengers - lives on our route site calaisdover.com, and the vehicles-only Dover to Dunkirk crossing has its own page here; the 35-minute Channel Tunnel shuttle from Folkestone is the non-ferry alternative on the same strait, weighed up in the FAQ.

Newhaven and the Sussex route

Newhaven - Dieppe is the one crossing between Dover and Portsmouth: a four-hour DFDS run from Sussex straight into the upper Normandy coast. It suits travellers from London and the south-east who want to skip the Dover traffic without committing to a long western sailing, and it is one of the routes that welcomes foot passengers. Dieppe lands you two hours from Paris by road. The full picture is on the Newhaven to Dieppe page.

Portsmouth, the western hub

Portsmouth is the busiest western port - six routes leave from one terminal, compared on the ferries from Portsmouth page - with four Brittany Ferries crossings fanning out across Normandy and Brittany. The workhorse is Portsmouth to Caen: about six hours on the cruise ferries Mont St Michel and Guillaume de Normandie, several times a day, with day and overnight sailings into Ouistreham and the D-Day coast. The overnight Portsmouth to St Malo sailing goes furthest west, landing you inside Brittany at breakfast. Portsmouth to Cherbourg now runs as a small overnight service up to twice a week, and Portsmouth to Le Havre is the closest crossing to Paris - the Le Havre schedules currently run under an operational review, so check the route page before you plan around it.

The Channel Islands

Since 2025 the islands sail with two operators - DFDS to Jersey, Brittany Ferries to Guernsey - and the fast boats make them close: Poole reaches Guernsey in about three hours and Jersey in about four and a half. Foot passengers are welcome on the Jersey routes, the inter-island boats link St Helier and St Peter Port, and the southern legs continue to St Malo. Each island has its own overview - Jersey and Guernsey - the Channel Islands guide compares the crossings, and the route detail lives on the Poole to Jersey and Portsmouth to Guernsey pages.

Poole and Plymouth for the West Country

From Dorset, Poole to Cherbourg is the shortest western crossing: about four hours and 45 minutes on the Barfleur, sailing each morning as a daytime trip. From Devon, Plymouth to Roscoff runs most days from spring to autumn - overnight sailings with cabins plus one Friday daytime crossing - and drops you directly in Finistère; in winter the route pauses and Portsmouth takes over. Both save West Country drivers the slog along the south coast to Dover.

Ferry or tunnel, east or west

Two decisions settle most Channel bookings. Ferry or tunnel? The Eurotunnel shuttle from Folkestone crosses in 35 minutes but takes only vehicles; the ferries take longer, cost less at most times, and give you deck air, restaurants and a break from the wheel. East or west? Dover wins on frequency and sea time; the western routes win on road miles, because Caen, St Malo or Roscoff put you hundreds of kilometres closer to western France, and an overnight cabin turns the crossing into the first night of the holiday. Whichever way you lean, the current departures for every route are in the timetable, and the prices page explains what moves a Channel fare.