How to save 15% - 20% on Wightlink's Isle of Wight ferry fares

Wightlink has two ferry crossings, including this one from Yarmouth to Lymington

This is just a quick blog to share a new* discount I've found with Wightlink for 15% off car ferry travel and 20% off passenger journeys.

The discount won't be available to absolutely everyone but the criteria is so broad that I think it will include a huge number of visitors and residents.

It is for journeys to or from the Isle of Wight and is valid for: teachers and other school staff, health care workers, carers (paid carers or someone who helps look after a relative), charity workers (and their families) and volunteers for 'any organisation or group'. 

It is free to sign up and took me about a minute to fill out the form. You can get the discount via these similar websites:

• DiscountsForCarers.com ('For care assistants, live-in carers, those that care for loved ones, and everyone in between').
• DiscountsForTeachers.com ('For teaching assistants, headteachers, administrators, and everyone in between').
• CharityWorkerDiscounts.com ('for charity workers, and is also available to their families and retired charity workers' and also 'anyone who volunteers in any role for any organisation or group')
• HealthServiceDiscounts ('For nurses, doctors, administrators, midwives, and everyone in between')
  
  

The three which caught my attention are:

1. unpaid carers which would include anyone looking after a relative or loved one. There doesn't seem to be a requirement to be doing this on a formal basis or being in receipt of benefits for doing so.
2. families of charity workers, so you could presumably get the discount if your sister-in-law works at the donkey sanctuary.
3. volunteers for 'any organisation or group'. This one is particularly broad. My reading is that it could include things like social groups, churches and schools as well as registered charities but you may want to dig into the smallprint yourself.

I signed up for the charity website as I do a little bit of volunteering (Ed: excellent humblebrag). My brother works for a charity so I also qualify that way.

I wasn't asked which charity I volunteer with and I wasn't asked to provide evidence. ​Of course, I would strongly encourage you to only sign up if you are genuinely entitled to. 

​*This discount may well have been available for months but it's the first I've heard of it.

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Why are you so excited about this?

What an odd question. I'm not sure I like your tone.

For a long time, Wightlink has offered 15% off car ferry travel and 20% off foot passenger travel through workplace discount schemes and things like English Heritage Membership. Many of these are in our ferry discounts guide already.

However, these deals usually require you to pay for membership or do something like join the army. I considered enlisting but I doubt I'd pass basic military training, even if there was the promise of a 15% ferry discount at the end. 

These 'new' deals don't require you to pay anything to sign up.

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Who else can get 15% off Wightlink?

This seems like a good time to have a quick run down of other ways of getting a similar 15% car ferry/20% foot passenger discount with Wightlink:

• English Heritage Membership (from £69 for annual membership)
• Gardens Illustrated Magazine Subscribers (from about £20)
• AA Members
• Blue Light Card holders
• CSMA (Civil Service)

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Are there better ways to save money on the Isle of Wight ferry?

Yes, there might be. Wightlink's standard fares aren't necessarily the cheapest option, even with the 15% off deal. The Isle of Wight ferries use a 'flexible' pricing structure so they increase with demand.

I would do these three things first before you book:

1. Check if your accommodation provider can book the ferry for you at a discount. This can slash the cost of the ferry in half in some cases. It's particularly generous if you stay with a big name such as Away Resorts (four holiday parks and lodge resorts), Parkdean Resorts (four caravan parks with lodges and glamping) or Warner Leisure (two big hotels which are both adults only and popular with older visitors). 
2. Check the price with Red Funnel, which travels from Southampton to East Cowes in about one hour. We've got a 10% off deal which is ongoing (see this page) and they sometimes do more generous discounts of 15-25% off. In previous years, they have offered a third off for Black Friday. 
3. If you are visiting family, ask them if they've been sent vouchers in the post by Red Funnel. They sometimes offer fixed prices deals which are a big discount.

There are other options - such as Wightlink's Tesco Clubcard deal and foot passenger discounts - in our guide to 40 ways to save on the Isle of Wight ferry. There are also better deals for residents if you are using the ferries regularly, which are also explored in this blog post.

Most importantly, bring a sandwich and a flask when you catch the ferry. I once saw a ham and cheese sandwich for £4.40 on a Wightlink ferry and I'm still complaining about it.

Visitors to The Bay Colwell will probably get a bigger discount by using the Away Resorts discount