Ferry Routes from the UK: Ports, Operators and Crossing Times

Ferries leave Great Britain for France from Dover and Newhaven, for Ireland from Holyhead and Pembroke, for the Netherlands from Harwich, Hull and Newcastle, and for Guernsey from Poole and Portsmouth. Below, each route has its operator, crossing time and foot passenger rule.

Every crossing time and foot passenger rule comes from the operator's own route page, read on 31 October 2026: DFDS, P&O Ferries, Irish Ferries, Stena Line and Condor Ferries. Where a page does not say something, the table says so rather than guessing. We sell no tickets and promise no fares.

The France routes have their own guide, ferry to France from the UK, with check-in times, cars and pets. For the passport rules of every country you can visit, see entry requirements for British passport holders.

The shortest crossings leave Dover for Calais, at about 90 minutes to 1 hour 40 minutes depending on the operator. The longest in this table is Newcastle to Amsterdam, an overnight sailing of around 16 hours 45 minutes.

Operators warn that timetables and sailing times can change with the weather, so treat these as the published figure, not a promise. P&O's Dover to Calais page gives different numbers of daily sailings in different places, so we print none.

On some routes, yes. DFDS says only vehicle travel is permitted on its Dover to France routes and foot passengers are not permitted, which covers Calais and Dunkirk. P&O Ferries takes foot passengers on Dover to Calais, with check-in closing 90 minutes before departure and no baggage reclaim, so you carry all your luggage.

DFDS takes foot passengers on Newhaven to Dieppe and on Newcastle to Amsterdam, and P&O Ferries does on Hull to Rotterdam, again with check-in 90 minutes before departure. On Newhaven to Dieppe, DFDS asks foot passengers to leave luggage larger than 56cm x 45cm x 25cm in the baggage storage on board. Condor Ferries publishes foot passenger check-in advice, which closes 40 minutes before departure from the UK.

The Stena Line and Irish Ferries route pages we read do not state whether foot passengers can travel, so the table says so. Ask the operator before you plan a journey on foot.

DFDS sails Dover to Calais and Dover to Dunkirk, and Newhaven to Dieppe. P&O Ferries and Irish Ferries sail Dover to Calais as well, which is the only France route with three operators in this table. Brittany Ferries is not in this table, because we have not read its route pages.

Which port to pick, what check-in looks like and how to take a car or a pet are covered in our ferry to France guide, which stays the page for France.

Ireland

Stena Line gives 3 hours 15 minutes from Holyhead to Dublin. Irish Ferries lists up to 4 sailings a day on that route, a cruise ferry of 3 and a half hours and a fast ferry that crosses in just over 2 hours, and says Holyhead terminal is closed between 03:00 and 05:45. Irish Ferries also sails Pembroke to Rosslare, just over 4 hours with 2 crossings daily.

The Netherlands

Stena Line offers 4 daily sailings from Harwich to Hook of Holland, from 6 hours 30 minutes. P&O Ferries' Hull to Rotterdam sailing typically leaves at 20:30 from Monday to Friday and 20:00 at weekends. DFDS sails Newcastle to Amsterdam daily: check-in opens at 14:00 and closes at 16:15, and the ferry leaves at 17:00.

Guernsey

Condor Ferries sails Poole to Guernsey in around 3 hours on its fast ferry, with sailings on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays and Mondays, and Portsmouth to Guernsey in 7 hours. Condor says it no longer runs ferries between the UK and Jersey.

It depends on where the ferry lands. France and the Netherlands are in the Schengen area, so passport and Entry/Exit System rules apply. Ireland and Guernsey are in the Common Travel Area, and a carrier can still ask you for ID.

P&O Ferries adds that foot passengers at Dover check in at the terminal and are taken by shuttle bus to the EES facility and back to the port, and that you must carry a valid passport when travelling to the EU.

• Brittany Ferries
  We have not read its route pages for this table, so none of its routes has a row. Our ferry to France guide covers its France routes.
• Fishguard to Rosslare
  Stena Line's page gives no crossing time, so the route is not in the table.
• Belgium
  P&O Ferries' page says it does not sail directly to Belgium and points to its Calais and Rotterdam routes.
• Jersey
  Condor Ferries says it no longer runs ferries between the UK and Jersey.
• Norway and Northern Ireland
  We read no route page for them, so we state nothing about them.

• What is the quickest ferry from the UK to France?

  Dover to Calais. DFDS gives 1 hour 40 minutes, P&O Ferries about 90 minutes and Irish Ferries 90 minutes, on route pages read on 31 October 2026.

• What is the longest ferry route from Great Britain?

  Of the routes in our table, Newcastle to Amsterdam with DFDS, at around 16 hours 45 minutes. Hull to Rotterdam with P&O Ferries is about 11 hours 30 minutes.

• Can you travel on a UK ferry as a foot passenger?

  On some routes. DFDS does not allow foot passengers on Dover to Calais or Dover to Dunkirk, while P&O Ferries does on Dover to Calais and Hull to Rotterdam, and DFDS does on Newhaven to Dieppe and Newcastle to Amsterdam.

• Do you need a passport for a ferry to Ireland?

  GOV.UK says British nationals are not legally required to show a passport to enter Ireland, but some ferry operators have introduced a passport-only identification requirement. Check your carrier before you travel.

• Do you need a passport for a ferry to France or the Netherlands?

  Yes. GOV.UK says it must have been issued less than 10 years before the day you arrive and expire at least 3 months after the day you plan to leave the Schengen area.

• Where are Entry/Exit System checks for ferries from Dover?

  At the border in the Port of Dover, before you leave the UK, according to GOV.UK. Ferries from other UK ports register you on arrival in the destination country.

• Is there a ferry from the UK to Belgium?

  P&O Ferries says it does not sail directly to Belgium. Its Calais and Rotterdam routes are the ones it points to for onward travel by car.

• Is there a ferry from the UK to Jersey?

  Condor Ferries says it no longer runs ferries between the UK and Jersey. Its UK routes go to Guernsey, from Poole and Portsmouth.