Dieppe to Newhaven - not fast, but ok. (Hoverspeed Fast Ferries)

Member Name: mattthebhoy

Product:	Hoverspeed Fast Ferries
Date:	20/07/02 (221 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: the bar, decent prices, quiet

Disadvantages: language problems, lengthy, no time to leisurely browse duty free

Whilst travelling about on an Interrail ticket last October, I decided to travel from Dieppe to Newhaven, to visit a mate in Brighton.

I didn't have a ferry ticket, so when I arrived at Dieppe Train Station from Paris, I was eager to get to the ferry terminal asap, in case there was no space left.

As there was a bus outside marked 'ferry terminal', I got in, expecting a complementary shuttle, like in Calais. However, it was a public bus, and ths was it's terminus, so after paying my 2 French Franc fare, I sat back. We weren't moving, I asked the driver, the bus wasn't leaving for half an hour. Ah... well, the ferry's only about 20 minutes walk from teh station, but the driver insisted there wouldn't be a problem, so I sat back down.

Anyway, at the terminal, I bought my ticket, which didn't cost much, as the Interrail got me a 50% discount.

As it was the off season, the seacat wasn't operating, and instead we got an Italian vessel, probably about 400 capacity, but there were only about 80 people on board.

The crew were all Italian, and din't speak much French, or, as far as I could ascertain, any English.

There was nothing to do for teh four and a half hour trip, except either sit in the Lounge Bar at the front (which I duly did), or about three machines in teh amusemnet arcade (I didn't look, but I have a feeling they would have required lire, the way everything was going... of course, with the euro zone, that wouldn't matter now.)

Anyway, as it wasn't the fast Seacat, it was a 4 hour crossing, so a lot of my fellow passengers used it to catch up on some shut eye, as most of them were truckers.

About an hour before arrival, the Restaurant opened, so I grabed some pasta there, but apart from visiting the bar, and popping out on deck once or twice, there was very little else to do on board. There was no duty free shop, although I had visited
the duty free shop at the terminal in Dieppe, so I wasn't to bothered. But if I hadn't had time after all, I wouldn't have been best pleased.

Newhaven harbour is right beside the train station, so it was just a short walk across the car park to catch the train onto Brighton once we had docked.

All in all, it was a decent crossing, but I can't help feeling anyone much younger than myself would have been bored senseless.

Summary: