The easy way to sell more ferry travel with Discover Ferries In The Spotlight

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With Discover Ferries’ director Abby Penlington, and TTG Media’s Charlotte Cullinan.

Charlotte: Welcome to our In The Spotlight video with Discover Ferries! Now Abby, could you start by giving us an introduction to Discover Ferries?

Abby: Hi I’m Abby Penlington, director of Discover Ferries. Discover Ferries is the industry body responsible for promoting ferry travel – we represent 12 operators both internationally and domestic, and they run over 80 routes from ports in the UK, Ireland and British Isles. Discoverferries.com is your go-to resource for all things ferry, including routes, destinations, specific travel advice for ferry passengers and also there’s a trade section too.

Charlotte: Brilliant thank you, and what are some of the key selling points that agents should focus on when they’re selling ferries to their clients?

Abby: Well let’s face it, we’re in the world of bare minimum travel at the moment, and we like to think of ferry travel as the enjoyable, full-frills way to travel. If you bring a car there’s no luggage restrictions and everything’s included in the ticket price. For passenger-only then there’s very generous luggage allowances, there’s no liquid restrictions – so you can bring that big sun cream, shampoo and all the fragrances that you want – but one of the best things is that you can bring back any local spirits or wines or beer from the destination. Passengers love the views, the space, the onboard facilities, and the flexibility, so there are family areas, cafes and lounges on on longer journeys, there’s premium lounges where you can enjoy complimentary drinks and snacks, and for a little bit extra there’s en-suite cabins and a la carte dining, bars, video games and even cinemas and a spa on some vessels. I think the best thing is the flexibility. The frequent departures give clients the flexibility to travel when they want to.

Charlotte: Brilliant thank you, and why is traveling by ferry so unique, what can clients expect to see on their journey?

Abby: Well as ferry travel offers over 80 routes, it gives unique access to remote islands and off-the-beaten-track destinations such as the Isles of Scilly, the Isle of Man, the Isle of Wight and Scotland’s islands, so not just the big ones like the Isle of Skye and the Isle of Mull, but also definitely off-the-beaten-track destinations like Tiree, Coll and Rum. But ferry travel isn’t only a mode of transport, it’s also an experience. So for example, travelling on the only scheduled passenger hovercraft service in Europe from Southsea to the Isle of Wight, or seeing London’s most iconic sights from the river on Uber Boat by Thames Clippers. Clients can spot wildlife from the deck, it’s not unusual to see whales, seals or dolphins. And Orca has ocean conservation officers onboard giving talks and leading deck watches on Brittany Ferries services to Spain and DFDS services to Dieppe and to Amsterdam.

Charlotte: Gosh that’s fascinating, thank you. And tell us how ferry companies are working to make this form of travel a more sustainable option.

Abby: Well ferry travel is actually already considered a more sustainable mode of transport, however new ships are improving energy efficiency and reducing emissions. Ten new ships are entering service just this year alone, six of them will be on Caledonian MacBrayne’s Scottish routes, and there’ll be one zero emissions ferry coming into the Thames by Uber Boat by Thames Clippers in March. Many operators have already launched hybrid ferries and a hybrid ferry is similar to a car in terms of it works on both electric power and also fuel like diesel or LNG or biofuel. Actually Wightlink was one of the first to launch a hybrid vessel in 2018 where they launched Victoria of Wight on the Solent. Now these ships they’re more efficient today and will be able to take advantage of new technology in the future, making ferries cleaner and greener.

Charlotte: That’s great thank you. And it’s an ideal choice for most travellers, but could you share some examples of specific client types for who ferry travel will work really well?

Abby: Yes you’re right, it is a great choice for most travellers, and it has a very high customer satisfaction rate with 81% rating their journey "good" or "very good". There are excellent facilities for families on on ferries, including family cabins, play areas, kids’ meals, but also the freedom to run around on deck or or within the ferry which is great for kids. It’s a great value option with car tickets including the passengers in the price as well.

It will help reduce costs for people who want an active holiday, so for those of us who have bikes or paddle boards or golf clubs, you know, if you want to take your equipment with you that’s all included, you just put it in the car.

For clients who want to travel with their dogs they will love ferry travel as there’s pet cabins where your dogs can spend the night in the same cabin as you, there’s pet zones, kennels and lounges, so for example P&O Ferries and Irish Ferries have pet lounges on their Dover to Calais routes, Stena Line has a pet lounge on their Belfast to Cairnryan route and the Isle of Man Steam Packet and Red Funnel also have pet lounges and these these lounges are really a relaxing place where you and your dog can spend time, and there will be snacks and facilities there for both you and your dog.

There are excellent facilities for people with mobility difficulties, step-free access across the ferries, accessible cabins and priority parking next to the lifts. Now if you want any more information of any of the things that I’ve spoken about today, or specific trade information, you can go to discoverferries.com.

Charlotte: Perfect thank you Abby for all those insights and top selling tips, and thank you for watching our In The Spotlight video with Discover Ferries.