Dover Ferry Routes - Ferries & Crossings to Europe
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Last year over eighteen million passengers and three million cars used the Port of Dover to cross the English Channel on a range of Dover Ferries provided by a selection of well known firms. Situated in Kent and with the backdrop of the famous White Cliffs, Dover is the closest point in the U.K. to the European continent.
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The Romans were known to have built a lighthouse here when they first settled but it was King James I Who first gave Dover its Royal Charter in 1606. Today the Port of Dover takes up over 1050 acres. In 1958 the first two drive-on drive-off berths were opened for Dover Ferries and passengers on the Eastern Docks and in 1978 the port opened a £12m Hoverport on the Western Docks which greatly reduced journey times across the channel. The famous port that we know today is a far cry from the times when they would lift cars and coaches on board the ships by crane.
Sailing routes
Dover is the most popular destination from which to sail to France largely because it's the quickest route across the English Channel and therefore attracts a wide range of companies offering their services.
Hoverspeed provide a service from Dover to Calais on a range of their 'Seacat' catamarans offering reliability and a crossing time of just 45 minutes. They also lay on the more traditional car/passenger ferry service.
Norfolk Line provide a service from Dover to Dunkirk which takes two hours. The service began in May 2000 and features three luxurious and modern ships.
P&O Ferries are one of the most popular cross channel carriers offering a service from Dover to Calais that has around 35 sailings per day, or a crossing every 45 minutes, with a journey time of around an hour and a half.
Seafrance are the other major company to operate cross channel ferries from Dover to Calais promising good quality service and onboard facilities and have many daily sailings that take around an hour and a half.
Dover Ferry Port MapDriving Directions
The Port of Dover is situated about seventy miles away from South London. From the M2 follow the A2 in to Dover, or if you're arriving from the M20 again follow the A20 in to Dover where there are clear directions and clear signposting to the ferry terminals at both the Eastern and Western docks.
Why Dover?
Despite being a busy port Dover has many places of historical interest worth visiting. The Old Lighthouse which is purported to be one of the most well preserved Roman buildings in Europe and the 'Roman Painted House' full of murals and ornate decorations on Priory Street are worth investigating, and Dover Castle is also well worth a visit affording amazing views of the town, the coastline and even the hills of Calais on a clear day. Alternatively take a walk along one of the pebbled beaches and admire 'The White Cliffs' made famous by the singer Dame Vera Lynn as a tonic for homesick soldiers' souls in the second world war.
Port Link
Ferry Destinations & Tips
