A new “no-frills” cross-channel ferry service from Dover to Boulogne has been launched, with prices as low as £50 return for a car and family.
According to the Daily Mail, SpeedFerries is aiming to become the “EasyJet of the seas” by challenging what it believes are inefficient and expensive services currently on offer.
The service, run by Danish entrepreneur Curt Stavis, will be operated on a huge catamaran formerly used to transport Australian troops, which can carry some 800 passengers and 200 cars, travelling at 40 knots.
Stavis claims he will be able to undercut his rivals by keeping costs low and by taking bookings via the internet.
The Mail quotes him as saying: “The existing operators are extremely inefficient. If they were better we would never have been able to offer low fares with high service levels.”
The newspaper compares several companies’ prices for a “typical summer holiday in August”, for a family of four, with a car; SpeedFerries quoted £95, Sea France £259 and Hoverspeed £394.
Report by Tim Gillett, News From Abroad
