The cheapest ferry to France is usually Dover to Calais: in October 2026, P&O offers started at £48 one way for a car and up to 9 people, and £30 on foot. But the cheapest ticket isn’t always the cheapest trip. Each company prices for a different number of people, and a cheap crossing to Calais can mean hundreds of extra miles of driving in France. Here’s every route compared like for like, the cheapest per person, the cheapest route for where you’re going, and how to pay less.
What is the cheapest ferry to France?
- Cheapest car fare: Dover to Calais with P&O Ferries, offers from £48 one way for a car and up to 9 people. P&O’s Standard fares are normally from £110.
- Cheapest western Channel crossing: Portsmouth to Caen with Brittany Ferries, from £63 for a car and 2 people.
- Cheapest on foot: Dover to Calais with P&O, from £30.
- Cheapest short break: DFDS short breaks to France from £55 per car and up to 5 people, and P&O day trips from £55.
- Cheapest without the sea: LeShuttle, from £59 each way on a Day Trip & Overnight ticket booked as a return within 2 days.
Why is Dover to Calais usually cheapest? It’s the shortest crossing, with the most sailings, and three ferry companies, P&O Ferries, DFDS and Irish Ferries, competing on the same route, plus LeShuttle alongside.
Lowest fares on every route
| Route | Car fare from | Covers | Foot fare from |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover to Calais (P&O Ferries) | £48 offer; Standard normally from £110 | Car and up to 9 people | £30 |
| Dover to Calais (DFDS) | £99 | Car and up to 5 people | No foot passengers |
| Dover to Calais (Irish Ferries) | £100 | Car and up to 5 people | No foot passengers |
| Dover to Dunkirk (DFDS) | £99 | Car and up to 5 people | No foot passengers |
| Folkestone to Calais (LeShuttle) | £59 each way (Day Trip & Overnight, return within 2 days); Standard from £124 | Car and up to 9 people | No foot passengers |
| Newhaven to Dieppe (DFDS) | £73 | Car and 4 people | £31 |
| Portsmouth to Caen (Brittany Ferries) | £63 | Car and 2 people | £34 |
| Portsmouth to Cherbourg (Brittany Ferries) | £83 | Car and 2 people | £34 |
| Portsmouth to St Malo (Brittany Ferries) | £112 | Car and 2 people | £34 |
| Plymouth to Roscoff (Brittany Ferries) | £137 | Car and 2 people | £44 |
| Jersey to St Malo (DFDS) | £145 | Car and 2 people | £40 |
| Guernsey to St Malo (Brittany Ferries) | £131.50 | Car and 1 person | £40 |
These are the lowest “from” prices on each company’s website when we checked. Most dates cost more, and prices change with demand, so check live fares for your dates.
Find the cheapest fare for your dates
Cheapest per person
Headline fares cover different numbers of people, so the cheapest for a couple isn’t always the cheapest for a family. Here’s each lowest car fare divided by the most people it covers:
| Route | Fare | People | Per person |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dover to Calais (P&O offer) | £48 | Up to 9 | £5.33 |
| Folkestone to Calais (LeShuttle) | £59 | Up to 9 | £6.56 |
| Newhaven to Dieppe (DFDS) | £73 | 4 | £18.25 |
| Dover to Calais or Dunkirk (DFDS) | £99 | Up to 5 | £19.80 |
| Dover to Calais (Irish Ferries) | £100 | Up to 5 | £20.00 |
| Portsmouth to Caen (Brittany Ferries) | £63 | 2 | £31.50 |
| Portsmouth to Cherbourg (Brittany Ferries) | £83 | 2 | £41.50 |
| Portsmouth to St Malo (Brittany Ferries) | £112 | 2 | £56.00 |
| Plymouth to Roscoff (Brittany Ferries) | £137 | 2 | £68.50 |
For a couple, Portsmouth to Caen at £63 isn’t far off the short crossings. For a big family or a car-share, the short crossings that cover up to 9 people are hard to beat on the ticket alone.
The cheapest route for where you’re going
The ticket is only part of the cost. Every extra mile in France costs fuel, often tolls, and sometimes a hotel night. Here’s how much further you drive in France, each way, by sailing to Calais instead of the port closest to your destination:
| Going to | Closest ferry port | From Calais | Extra driving via Calais |
|---|---|---|---|
| Paris | Dieppe: 123 miles | 180 miles | 57 miles |
| Bayeux (Normandy) | Caen: 27 miles | 233 miles | 206 miles |
| Rennes (Brittany) | St Malo: 43 miles | 329 miles | 286 miles |
| Tours (Loire) | Caen: 171 miles | 329 miles | 158 miles |
| Bergerac (Dordogne) | St Malo: 376 miles | 554 miles | 178 miles |
| Avignon (Provence) | Dieppe: 547 miles | 612 miles | 65 miles |
| Annecy (Alps) | Dieppe: 457 miles | 512 miles | 55 miles |
- Paris, the east, the Alps and the south: the short crossings are usually cheapest overall, as the extra driving from Calais is small.
- Normandy, Brittany, the Loire and the south-west: a western Channel crossing can be cheaper overall, even with a higher fare, because it saves 150 to 300 miles each way, and you pay that twice on a return trip.
- Tolls: Calais to Paris (Roissy) cost €25.20 for a car in 2026, and Caen to the edge of Paris €18.00, while the A84 from Caen to Rennes is free. See our toll guide.
- Overnight sailings double as a night’s accommodation. See our overnight ferries guide.
Current offers on ferries to France
Offers we found on the ferry companies’ own websites in October 2026:
| Company | Offer | Conditions |
|---|---|---|
| P&O Ferries | Day trips from £55; short breaks from £110 | Travel until 31 December 2026 |
| DFDS | Short breaks to France from £55 | Per car and up to 5 people |
| DFDS (Jersey) | Day trips to St Malo from £32 on foot, £42 with a car | Return, Friday to Sunday |
| LeShuttle | Day Trip & Overnight from £59 each way | Booked as a return within 2 days |
| Brittany Ferries | Early Bird tickets | Only available up to 60 days before you sail |
Offers change often, so check the price for your own dates. We don’t list discount codes we can’t check.
Cheapest times to sail
- Book early: fares change with demand, and Brittany Ferries’ Early Bird tickets are only available up to 60 days before you sail.
- Go midweek and off-peak: midweek and off-peak sailings booked early are usually cheapest.
- Be flexible by a few hours: on Dover to Calais, with sailings through the day and night, a different departure the same day can cost less.
- Short trips: day-trip and short-break fares can be much lower than a standard ticket: LeShuttle’s Day Trip & Overnight starts at £59 each way against £124 for Standard.
Cheapest ferry to France on foot
| Route | Foot fare from |
|---|---|
| Dover to Calais (P&O) | £30 |
| Newhaven to Dieppe (DFDS) | £31 |
| Portsmouth to Caen, Cherbourg or St Malo (Brittany Ferries) | £34 |
| Jersey or Guernsey to St Malo | £40 |
| Plymouth to Roscoff (Brittany Ferries) | £44 |
DFDS from Dover, Irish Ferries and LeShuttle don’t take foot passengers. See our foot passenger guide for getting to and from each port by train.
How to pay less
- Count your passengers: P&O and LeShuttle fares cover up to 9 people, DFDS and Irish Ferries up to 5 from Dover, and the lowest Brittany Ferries fares we found were for a car and 2 people.
- Check the ticket type: the cheapest fares are often non-refundable, with a fee to change. P&O’s Flexi and Fully Flexi tickets cost more but are refundable.
- Price in cabins: on the longer crossings to Caen, Cherbourg, St Malo and Roscoff, you’ll probably want a cabin overnight.
- Discounts: DFDS offers 20% off for passengers with a disability, students aged 18 to 27, young people aged 18 to 25 and people over 60.
- Memberships: Brittany Ferries’ Club Voyage costs £130 in the first year and £70 a year after, with savings of up to 35% on routes to France, so it pays off if you cross often.
- Compare every company: on Dover to Calais, check P&O, DFDS and Irish Ferries for your date; the cheapest changes from day to day.
Routes you can no longer book
Some comparison sites still list routes that have stopped. Portsmouth to Le Havre closed in September 2026, and Brittany Ferries is ending Poole to Cherbourg in October 2026. Every other route in our tables is current, although Plymouth to Roscoff doesn’t sail in winter: its last sailing from Plymouth is on 3 November 2026, and it restarts on 22 March 2027.
Compare ferry prices to France
Cheapest Ferry to France FAQs
What is the cheapest ferry to France?
In October 2026 the lowest car fare we found was £48 one way for a car and up to 9 people on a P&O Ferries offer from Dover to Calais; P&O's Standard fares are normally from £110. On foot, P&O's Dover to Calais started at £30. On the western Channel, Portsmouth to Caen started at £63 for a car and 2 people.
What is the cheapest ferry route to France?
On the ticket price, Dover to Calais: P&O offers started at £48 for a car and up to 9 people in October 2026, and it has the most sailings, with three ferry companies competing. But the cheapest route overall depends on where you're going: for Normandy, Brittany or the Loire, sailing from Portsmouth to Caen or St Malo can save 150 to 300 miles of driving each way.
What is the cheapest ferry crossing to France per person?
If you fill the car, P&O's Dover to Calais offer works out at about £5.33 each for 9 people, and LeShuttle's £59 Day Trip & Overnight fare about £6.56 each. DFDS's Newhaven to Dieppe fare of £73 for a car and 4 people is about £18.25 each.
Are there any cheap ferry offers to France right now?
When we checked in October 2026: P&O day trips from £55 and short breaks from £110 (travel until 31 December 2026), DFDS short breaks to France from £55 per car and up to 5 people, LeShuttle Day Trip & Overnight tickets from £59 each way, and Brittany Ferries Early Bird tickets, which are only available up to 60 days before you sail.
Is it cheaper to go as a foot passenger?
For one or two people, usually. Foot fares started at £30 on P&O's Dover to Calais, £31 on Newhaven to Dieppe and £34 on Brittany Ferries' Portsmouth routes in October 2026.
Is the ferry cheaper than Eurotunnel?
Often, but not always. LeShuttle started at £59 each way on a Day Trip & Overnight ticket booked as a return within 2 days, with Standard tickets from £124. The cheapest ferry offers started at £48. Compare both for your dates.
Is it cheaper to sail to Calais or Caen?
The fare from Dover to Calais is usually lower, but for western France the drive from Calais can add hundreds of miles of fuel and tolls. Work out the whole cost, not just the ticket.
When is the ferry to France cheapest?
Fares change with demand. Midweek and off-peak sailings booked early are usually cheapest. With Brittany Ferries, Early Bird tickets are only available up to 60 days before you sail, so booking ahead pays.
Are there discounts on ferries to France?
DFDS offers 20% off for passengers with a disability, students aged 18 to 27, young people aged 18 to 25 and people over 60. Brittany Ferries' Club Voyage membership gives savings of up to 35% on routes to France, for a yearly fee. We don't list discount codes we can't check.