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Brittany Ferries scraps England to France route earlier than planned

Emma Albright
Emma Albright - emma.albright@thelocal.com
Brittany Ferries scraps England to France route earlier than planned
D-Day veterans leaving aboard a Brittany Ferries ship as they travel from Portsmouth in southern England to Caen in northwestern France on June 4th, 2024 to take part in the 80th anniversary commemorations of D-Day Landings in France in 1944. (Photo by HENRY NICHOLLS / AFP)
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Brittany Ferries is bringing its Portsmouth to Le Havre ferry service to an end earlier than planned after a technical problem with one of its ships.

The company had previously announced that the final sailing on the cross-Channel route would take place on September 28th. However, a problem with the Commodore Clipper means the vessel can no longer operate its remaining crossings.

Passengers who have already booked tickets will be able to transfer to another Brittany Ferries service or receive a full refund.

The operator said it was sorry that the route would not be able to complete its final sailings. "It has been a pleasure for all at Brittany Ferries to link Portsmouth and Le Havre since 2013," the company said. "However, the current economic context means the route is no longer viable and, sadly, we have had to make the difficult decision to close it."

The closure is part of a wider reduction in Brittany Ferries' services between the UK and France. The company is also ending its Poole to Cherbourg route, citing financial pressures. However, it insisted it would still continue to offer a "comprehensive service" from Portsmouth, with regular sailings to Caen, Cherbourg and St Malo in France, to Guernsey in the Channel Islands, and to Santander and Bilbao in Spain.

When the changes were announced in June, Brittany Ferries said it was facing a €27 million bill in 2026. It attributed the financial pressure to rising taxes, repayments on Covid-era loans, what it described as unfair competition and a decline in passenger numbers.

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The Portsmouth-Le Havre route has operated since 2013, providing a direct connection between southern England and Normandy.

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Mike Civil
As a frequent user of BF with Poole-Cherbourg & Plymouth-Roscoff being our preferred routes it's a pity that BF couldn't keep Plymouth-Roscoff open all year round (as Poole was) as the road trip to Portsmouth from Devon & Cornwall isn't great at the best of times and you have to leave a huge safety margin in case of disruptions/roadworks etc and the M27 is a PITA at all times. We're now idly wondering if it would be easier & quicker to do the whole trip by train......

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