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Irish Sea

Pembroke Dock to Rosslare, the small hours or the afternoon.

Two sailings a day on the Isle of Innisfree, just over four hours across. Which one you take decides the shape of your first day in Ireland.

BritainIrelandCairnryanBelfastLarneHolyheadDublinLiverpoolFishguardPembroke DockRosslare

Timetables checked August 2026, and how they are checked

4 hat sea2sailings a dayYear roundIrish Ferries

The crossing

Just over four hours, twice a day, all year.

Operator
Irish Ferries
Sailings
2 sailings a day
Crossing
About 4 h
Runs both ways
Rosslare sails at 08:45 and 20:45The return times aren't a mirror of the 02:45 and 14:45 outbound, so read both legs before you book.
Check-in
Vehicles no later than 30 minutes before departure. For the 02:45 that means being at the terminal around two in the morning, which is why many van drivers spend the night before near Pembroke Dock.
Gas bottles
A maximum of 47 kg of gas in no more than three cylinders, for private caravan and camping use. The gas flow shut off at the cylinders while the vehicle is on the ship, and the cylinders secured against movement and away from heat and ignition.
Pets
The dog stays in the vehicle, or in a pre-booked Pet Den on the Isle of Innisfree. A Pet Den is a supervised indoor space you sit in with the animal, not a kennel, so it isn't somewhere a solo driver can leave a dog and go elsewhere on the ship. Up to five pets per booking, and there are no pet-friendly cabins on this route.Paperwork: an EU pet passport or a GB Animal Health Certificate, a microchip, a rabies vaccination at least 21 days old, and for dogs a vet-administered tapeworm treatment 24 to 120 hours before you land. Ireland also wants 24 hours of advance notice. None of it can be arranged at the port, and an Animal Health Certificate needs a booked appointment with an official vet.
Book with
Irish Ferries (opens in a new tab)Fares and availability live with the operator, not here.

Seasons, weather and operators all move these, so confirm with the operator before you book.

Getting there

Bristol is 2 h 30 away, Liverpool 4 h 10.

Typical driving hours to Pembroke Dock with light traffic
Starting fromDriving hours
Bristol2 h 30
Birmingham3 h 10
Plymouth4 h
London4 h 10
Manchester4 h 10
Liverpool4 h 10

Ashore

The night boat hands you a full first day.

Rosslare puts you straight onto the N25 and the first hour is easy regional driving with no motorway needed. Wexford town is about twenty minutes, Curracloe beach and Kilmore Quay half an hour, Hook Head an hour by Wellingtonbridge and Waterford just under. The 06:46 arrival gives all of that as a first day; the 18:46 arrival leaves an evening, so pick somewhere close for the first night.

If not this boat

Fishguard lands at the same port and is a little quicker. Holyhead sails far more often.

Every crossing on the map

Still asked

A 02:45 departure decides the shape of the whole day.

Pembroke departs 02:45 and 14:45. The 02:45 lands at 06:46 and gives you a whole first day, at the cost of a two in the morning check-in, so most people park up near Pembroke Dock the evening before rather than driving through the night. The 14:45 lands at 18:46 with usable evening light and a short first leg.

M4, then A48 and A40 to St Clears, then the A477 over the Cleddau Bridge. The last twenty five miles are single carriageway and slower than the mileage suggests in summer. Allow more than the map says, particularly if you're aiming at a middle-of-the-night check-in. Leaving the A40 at St Clears puts Pembroke Dock about twenty minutes closer than Fishguard from every direction.

Yes, from 28 September 2026. Irish Ferries asks for a passport at check-in on Rosslare to Pembroke from that date, and a driving licence will no longer do. Stena has made the same change on the Fishguard crossing. It's a check-in requirement rather than a border control, which makes no practical difference: without one you're not sailing.

The Isle of Innisfree, back on the route after the fleet reshuffle Irish Ferries announced across May and June 2024. She came off Dover to Calais onto this route; nothing went the other way, and the Oscar Wilde name was moved to a different ship bought for Dover. The James Joyce has covered during dry dockings, so the ship named on your booking is worth a look if the onboard layout matters to you.

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Pembroke Dock to Rosslare in one page: the times, the sailings, the port and the first hour ashore. Free to read, no account needed.

https://quietroute.io/reference/ferries/pembroke-rosslare
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