Ferries to Rosslare

The ferry port of Rosslare lies on the south-eastern tip of Ireland in County Wexford and is Ireland's most important gateway to the Continent. From here you can reach six destinations: Fishguard and Pembroke in Wales, Cherbourg and Dunkirk in France, and Bilbao and Santander in Spain. Together the services add up to as many as 15 departures a day, and crossings take between 3.5 and 28.5 hours. The port is served by Brittany Ferries, DFDS, Irish Ferries and Stena Line.

Getting there and the terminal

The port is called Rosslare Europort and lies in Ballygillane Big near Rosslare Harbour, Eircode Y35 PH4X. It is at the end of the N25 and is signposted continuously on all approach roads. From Wexford it is about a 20-minute drive, from Waterford a good hour and 20 minutes, and from Dublin a good two hours.

Without a car, Rosslare is more convenient than most ferry ports. Rosslare Europort station is on the port site, a few minutes' walk from the terminal building; Iarnród Éireann runs up to five times a day from Dublin Connolly. The Bus Éireann, Wexford Bus and Local Link buses stop directly in front of the terminal, and the taxi rank is there too. The car park at the port holds 350 vehicles with a height limit of 2.2 metres and is paid for by app or through the operator's website.

Check-in

The deadlines depend on the route. On the short routes to Wales, Irish Ferries closes check-in 30 minutes before departure for vehicles and 40 minutes for foot and bicycle passengers. For the routes to France, one hour applies both for vehicles and on foot, an hour and a half for motorcycles, and two hours with a pet or travelling by coach. So if you are taking the car to Cherbourg, plan on a full hour's buffer.