Summary
- What is Direct Ferries?
- How does it work?
- Advantages and Disadvantages of Direct Ferries
- - Benefits
- - Disadvantages
- Direct Ferries: Editor's note
Direct Ferries Reviews - Sea Crossings Comparator
Taking a ferry ticket to Sicily, Sardinia, Corsica or the Canary Islands can be a real headache: how do you find your way through the jungle of all the private shipping companies, each with their own tariff conditions?
In the age of Web 2.0, networking platforms and service comparisons - car rentals, flights, hotels, unusual accommodation - are occupying an increasingly important place in the world of tourism.
By quickly analysing a whole range of offers available in the user's place, the comparators provide an important saving of time and money to these same users. Among them is Direct Ferries, a ticket comparison service that is revolutionizing maritime transport.
What is Direct Ferries, how does it work and what do I need to know before booking on the site? Here's an essential mini-guide to one of those heavyweights in the travel and tourism industry.
What is Direct Ferries?
Direct Ferries is an online ferry booking agency, offering the possibility to view, compare and book a ticket from over 1,000 ferry crossings throughout Europe and many countries around the world.
The story of Direct Ferries began in 1999 , when the British founders - based in London - developed the site to become a leader in ferry travel. Today, in addition to ferry bookings, it offers a number of associated services such as accommodation, train tickets and European cancellation insurance in the event of a breakdown.
Building on its success, the company now has offices in England, Germany and Switzerland. Its website is also suitable for most European countries. The site, which is connected to the ferry companies' reservation systems, makes it possible to compare all crossings according to different destinations, and to choose a different port if the price is more attractive or if the departure city initially chosen is not offered.
And that's not all! The site also makes available to the public a set ofinformation necessary for the preparation of its crossing ( guides to the ports, opinions and comments from customers). The company claims the ability to find the best fares and the "most important choice" of crossings available.
Direct Ferries also offers promotions and discounts on ticket prices. Today, Direct Ferries works with 230 shipping companies, offers over 3,100 crossings in Europe and elsewhere in the world, and offers travel from a total of 759 ferry ports. In all, destinations cover 197 countries and islands!
How does it work?
How to use this tool? It's simple.
- Select the destination
Simply enter the destination of your choice, for example Toulon-Corsica, and the tree structure will reveal the routes available from Toulon (Ajaccio, Bastia, Porto-Vecchio, etc.).
- Fill in the travel information
Then, the estimated dates of travel, the number of passengers, the number of animals, if any, the desired timetables and whether or not you have a vehicle to board in the hold (type, make, model).
- Select the crossing
The search then sorts the crossings among the available shipping companies (Corsica Ferries, GNV, etc.) and proposes the best available fares when booking.
The results show the desired destinations, but also alternative solutions for other ports (for the Mediterranean islands, Toulon, Nice or Genoa, for example). You can therefore choose the shipping company, the port of departure, the day and time depending on the price of the crossing.
- Choose the type of ticket
After selecting a crossing by clicking on "continue", the site offers to switch to a standard ticket (free of charge) or to take a refundable ticket in case of cancellation by the customer (fees apply, however).
- Choose options
The next step is simple: the user chooses his type of cabin (none, cabin 2, 3 or 4 berths), his seat, his meals on board, the options (wifi, priority boarding). These options are of course subject to a charge and increase the price of the initial ticket.
- Fill in your personal information
The reservation continues with the civil status information field (surname, first name, nationality, date of birth, passport or identity card number). For your peace of mind, you can choose to send the reservation by SMS and check-in details the day before departure for €1.99.
- To subscribe or not to the cancellation insurance
Finally, each passenger can choose whether or not to take out "no-cost cancellation insurance", which guarantees a full refund of the ticket in the event of cancellation up to 48 hours before departure.
Advantages and Disadvantages of Direct Ferries
Benefits
- Free access
- Saving of time
- A wide range of crossings
- Attractive rates
- Flexibility
- Fast and efficient search
Disadvantages
- Numerous paying options (cabin, seat, meals, wifi options, insurance, etc.).
- Online service difficult to reach
Direct Ferries: Editor's note
With a plethora of crossings throughout Europe to the Maghreb countries, Direct Ferries is a comparator that allows you to save incredible time and simplify your search for a ferry route. Indeed, the solution centralizes all the available companies and this makes the process much easier, rather than comparing each fare with each company. You can access the different fares in just a few clicks to get a complete overview of the available offer.
Did you know that? The Direct Ferries website has a tab that allows you to see the countries of the world where you can compare crossings and all continents are represented. This gives you great travel ideas and inspiration! We still advise you to compare the prices obtained on the website of each company, to see if you find cheaper live!
