Why take the ferry to France?

It’s the sense of adventure as your holiday starts the moment you hear the sound of the ship’s horn as it leaves the port. It’s the freedom it affords you. No chaos at the airport and standing in long security queues. You can pack the car with as much as will fit in. If you don’t like to be strapped to your seat for the duration of your journey, travelling by ferry gives you the opportunity to stretch your legs while you sail. You’re also free to explore the ship, dine with your family and friends, indulge in some retail therapy in the on-board shop or catch up on a good night’s sleep in a comfortable cabin with en-suite facilities. If travelling with children, there is also plenty on board to keep them entertained. And we all know that as soon as the children are happy, you are happy: let the holiday begin!

As a child, I have fond memories of our family sailing over and back from Ireland to Scotland during summer holidays. The nostalgic smell of exhausts as engines were switched off and families were squeezed between rows of roof-topped cars. The crowd climbed the narrow stairway and spilling out into the foyer. I remember the race to our cabin to ‘bags’ the top bunk-bed and as we were on holiday, it was a free for all regarding sweets and treats. We ran up and down every corridor and played hide and seek for ages. We went up on deck to watch the port seem to get smaller and smaller as the ship set sail. The giddy excitement of it all.