 Poster: A snowHead
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Hi all, we are booking a new year ski holiday. We always use the tunnel and drive but don’t usually go at new year. So, what would people suggest? Tunnel or ferry?
Flexi tickets on the ferry are £300 less than the tunnel but we do value speed.
From the little we know, the pros/cons seem to be:
Long queues at the tunnel, sometimes hours waiting vs knowing exactly which crossing you are on on the ferry.
1.5hrs on ferry vs 35mins on the tunnel.
Rough crossing or cancelled crossing in bad weather on the ferry vs no weather issue on the tunnel.
Would love to hear opinions.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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There can be big queues at the ferry, too. I don't think there are any guarantees about getting on a boat departing at the exact time you've booked!
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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We did the tunnel last new year and had no problems. Got on the train we booked on the way over and a slightly earlier one on the way back. Just the standard ticket, . Saying that we were about 4 hours earlier than planned on the return leg so a Flexi ticket would've been handy...bit not £300 extra handy.
Shippo.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I dont think the long wait is exclusive to the tunnel. had major hold ups on the ferry before
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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@breeze11, definitely tunnel I would say. We have used ferry on occasion - used to when the kids were little to give them a break, play, so they would sleep better. Occasionally because of price and no rush. But especially skiing we value the time and also more frequent services.
Either can go wrong on occasion.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I would also consider the new ESS system - I think from the sounds of it the tunnel probably has the edge on the preparation front - the ferry’s have traditionally not been worse in terms of queues peak periods and this extra check on top is going to be difficult.
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We travelled through Dover a few weeks ago on 3rd August one of the busiest Saturdays of the year and there are a whole load of new French passport booths which made the queue move very quickly, particularly if you join in the right hand lane which moves faster as it splits into several more lanes a bit further along. Arrived at Dover at 5:15am and were on a DFDS ferry at 6am (an hour earlier than the ferry we'd booked). It is worth considering coming back on the Dunkirk ferry to skip any queues at Calais and take advantage of the shoreside duty free shop before boarding the ferry. The crossing is longer though.
I read something the other day that said that Dover will cope with the new ESS system for the winter but next summer will be more of a challenge.
I would probably take the tunnel if flexiplus were included in the TO package but would not use the tunnel without flexi plus or pay the stand alone flexiplus rate.
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tunnel, and come back on the sunday as quieter than the Saturday
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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| stefoy4me wrote: |
| tunnel, and come back on the sunday as quieter than the Saturday |
This. Thursday out is also quiet, but not everyone has the luxury of being able to do that, only having our own accommodation has made that possible for us in the past, although we rarely do it now.
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One thing to consider on the ferry is disembarkation. Unless you pay for priority it can be a bit of a lottery about where you are loaded and when you get off after scheduled docking which can add considerably to your actual travel time. In my more limited experience of the tunnel disembarkation is smoother and quicker.
As @Snowymum says it is worth considering Dunkirk although the route from the motorway to the port is a little tenuous and you can get stuck behind slow moving local (farm) traffic.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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And weather!!!
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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I'd be tempted to say go for the tunnel this year. All the 'normal' issues have been covered but this New Year will be the first one with the new EES (face and fingerprint scanning) in place - and my feeling is Eurotunnel are in a better position, just due to having more land to work with that the Port od Dover.
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Tunnel- and get a v early crossing (before 6.30am) to avoid queues.
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You know it makes sense.
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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@breeze11, Something to consider is the new entry regulations from 10 November as has been said above Eurotunnel are ahead of the game, Dover has yet to start work, https://www.thetimes.com/uk/transport/article/dover-border-processing-zone-needs-approval-from-french-rk0pxpn5b
We have switched from always doing the tunnel both ways to only going out on it and coming back from Dunkirk on DFDS, which is more relaxed.
We cross the channel about three times a year January, March, July or August, on our trip out a couple of weeks ago actually got our scheduled train , we are still recovering, the ferry can also be delayed but seems less stressful probably because we are on our way back. Our worst was when the catamaran ran from Dover and our 19.00 crossing in January eventually left at 03.00.
We will be going at the begining of January and will be opting Eurotunnel as they are better prepared (hopefully)
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Poster: A snowHead
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Imho the tunnel has got a lot better in the last couple of years. At one point the average delay was well over an hour now we are rarely delayed. In fact of the 7 crossings we’ve made this year 3 have resulted in earlier departures.
The advice from eurotunnel was to arrive one hour prior to departure but as we have to negotiate the m25 to get to Folkestone we add in an extra hour for delays to the journey time, setting off 5 hours before departure in the uk and 11 from les arcs. As those unexpected delays don’t always happen we end up being put on an earlier train.
If I’ve got a long drive on the continent I always use the tunnel. If it is a short drive then I use the, usually, cheaper ferry. So for skiing it is the tunnel,
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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In our experience if your in a car with nothing on the roof the tunnel is great in the winter. As there are lots of cars with boxes etc on the roof as well as Vans. They normally have to wait for their booked train due to limited space. When we turn upon two hours early in a car its pretty much straight on even on a ski Saturday.
Does anybody know if you can get on the low car deck with skiis on the roof even though you are under the maximum height? Going to try this in December..
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Been across on the tunnel once and found it a soul-less experience ...I always use DFDS as their standard ticket allows some flexibility and I love having the rest and the breakfast onboard ...and its about £170 retune aginst the Tunnels £320 ...I alway go out early Jan and have never had a delay
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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| Quote: |
Been across on the tunnel once and found it a soul-less experience
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As a fan of the tunnel I entirely agree. Fortunately I get my spiritual nourishment elsewhere. 
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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It's a means of transport. 35 mins, doesn't need to be anything. Much better for our dogs too. I know there is a pet lounge on the ferry now but still not convinced. Last ferry food I ate was inedible and I am keen to avoid the Dover bottleneck.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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We always used to get the ferry for our annual summer jaunt across the channel. When we drove to skiing last Easter, I told my husband that the train was non-negotiable as I do not do well on anything other than a glass like surface on the ferry. Just as well as it was gale force winds on both sides of the channel for the whole 8 hours of that first leg of the trip.
We went back to the ferry for last summer and it was far too people-y. Absolutely heaving with kids screaming and adults shouting conversations over them. This summer we got the train. Ended up on an earlier train both ways, and we just cheerfully ignore each other for the duration of the crossing. It's just so quiet. Lovely. It's soul-less but the departure lounge is nicer and everything feels faster, particularly boarding and disembarking.
Plus I particularly enjoy the bit where we drive almost from the platform to the motorway in Folkestone and don't need to drive through Dover town centre.
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@Owlette, the ferry services aren’t an option for me for the same reason - Jane gets very bad seasickness (she vomited once before we left Dover harbour). It would be an unpleasant way to start and finish her holiday, so since the tunnel opened that’s all we’ve used. The faster crossing time also means it’s a comfortable drive in a single day from home to the Alps.
We’ve never had a particularly bad experience using the tunnel, the worst being very long queues to get through UK immigration in Calais a few years ago which added about 75 minutes to the crossing time. Mostly it runs close enough to schedule that I’m not worried about delays significantly affecting my overall journey to or from the Alps, even for weekend crossings at New Year. If there are going to be changes to my timetable it’s more likely that I get offered a slightly earlier time than the one I’m booked on.
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Thanks all! Tunnel it is. 
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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I've just booked the tunnel for new year. Had a horrible experience of 3 hour delays on the ferry last Easter.
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Tunnel is the correct answer
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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Having sung the praise of tunnel delays now being minimal we were delayed by an hour yesterday coming back from the Dolomites. It was over two and and a half hours from arriving at the checkin to driving off the other end This was in the middle of the afternoon as well. In my experience delays are normally in the middle of the night when loads get consolidated.
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FAQ
