Ferries to Spain

Mr Fat
Mr Fat Forum Participant Posts: 53
edited March 2016 in Overseas Campsites & Touring #1

We are due to get the ferry to Bilbao in 2 weeks time and saw on the Brittany Ferries website yesterday that a number of sailings have been cancelled due to the bad weather.  Hopefully all will be calm when we go and come back, but just wondered what happens
when your booked sailing doesn't happen.  Has anyone been in this position?  Do you have to wait at the docks, or do they expect you to drive up through France?

Also, we are travelling with 2 dogs and have to take them to the vet for tapeworm treatment 1-5 days before arrival in UK.  Not sure how this would work if you have had the treatment ready for your scheduled sailing and then get delayed.  As there are not
many sailings to/from Spain, I suspect you may have to wait a while.  What happens if the next sailing is fully booked or no dog kennels available? 

Comments

  • Pliers
    Pliers Forum Participant Posts: 1,864
    1000 Comments
    edited March 2016 #2

    We are due to get the ferry to Bilbao in 2 weeks time and saw on the Brittany Ferries website yesterday that a number of sailings have been cancelled due to the bad weather.  Hopefully all will be calm when we go and come back, but just wondered what happens when your booked sailing doesn't happen.  Has anyone been in this position?  Do you have to wait at the docks, or do they expect you to drive up through France?

    Also, we are travelling with 2 dogs and have to take them to the vet for tapeworm treatment 1-5 days before arrival in UK.  Not sure how this would work if you have had the treatment ready for your scheduled sailing and then get delayed.  As there are not many sailings to/from Spain, I suspect you may have to wait a while.  What happens if the next sailing is fully booked or no dog kennels available? 

    Hopefully the weather will have improved by then. The ferries they use on that route are pretty stable, though. If you can't get any useful answers from Brittany Ferries themselves,  the website bfenthusiasts is worth a try. Hope all goes well.

  • Geejay
    Geejay Forum Participant Posts: 232
    100 Comments
    edited March 2016 #3

    Make sure they have your mobile number and remember to keep your phone on.  If there's a problem they'll text you.  Also watch the website - "Sailing Updates" and their Twitter feed.  A day or two prior to your journey you can go on Twitter and ask them
    for a weather update and they'll reply pdq.

    If there's a cancellation (happened to us twice - once for weather, once for breakdown) you get the text and phone them asap and they'll offer you alternatives.  The first time they sailed us to St Malo and we stayed overnight on board.  The second we drove
    through France to catch a ferry at Caen back to UK.  They refunded the difference, paid a petrol allowance and a voucher towards our next trip.

    Re the tapeworm, we try to get to the vet as close to the sailing date as possible, say the day before, which gives us some leeway if we have to drive through France, which is usually the simplest option if you have to get back by a certain date as there
    are plenty of sailings and the dogs can stay in the van.  As you say most of the ferries to and from Spain are usually fairly well booked, although there are often some kennels available, but you have to be able to wait around for a week or so for a vacancy
    - not on the docks, just continue your holiday.

    If the worst happens and you've already had the dogs wormed and you can't get back by the 5 days you just have to get them wormed again.

    Hope this helps.

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