Hull - Zebrugge Ferry

[lil]

Hello all, this is my first time!

 

We have bought a house about 1 hour West of Limoge and will be going at Easter 2005 with a van full of stuff. As we live in York, we are thinking of using the Hull Zebrugge ferry to save the long drive south in the UK.

Has anyone done this, if so how was it?

The AA route planner says it should be about a 7hour drive in France. Seems very quick

[Will]

I think I'd personally allow a bit more than 7 hours, but as it's mostly motorway I would think it's possible. Zeebrugge isn't really much further away than Dunkirk, which in the great scheme of things if you're travelling a long way isn't itself much further than Calais.

I haven't used that ferry service for a long time; it's run by P&O which is fast losing interest in its ferry services, although the North Sea Ferries subsidiary seems to be one of the better parts of P&O. It's quite a long crossing though, as you say, it saves driving time, and if travelling overnight coming from York you are probably better off doing a long crossing like that than a shorter long crossing on the Western Channel. That means cabins are compulsory, in fact I seem to remember that the operators quoted a flat fare which included meals and accommodation on board so it was better value than it looked. I don't know if that still applies. The ships were comfortable, and the on-board entertainment, bars etc particularly good if I recall correctly. I believe they only run overnight, so the shore-side operation is, to put it mildly, leisurely - I believe you can board the ship several hours before departure should you so desire. The service, and the associated Rotterdam route, is more for freight than passengers, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.

[Alexis]

Ah!  My favourite route.  I have been travelling on NSF since I was 16.  Quite some months!

There are still some poky cabins and one of the ships - I forget which - is not as modern as the other.  Breakfast is too much for me so I don't order it.  You can buy croissants in the bar in the morning.  Dinner, however, is a must have.  It used to be in with the price but now you pay less if you pre-book it.

I have never been allowed on board for any length of time before the official sailing time but as they have a habit of waiting for stray lorries caught in traffic, it can seem like it.

I use them because I can't stand the traffic in Britain and I am at my Dad's in 45 minutes once I have left the dock.

[jdavies]

[quote]Hello all, this is my first time! We have bought a house about 1 hour West of Limoge and will be going at Easter 2005 with a van full of stuff. As we live in York, we are thinking of using the Hul...[/quote]

as regular commuter ,zeebruge-limoge 7 hours is an accurate driving estimate, but remember comfort breaks are essential allow an additional time for security, meals,toilet,stretch legs etc i do the trip comfortably BY CAR in 7 1/2 hrs to 30 kms north of limoge.

as a footnote, when i did my main removal run 3years ago i was shocked to have to pay belgian road tax for the ryder hire van i was driving also high autoroute costs for commercial vehicle

regards & good luck with your move . J. Davies

[jdavies]

[quote]Hello all, this is my first time! We have bought a house about 1 hour West of Limoge and will be going at Easter 2005 with a van full of stuff. As we live in York, we are thinking of using the Hul...[/quote]

as regular commuter ,zeebruge-limoge 7 hours is an accurate driving estimate, but remember comfort breaks are essential allow an additional time for security, meals,toilet,stretch legs etc i do the trip comfortably BY CAR in 7 1/2 hrs to 30 kms north of limoge.

as a footnote, when i did my main removal run 3years ago i was shocked to have to pay belgian road tax for the ryder hire van i was driving also high autoroute costs for commercial vehicle

regards & good luck with your move . J. Davies

[Alcazar]

Been there, done that, don't do it any more

We loved it, but stopped about 3 years ago due to various reasons:

1. Cost. Even taking a night in a French hotel, after the long tiring drive down England, (we're in sunny Scunny ), the North Sea route was ridiculously expensive. You can buy an AWFUL lot of fuel for what you save!

2. It became more so when we used season tickets after buying property in France. £129 return last year.

3. Next year you can get a crossing for £92 return if you have shares, Dover-Calais.

4. Hull-Zeebrugge, there is just ONE crossing daily. Miss it, you've had it. Coming back up France, or getting caught in motorway jams in the UK, just get on the next available ferry, via Calais, you'll be unlucky if you have more than a 2 hour wait.

5. Our property is about 35 miles SW of Limoges. It takes us about 8.5-9 hours with SENSIBLE driving and comfort stops. When towing a trailer, and in bad weather last year, it took 13 hours going down from Calais. It's AT LEAST an hour Calais to Zeebrugge.

6. Going via Calais gives you chance to stock up on booze on the way back, while still catching a ferry at a decent hour, without leaving your French house at a silly early hour. We leave the French house at 9am, arrive Calais around 6pm for wine etc, and are on a ferry round 8.30, giving arrival back in Scunny at around 01.30, avoiding bad traffic at the bridge and on the M25.

Alcazar