Motorhomes Ireland

Ferry tickets are nearly all cheapest on line, but depending upon the length of your motorhome, its height, the number of passengers and the time of year at which you wish to travel, different companies offer different deals. Personal experience over many years gave us a preference for Brittany Ferries. Our first experience about eighteen years ago was coloured by a very luxurious cabin and the main restaurant which for £14. 95 was a gourmet's delight. With their latest ferry they have some of the shortest sailing times, and they use the Cork - Roscoff route which lands you around 6.00 a.m. on a Sunday morning Once the ferry traffic thins out this gives you comparatively empty carriageways on which to put up some miles if you're heading south. Personally my feeling is that the latest boat is not quite up to its predecessors in certain respects. Firstly the loading for motorhomes is often, but not always, into the lower deck which is accessed by a fairly steep ramp down and a very crowded parking area which can require a lot of manoeuvring. Some passengers also find this deck has a slightly claustrophobic affect but my personal problem is with the steep ramp out on a cold engine and a full load. The main restaurant is still reasonable but the choice and quality has diminished somewhat over the years. In fairness this was necessary to hold the dinner price in the region of €30. 00 - €40. 00 per head, exclusive of drinks, but the large self service restaurant is a different matter. Not French cuisine at its best to say the least and nor is it cheap either. Irish Ferries equivalent now has it well beaten, but it's when you start to compare cabins and value for money that Irish Ferries new boat, the Oscar Wilde, really shines. In 2008 we used both Irish and Brittany Ferries. Same motorhome, same number of passengers and both off peak season trips. Only difference was an upgraded cabin on Irish Ferries who took us into Cherbourg. Their charge was around €540, by contrast Brittany Ferries shorter trip into Roscoff cost €750. Our 2009 trips were researched on line with both companies. Both into Roscoff this year but with an upgraded cabin on Irish Ferries. Brittany Ferries website quote was €1119, Irish Ferries quote was €560 the first trip and €363.00 for the second, so guess which we chose! Irish Ferries really are the 'cheap fares' company. Other motorhome owners have told me of similar experiences so either Brittany Ferries have a fault in their website or they aren't interested in being competitive, but the lesson is to shop around before you commit to a booking, and don't rule out the landbridge solution via the U.K. which is often the most price competitive. Information Guides...