The 'secret' to getting the cheapest Isle of Wight foot passenger ferry fares

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Update 2023: this blog post from 2015 is getting a little old and crusty now, but we've written updated advice on saving money as a Wightlink foot passenger and saving money as a Red Funnel foot passenger.

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Ferry passenger prices vary more than you might expect

If you ever find a dinner party on the Isle of Wight needs livening up, just make some vague comment about ferry fares and you will soon find everyone arguing about tunnels, bridges, the price of onboard coffee and so on.

In my view, a lot of people are paying more than they need to, and with a little bit of effort they could travel much cheaper.
 
Before you begin your email of complaint, take a look at this price comparison which I pulled together in 2015 with the following criteria:

• Standard adult return fare, not a day return (validity is usually 90 days)
• Starting from the mainland to the Isle of Wight
• I only included books of tickets where you buy 10 or less returns with a validity of 12 months. I didn’t include deals where you buy 20 or 40 returns or a season ticket as that is more akin to commuting rather than occasional travel.

Rank	Route	Time (mins)	Return ticket price	Notes
1	Portsmouth to Ryde Pierhead (Wightlink)	22	£11.40	Cost per crossing if you buy 10 returns, valid 12 months (also valid on other Wightlink routes)
2	Southsea to Ryde (Hovertravel)	10	£11.76	Cost per crossing if you buy 10 returns, valid 12 months
3	Portsmouth to Ryde Pierhead (Wightlink)	22	£11.80	Cost per crossing if you buy 5 returns, valid 12 months
4	Southsea to Ryde (Hovertravel)	10	£13.40	Cost per crossing if you buy 5 returns, valid 12 months
5	Southampton to East Cowes (Red Funnel)	55	£13.44	Cost per crossing if you buy 10 returns, valid 12 months
6	Lymington to Yarmouth (Scoot)	20	£14	Advance price
7	Lymington to Yarmouth (Scoot)	20	£16	On the day price
8	Southampton to East Cowes (Red Funnel)	55	£17.90	On the day price
9	Portsmouth to Fishbourne (Wightlink)	45	£19.40	On the day price
10	Lymington to Yarmouth (Wightlink)	40	£19.40	On the day price
11	Portsmouth to Cowes (Scoot)	35	£22.50	Advance price
12	Southampton to Cowes (Red Funnel)	25	£23.50	Cost per crossing if you buy 10 returns, valid 12 months
13	Portsmouth to Ryde Pierhead (Wightlink)	22	£24.40	On the day price
14	Portsmouth to Cowes (Scoot)	35	£24.50	On the day price
15	Southsea to Ryde (Hovertravel)	10	£26.50	On the day price
16	Southampton to Cowes (Red Funnel)	25	£26.80	On the day price

 

​My six conclusions from all that data:

1. Turning up and buying a one off return journey on one of the foot passenger ferries is always the most expensive option.
2. Taking the car ferry from Southampton as a foot passenger takes an extra 30 minutes, but saves you about 9 pounds over two legs.
3. If you use the Ryde Pierhead to Portsmouth Harbour route as a foot passenger three or more times in a year, then you should buy a Multilink pass. Even if you don’t get through all five tickets, you will still save money.
4. If you use the Hovercraft three or more times in a year, you should buy a regular travel card.
5. If you are travelling to or from Southampton about once a month over a year then the cheapest deal by far is a book of 10 returns on the car ferry. Travel ten times and you’ll save yourself about 100 pounds compared to the passenger ferry. 
6. The new Scoot ferry from Yarmouth to Lymington is cheaper than a one off Wightlink fare on the same route (on the day fares), but Wightlink's Multilink option is cheaper if you are taking that route four times in a year. 

 
So what’s the secret to getting the cheapest Isle of Wight foot passenger fares?

Do a bit of research, have a guess of how many times you’ll travel over a year and then pay in advance. And if you're only travelling once and want to save some money, get the car ferry as a foot passenger and pretend it is a cruise...
 
Shhh...don't tell anyone.

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Have you read our recent blog about getting the best car ferry price, or our guide to discount Isle of Wight ferry travel?