Ferries

[Robert_5077178]

Hi travelling from Scotland to France would i be better of taking the Rosyth ferry to Belgium or travelling down through England and getting the Calias ferry not sure how far zebrugge is from the ports of France any help would be greatly appreciated

 

[rob_jax]

Hi Robert,

I live near Oxford and work in Rotterdam, so I drive this route at least one week in two - and equally I don't have any experience of the Rosyth / Zeebrugge ferry.

Zeebrugge in Belgium is about 1 hour 30 minutes from Calais, in a North Easterly direction - just along the coast.

Zeebrugge is only 30 minutes from Brugge / Bruges - and it's a great city for a few days - good food, fantastic beer, really pretty city centre and city walls. Well worth a two or three day visit.

Dover - Calais has the advantage of frequent crossings - if you miss or arrive early for a boat or train, then it's usually not a problem.

You need to weigh up the costs: The Dover-Calais crossing and the fuel (and other costs) in driving down the UK to Dover, and compare that to the cost of the longer ferry crossing.

Also if anyone in your party has a problem with sea-sickness, then the shorter crossing is probably better, but I've even seen people looking unwell on the EuroTunnel.

Tip: If you decide on the longer crossing and stay near Brugge, you may want to stick with English until you are over the French border. This Northern part of Belgium speaks Dutch (Vlaams) and you won't be too popular speaking French.

Tip: If you decide on the longer crossing - then pick up fresh food in the massive Auchan Hypermarket at Grande Synthe (Exit 25 on the A16 / E40). A lot of Belgian people shop here as it's so close to the border and prices are better than in Belgium. The A16 motorway runs from Brugge / Zeebrugge past Dunkerque (and Grande Synthe) and on to Calais.

Regards, Robert

 

[Robert_5077178]

Hi Robert,

I live near Oxford and work in Rotterdam, so I drive this route at least one week in two - and equally I don't have any experience of the Rosyth / Zeebrugge ferry.

Zeebrugge in Belgium is about 1 hour 30 minutes from Calais, in a North Easterly direction - just along the coast.

Zeebrugge is only 30 minutes from Brugge / Bruges - and it's a great city for a few days - good food, fantastic beer, really pretty city centre and city walls. Well worth a two or three day visit.

Dover - Calais has the advantage of frequent crossings - if you miss or arrive early for a boat or train, then it's usually not a problem.

You need to weigh up the costs: The Dover-Calais crossing and the fuel (and other costs) in driving down the UK to Dover, and compare that to the cost of the longer ferry crossing.

Also if anyone in your party has a problem with sea-sickness, then the shorter crossing is probably better, but I've even seen people looking unwell on the EuroTunnel.

Tip: If you decide on the longer crossing and stay near Brugge, you may want to stick with English until you are over the French border. This Northern part of Belgium speaks Dutch (Vlaams) and you won't be too popular speaking French.

Tip: If you decide on the longer crossing - then pick up fresh food in the massive Auchan Hypermarket at Grande Synthe (Exit 25 on the A16 / E40). A lot of Belgian people shop here as it's so close to the border and prices are better than in Belgium. The A16 motorway runs from Brugge / Zeebrugge past Dunkerque (and Grande Synthe) and on to Calais.

Regards, Robert

Hi thanks for your help working it out i think i would be cheaper going from Scotland to Belgium and driving into France i might as well let the ferry do the milage instead of travelling to dover in the car with the van in tow

 

[EvansofSprot]

Hi thanks for your help working it out i think i would be cheaper going from Scotland to Belgium and driving into France i might as well let the ferry do the milage instead of travelling to dover in the car with the van in tow

And better for global warming too!

 

[rob_jax]

Robert,

I guess the ferry will take the best part of a day, so you'll probably head off into France straight away - but on the way back I'd recommend staying near Brugge for one or two days.

Unless you have children with you, don't pick any of the campsites next to the coast - there are many in that section from the Belgian border up to Zeebrugge. Most are small and crowded in the summer.

You may want to look at one of the sites close to Brugge.

Robert

 

[RayS]

Robert,

I guess the ferry will take the best part of a day, so you'll probably head off into France straight away - but on the way back I'd recommend staying near Brugge for one or two days.

Unless you have children with you, don't pick any of the campsites next to the coast - there are many in that section from the Belgian border up to Zeebrugge. Most are small and crowded in the summer.

You may want to look at one of the sites close to Brugge.

Robert

Check out the distances using the websites www.mappy.com or www.viamichelin.com

These will enable you to factor in toll charges and fuel, so you can get a better overall comparison

 

[yvonne6]

Robert we are looking at travelling to France next summer via Rosyth. Since we are fairly new to caravanning we would prefer the long sailing rather than driving from Glasgow to Dover and driving from Zebrugge to France would only be an hour and half. Superfast ferries have advised that when new brochure comes out in october they have early booking discounts etc.

The Gardiners

 

[Simon_5041575]

Try Norfolk Line. They go from Dover to Dunkerque. Crossing time 2 hrs. 30 minutes closer to Belgium than Calais. You will probably find the crossing cheaper than Dover to Calais as well.

www.norfolkline.com