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Western Channel

Portsmouth to St Malo, waking up beside the walls.

The night boat sails in the evening and lands at 08:15 beside the walled city. A cabin is compulsory, so price this one cabin-in from the start.

FranceNewhavenDieppeCaenCherbourgLe HavrePoolePlymouthRoscoffPortsmouthSt Malo

Timetables checked August 2026, and how they are checked

10 h 45at sea1sailing a day1night aboardSeasonalBrittany Ferries

The crossing

A night aboard, a cabin you have to book, and Brittany at 08:15.

Operator
Brittany Ferries
Sailings
Overnight out, day sailing back, mid-February to early November; cabin compulsoryThe route doesn't run all year.
Crossing
About 10 h 45One night aboard on the usual schedule.
Accommodation
Cabin compulsory outboundOn every overnight sailing. The Saint-Malo carries a little under 400 of them.
Runs both ways
The return is usually a day sailingRoughly nine hours back to Portsmouth with no cabin required. An overnight return runs on selected dates, and that one needs a cabin like the outbound.
Check-in
45 minutes before departure with a vehicle, 90 minutes with a pet.
Gas bottles
Up to three butane or propane cylinders, 47 kg between them, with no limit on any one bottle. Caravans and campervans only, and for the vehicle's own lighting, heating and cooking. Secured against the movement of the ship, kept away from heat, and shut off at the cylinder for the sailing.
Pets
Pets can travel in the vehicle, and Brittany Ferries advertises kennels and pet-friendly cabins on the Saint-Malo. Confirm what the ship carries when you book, and allow the 90-minute check-in.Paperwork: an EU pet passport or a GB Animal Health Certificate, a microchip, and a rabies vaccination at least 21 days old. A dog also needs a vet-administered tapeworm treatment 24 to 120 hours before it comes back into Great Britain. An Animal Health Certificate has to come from an official vet within ten days of travel, so it's booked well before the crossing is.
Book with
Brittany 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

London is 1 h 50 away, Newcastle upon Tyne 6 h.

Typical driving hours to Portsmouth with light traffic
Starting fromDriving hours
London1 h 50
Bristol2 h
Birmingham2 h 50
Manchester4 h 30
Liverpool4 h 30
Leeds4 h 50
Newcastle upon Tyne6 h

Ashore

You come off ten minutes from the walled city, at breakfast time.

The ramp is beside the walled city, so the classic first move is breakfast inside the walls before the crowds arrive. Out past the docks the N137 runs free to Rennes in about 50 minutes. Dinard is 20 minutes, Cancale 25, Dinan 30 and Mont-Saint-Michel about 50. Nothing in Brittany is tolled. The tides here are among the biggest in Europe, and harbour-side parking floods on the big springs.

If not this boat

Roscoff lands further west and costs less. Caen sails all year.

Every crossing on the map

Still asked

The cabin isn't optional here, which is the whole price difference.

Because the cabin isn't optional. Every overnight sailing requires one, so the headline vehicle fare is never the price you pay. Add the cabin before you compare it with Plymouth to Roscoff, which has a day boat in summer and no compulsory accommodation on it.

The published season is mid-February to the start of November, with up to eight sailings a week within it. Don't assume midwinter availability on this route; check the operator for the dates you want.

The Saint-Malo, an LNG-electric hybrid that replaced the Bretagne on the route in February 2025. She is one of the two newest ships in the corridor, alongside her near-sister the Guillaume de Normandie, which entered service on Portsmouth to Caen two months later. That's part of what you're paying for here.

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