Where's my ferry?

[Will]

If you get ferries to/from Portsmouth, you might like to look at http://www.ais-live.co.uk/AIS%20Live/aissolent.html.

It shows real-time information of all ships in the Solent, including Southampton and Portsmouth harbours, and can be zoomed in and out to see those entering or leaving the area (though it only shows those actually within range of the vessel traffic control area). By clicking on a ship, you can get more information about it. Great if you think your ferry might be running late. I could play with it for hours - I can see the Normandie entering Portsmouth at present, slowing to about 12knots, though the ETA it is broadcasting is clearly wrong.

Unfortunately there doesn't seem to be a similar service for other ports in Britain or France, though you can register for the free public service at the similarly-named www.aislive.com . This does not update so frequently or give as much information, but you can still get a reasonable idea, and you can see the whole of the Channel, for example. You can only get the full picture there by becoming a paying subscriber.