Why ferries charge excessive rates for next day/more day return

Joyb_2

Hi

I am living in Isle of Wight (moved to this area recently so curious about all) and find its unfair to charge excessive rates for the ferry return other than same day.
For example. Same day return is £35 (with discounts) but if you return after 2 days, they charge £58 (with discount - off peak). But why? We don't use their service at all for 2 days. £35 (with 20% discount) is already ridiculous for one hour journey.
I am not sure how national rail charge for the same journey.
Is it something they want to discourage people going out for holidays etc. for a week return I think I have to pay more than £90

nic_santorini

Dover ferries or eurotunnel are the same, if you go for 7 day return it costs a fortune, but if you come back within 5 days it is more than half price. We go with another couple and always come back on day 5.

Day trips are good value for a booze cruise. Supply and demand thats all

wealdroam

Because the ferry companies have found that people are prepared to pay a small fortune when going on their holidays, and the can fill the remaining places with day trippers who aren't so willing to spend large sums.

Here is Wightlink's waffle on it:

Why is a day or shorter journey fare less than a period return ticket?

In keeping with most forms of domestic transport, including the UK’s national rail network, Wightlink’s Day Return tickets are considerably discounted. Our Period Returns can be considered as our standard fares. This tactical pricing not only reflects the travel restrictions attached to day tickets compared to the flexibility offered by Period Returns, but is also designed to encourage day visits to the Island and boost the tourism economy. It also benefits Islanders travelling over to the mainland for a few hours.

As an aside... don't be tempted to buy two day returns, one for the start date and one for the end date of your holiday, and only use half of each.
The ferry companies are wise to this and will charge the difference to the card used when booking.
From Wightlink's T&Cs:

Unless otherwise stated, tickets are not valid for one-way journeys, surcharge to single fare may be payable if an inward journey is not undertaken.

vikingaero

It's the privilege of living on the Island!

Day trippers are phenomenally important to the IoW both in terms of the tourist pound spent and the tradesmen.

Look at any weekday ferry terminal and there are scores of plumbers, electricians, engineers and utility workers etc travelling over to keep things working

yangptangkipperbang

Joyb wrote: »

But why?

......because they can !

esuhl

It's because people travelling for longer stays will have a larger budget, so the cost of travelling is a smaller percentage of their budget (and so not so big a deal as the overall cost).

For someone doing a daytrip, the ticket price will be the main (or only!) cost, so people will be much more price-sensitive.

Ferries need to make a profit, so they segment their market and choose their prices according to what people are willing to pay and their capacity (supply and demand).

dktreesea

Since you live on the Isle of Wight, my suggestion would be to buy a multilink pass. Ten single trips for £57.80. Much better value than getting an all day ticket, or buying two single trip tickets if you want to go on one day and come back on another.