ferry – boats are cool

Tunnel for me. Its so much more flexbile and frequent. Means you can get there early and often get on the next train.

However, I have been held up the last 3 times I’ve travelled on Tunnel. Each time a right PITA. Last time I had to abandon vehicle and walk through service tunnel to next tunnel along and then wait hrs on otherside for vehicle to arrive 👿

It sounds like the tunnel is getting to the age that it requires a bit of an overhaul.

looks like a scene from “insert generic zombie film here”

If using either the ferry or tunnel and you are going to be early or late it is advisable to call ahead and re-book as during busy times you could be waiting a while for a free slot. This has worked for us on numerous occasions while friends have been left waiting.

Tunnel every time for us. Use our Tesco vouchers to pay for it. Used to be 4 for 1 but now 3 for 1. Will be our first year with the camper assuming we get it in time. Should have been delivered in March, hopefully next week. Will be a laugh watching Kevin drive it on and off. Thanks for the links to the maps, guides. Ordered the France and Italy ones.

The all the aires books are ace. I’ve just this morning remembered to place an order for the new edition as my 2nd edition is well out of date (only 1,600 aires as opposed to the 3,000+ now listed in the current edition). Enjoy the campervan.

Will do if it arrives in time. If not they are going to loan us one but it wont be the same. 10 months from the order isnt good enough. We have had loads planned but not been able to do it. Should know more next week but its cutting it fine. Tunnel booked for 15th

If you take the tunnel, look at the price of two 48 hour returns compared to a single week return for instance…
Also, flex ticket is a con as you’ll just pay the actual difference in price between your ticket and the one for the time you arrive if it’s more.

Superfli, at least you got to see the service tunnel. 🙂

If you take the tunnel, look at the price of two 48 hour returns compared to a single week return for instance

don’t they charge you extra if you don’t use the return half of the ticket – like with the cheap day returns on the ferries?

come to think of it, do the ferries really charge you the other half if you don’t take the return on a cheap day return ticket?

The Calais ferry is a bit scary on the French side, at least last time I went.

Lots of vehicles queueing on the dual carriageway on the way in, and badly dressed people running around on the road trying to get in. Just not very nice.

I assume the stories of migrants breaking into people’s cars and threatening them are untrue.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-kent-33340850

kent appears to look like a huge lorry park,

Horses for courses – if you want fast, go tunnel – you can usually be through and on your way on the tunnel in the time it takes to get on the ferry, but the ferry offers more of a rest for the driver, change to eat and whatnot, there’s a small toilet on the tunne, they’d like you to stay in your car really.

As for the migrants – we spent 4 hours in a queue last summer – some issue with a ferry and Obama had just arrived in the UK for the NATO thing so the port was a defcon 1. Yes there’s hundreds, if no thousands of them milling about and occasionally the police chase them about keystone copslike but I never felt intimidated, they annoyed the truckers though. It’s really all very secure – I don’t believe they ever forced their way into anyone’s car – hearsay and paranoia I’d say – you’ve got two layers of security to pass once you get past where they are – no way the guards are going to not notice the 20 year old Somali lad sat quietly between the kids in the back seat, or hanging from the exhaust and they know that – better to try one of the thousands of trucks about.