Cheap ferry crossing to Ireland

mintymanda2

Help! We can't find a cheap ferry crossing to Ireland! We want to take our caravan, 2 kids and 2 dogs over to southern Ireland for a surfing holiday end july/beginning august - but the fares are prohibitive!
Does anyone know a cheap website? (tried all the usual suspects- like cheapferries.co.uk etc) or a clever way of getting cheap tickets? At the moment it's looking like we're gonna have to cancel.

PolishBigSpender

There's no such thing as a cheap crossing to Ireland - competition isn't fierce on the Irish Sea, so no motivation for them to actually compete on price.

Having said this, I wouldn't go using the term "Southern Ireland"!

travelgran

Tesco vouchers work for both Stena and Irish Ferries.

mandragora_2

Have you tried Direct ferries? They usually give the best prices, if you can be fagged to fill in the nightmare online forms
Stena Holyhead to Dublin was reasonably priced at Easter, when the Great Ash Cloud left me and my mum stranded in Dublin - if you have the caravan, then getting to Holyhead isn't as much of a travel problem as it might otherwise be -

eamon

I can see what you mean by ouch! However on closer examination approx £700 doesn't seem that bad (i selected 2.30am Thursday going out & 14.30pm Thursday coming back, Holyhead - Dublin) you have a car, caravan, driver, passenger & 2 kids. You could fly for less but then you would need somewhere to live etc. Its wise to look at the total package.

If you do decide to go try and avoid Sat & Sun sailings as you may find trouble getting back on those days due to the pressure on space (trucks, they pay more & hence get priority).

mintymanda2

Thanks to all of you for taking the time to give advice ( and the tip about using the word "southern" - good point!).:o
We're still sctratching our heads about what to do- wish we'd known about Tesco vouchers this time last year - maybe that's the answer- put it off til next year, and start collecting vouchers now......:think:

Tarry

yes, it's called the Republic of Ireland, not Southern Ireland unless you mean the South of the Republic of Ireland than that's the South I would guess When I'm going to Ireland in October, I'm been lazy and booking my ferry with the company I'm staying in a cottage with whom I've used before (Imagine Ireland incase anyone is wondering). I would say it's probably because you are taking a caravan with you the price is expensive, takes up deckspace.

MrsE_2

The Irish don't take offence to the term southern Ireland, in fact many of them use it.

The north, the south.

Northern Ireland, southern Ireland.

spiro

To see how much the caravan is costing you try checking the prices twice for the same dates once with ferry, once without.

jammin_2

Southern Ireland? Nothing wrong with that, if OP is going to Munster or South Leinster.

Otherwise, the name of the country in the English language is 'Ireland' and nothing else. Not 'Republic of Ireland', not 'Southern Ireland', not 'Eire' or even 'Éire'.

dazb75

See this thread:

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/2431141

"I did think of booking 2 daytrips too.

So? ... you are unable to complete the return journey, unless you've traveled on the outward journey earlier that day.

What is to stop me:

• booking a daytrip from Belfast to Stranraer at the start of our holiday and just not turning up for the return leg (£110); and
• booking a single trip from Stranraer to Belfast at the end of the hols (£132)?

The standard return fare is £264 - £242 = £22.

Have I missed something? That would buy a nice lunch out! "

I spoke to a Stena rep last week and asked him about this and he said that there was nothing stopping me doing just this. He said "we have better things to do than chasing up non-shows".

I know it's not much of a saving, but it is something.

D