# Brittany Ferries



## DJMotorhomer (Apr 15, 2010)

Whilst on a campsite in Burgos, I noticed that there were numerous Brits turning up after 7pm to enter the camp. I was told the ferry had a 6 hour delay.

I have checked BF website as we are sailing from Bilbao on Wednesday. It states all these sailings are fine but Santander - Portsmouth is suffering delays due to bad weather. They are quite close together so why is our sailing not affected ?

Dave


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

I had a similar experience last December when nominally, all ferries were on time etc except Spanish ones which were cancelled due to bad weather.

Quite surprising as it was blowing a pure Westerly force 9 to 10 for the duration of the ferry crossing - the WORST direction as the ships roll......

Then I received the email that they were departing from Cherbourg rather than St Malo, or Le Havre.....

There were NO scheduled Cherbourg to Portsmouth sailings that day. 

I had 12 hours to change hotels, drive to Cherbourg and catch it there and STILL it rolled enough that EVERY display in the shops was wrapped around the shelves with mikes of cling film (no environmental concerns obviously) and many retail outlets simply failed to open or had just one staff member.

The main restaurant shut within one hour of leaving Cherbourg - rapid eating classes were needed....

But we left on their (new) scheduled time and arrived on time......

They write the rules and always pass the line they set.....


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## bognormike (May 10, 2005)

Bay of Biscay in this weather? You're welcome to it.


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## bilbaoman (Jun 17, 2016)

Good news weather forcast for bay of biscay wed max swell 2 to 4 metres rain max wind force 5


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## DJMotorhomer (Apr 15, 2010)

I am ex Navy so no worries but HWMBO could have problems lol

Dave


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## PortugalSaint (Mar 23, 2016)

BF have now cancelled all sailings for passengers up to and inc. 1/6/2020. 

Waiting to get back to the Uk hopefully 8/6/2020, anyone any insider knowledge if this will happen?


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

No but I understand the Chunnel is still taking passengers.

Ray.


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

raynipper said:


> No but I understand the Chunnel is still taking passengers.
> 
> Ray.


But on a markedly reduced train schedule, I read somewhere that they are only doing one crossing per hour.

Biggest problem with BF is getting a refund now, they have stopped phone calls and do not respond to emails. We have been given vouchers for two crossings rather than refunds but are unlikely to be able to use them before they expire due to vulnerability restrictions. They are not being good at refunds as Which and Money Saving Expert are saying......


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## raynipper (Aug 4, 2008)

Not to worry Dave. I have read they are valid for two years now on their site and not the one on the voucher. But as and when it all calms down if you decide on a refund I'm sure that can happen. Don't despair.

Ray.


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

We used the tunnel and it was brilliant! We drove straight to the checks and then to the waiting area and were just held a minute or two before being sent to board the train


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## Penquin (Oct 15, 2007)

Even though the tunnel puts us in the wrong part of the UK and it makes it an even more lengthy journey from here, we have already decided to use the tunnel when we next travel - preferable to stay in our car for 1 hour than 10 hours on a sealed ferry....... with an unknown number of people in various states of health.

It's just not worth the risk for us of using BF for a considerable time.


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## PortugalSaint (Mar 23, 2016)

We would not travel France as we have cats. We are coming from the Algarve.


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

PortugalSaint said:


> We would not travel France as we have cats. We are coming from the Algarve.


We have a dog and we find the Tunnel the best way to transport her. She just stays in the vehicle with us.

One of the reasons, this year, we stayed faithful to the tunnel for our return journey was because of our nervousness at being on what is, in effect, a budget cruise ship. We had considered the ferry to be a possibility for a quick exit from Spain but decided that staying in our car all through France was safer. We were proved right.


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

We only use the tunnel, because of Shadow

I couldn’t relax with him in kennels or in the van alone

If we didn’t have him I’d enjoy a ferry........I think

Sandra


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## patp (Apr 30, 2007)

You can get pet friendly cabins, Sandra. We have never managed to secure one but we have been learning the best way to go about it. If I told you how to do (possibly) do it I would have to kill you


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## aldra (Jul 2, 2009)

I know, but we are unlikely to do the Santander route again particularly with Shadow

We were offered one on the return trip from Spain once, last minute but inflated price as you would imagine

A pet friendly cabin would be good at night, but he’s quite jittery during the day with people and dogs milling around

I think he’s either deaf or has over developed selective hearing , he’s easily startled in strange situations

I think a long ferry trip is wasted when you have a dog to worry about, otherwise it could be a mini cruise and quite enjoyable

A quick tunnel crossing suits him better, even then he’s not happy about people passing so close to the van windows

Sandra

Sandra


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