Overnight Ferry To England

Tonight we are on our first ferry ride of this trip, taking the Stena Line from Hoek van Holland to Harwich, England.  Stena operates two ferries from Hoek van Holland to Harwich each day, one during the day and one overnight.  We were originally going to take the daytime one, but when we realized our mistake about miscounting the number of days we had been in Schengen Agreement countries (as mentioned before, Canadian citizens are allowed in for 90 days out of every 180 without a visa), we changed our reservation to the overnight ferry.  Once we got onboard and saw that the ferry is more like a mini cruise ship and we have a decent room equipped with bunk beds and a washroom and shower, I was glad we took the overnight ferry instead.  At about the same price as plane tickets to London (€ 45 each including the train ticket from Harwich to London), I think the ferry is a much more relaxing way to travel and you save on one night of accommodations by taking the overnight ferry!

Our ferry didn’t leave until 10 this evening, but we got there at 8 in order to give ourselves plenty of time to pick up the tickets we reserved online.  The ticket pick-up was quick and easy as everything was ready in an envelope for the lady at the ticket counter to hand us, and we got onboard after getting stamped out of the EU by a couple of customs agents who were checking passports as you got to the boarding area – they do check the stamps in your passport to determine number of days you have been there! 

Since we were so early, I thought we would be among the first people on board, but there was already a large crowd of people drinking at the bar!  In addition to having cabins for you to sleep in (and there are several different classes of cabin you can pay for like on a cruise), there was also a lounge/bar area, a huge cafeteria-style dining area, a small casino, a small theatre, and a large outdoor deck area.  You can also get wi-fi internet access for a small cost, so Paul really does have everything he needs!  Personally, I’d take this ferry over flying any day…