Do tickets to the IOW include the ferry?

[plugwash]

There are also apparently no fares from island-line stations to yarmouth.

 

[Haywain]

There are also apparently no fares from island-line stations to yarmouth.

I can’t imagine there is a realistic journey option using two ferries that is either cheaper or faster than using a bus. Nor do I believe there is any demand for such a fare to be available.

 

[plugwash]

Sure, but normally the fact a journey is silly doesn't stop the railway from offering tickets for it.

 

[alistairlees]

More importantly, there are no fares from stations in the Gatwick area to anywhere south of Ryde.

 

[trainmania100]

On the national rail journey planner if you click Fare Info it says either Wightrider or hoverlink (the latter seems to be a bit cheaper)
I did off peak Brighton to ryde esplanade, hoverlink incluson was about £35whereas whytelink was £40 return

 

[181]

A bit of a historical diversion, but it might be of interest to some, although I don't think it sheds any light on the origin of the anomalies mentioned above:

I looked at the copy of the West volume of the January 2000 edition of the fares manual (NFM 74) that I happened to have on my shelf. Through fares to the IOW are given from London, but for most places it appears that you calculated the fare by adding a set amount to the fare to Portsmouth, so it would seem that a fare could be obtained from any station (would ticket office staff have done the calculation themselves, or just typed the origin and destination into an APTIS machine or whatever was used in 2000 and let the machine do it?). I'm guessing that some stations in the South volume of the NFM would have had their own through fares. There appear to have been no fares to Ryde Pier Head -- presumably anyone wanting to get off the boat and walk along the pier had to buy a ticket to Esplanade anyway, or book the boat separately. Hovercraft fares seem to have been available to Ryde Hoverport only, with passengers going beyond Ryde having to use the catamaran.

Back to the present, it seems that the last point is still the case for some origin stations -- for example all Reading-Shanklin fares are routed 'not via London' and so presumably are only valid via Wightlink.

 

[Wallsendmag]

Use prices to/from plus . That takes me back.

 

[cactustwirly]

Used the ticket today, no problems with the ferry, just waived straight through.
Thanks for your help

 

[hermit]

As another anomaly, I posted last July the question why it was not possible to buy through tickets from Island Line stations to Southern destinations closer than Arundel or Worthing (I was trying to go from Brading to Chichester). We seem to be able to buy through tickets to most other mainland destinations.
No-one came up with an explanation at the time.(Original thread now closed).

 

[Shimbleshanks]

As another anomaly, I posted last July the question why it was not possible to buy through tickets from Island Line stations to Southern destinations closer than Arundel or Worthing (I was trying to go from Brading to Chichester). We seem to be able to buy through tickets to most other mainland destinations.
No-one came up with an explanation at the time.(Original thread now closed).

I found a through ticket from London to Shanklin but couldn't get one from Clapham Junction.

 

[306024]

11.15 fast ferry from Portamouth to Ryde was reasonably busy yesterday. (Next one was 13.15). Yes signs about pre booking were up but there were no problems using a staff pass. Unfortunately the ferry was 20 late so the connection at Ryde was severed, but no great inconvenience and a chance to walk along the pier.

Be aware they are doing disembarkation in sections on the fast ferry, so if you are after a tight connection at Ryde sit on the right hand side of the craft as they were allowed off first. Access to fresh air up top was limited and they were the last to disembark. There was only one train operating on the island with fairly short turnrounds each end so connections not guaranteed to be held.

Returning by hovercraft was also busy but not full, no problem buying a ticket on the spot.

 

[cactustwirly]

11.15 fast ferry from Portamouth to Ryde was reasonably busy yesterday. (Next one was 13.15). Yes signs about pre booking were up but there were no problems using a staff pass. Unfortunately the ferry was 20 late so the connection at Ryde was severed, but no great inconvenience and a chance to walk along the pier.

Be aware they are doing disembarkation in sections on the fast ferry, so if you are after a tight connection at Ryde sit on the right hand side of the craft as they were allowed off first. Access to fresh air up top was limited and they were the last to disembark. There was only one train operating on the island with fairly short turnrounds each end so connections not guaranteed to be held.

Returning by hovercraft was also busy but not full, no problem buying a ticket on the spot.

I was on the same ferry yesterday, yeah it was annoying the train wasn't held but such is life.
Returned on the 1547 ferry from Ryde and that one wasn't so busy, but atleast it was on time

 

[Graham H]

There are some anomalies with IOW travel. Off peak its cheaper (almost by half the price) to buy a ticket from Fratton railway station to Ryde Hoverport than just a hovercraft ticket and of course theres no real need to use the Fratton to Southsea hoverport bit. Also as I found out last week, a ticket to Ryde on the hovercraft from my local station in Emsworth is done as an off peak return for £22.40 BUT if I wanted to go to any of the island stations beyond Ryde, Sandown in my case, I could only buy two anytime singles for a total of £51. Generally hovercraft is the cheaper option....and quicker. Just for info, anyone using the hovercraft route can call or email the hovertravel office and get a free guaranteed reservation for the hovercraft time of your choice otherwise you join a standby queue at the hoverports

 

[plugwash]

I suspect the reasons may be similar to the reason one-stop airline itineraries are sometimes cheaper than their individual segments.

If you live in southsea and want to go to ryde on foot then the most convinient option is to take the hovercraft, so they can charge a premium price. On the other hand most rail passengers would prefer to avoid bus links. So if hovertravel wants to pick up rail passengers they have to undercut wightlink.

 

[Haywain]

most rail passengers would prefer to avoid bus links.

And, if going beyond Ryde on the Island Line, the more convenient connection to the train at Ryde.

 

[Graham H]

Hoverport is slap bang by Ryde Esplanade bus/rail station. Took me less than 90 seconds to walk to the station platform from exiting the hovercraft so yes its maybe 30 seconds further than the ferry to pier head station but much more convenient for the buses (erghhh buses !). Anyway, I have lived down here 40 years and previously always used the ferry partly because of plugwash's comment as I perceived the bus link as a pain but having had my first hovercraft trip I can honestly say it really was no more hassle than hanging around on a windswept harbour station awaiting the ferry boarding. With luggage, prams and kids in tow though I can see the appeal of the ferry link.

 

[urpert]

The minimum connection time (for journey planners) at Ryde Pier Head is 5 minutes like you say, but the minimum connection time at Portsmouth Harbour is 20 minutes, so journey planners only show tight connections coming from the Isle of Wight to the mainland, but not the other way around.

This also has the side effect of through itineraries to the Gosport Ferry (does anyone use through ticketing for it?) also leaving 20 minutes to connect - from experience, you won't need the full 20 minutes there!

Agreed - many memories of jumping off a slammer and running down the ramp to catch a ferry that was about to leave (Our Lady Pamela/Patricia in those days).

 

[SAPhil]

Hoverport is slap bang by Ryde Esplanade bus/rail station. Took me less than 90 seconds to walk to the station platform from exiting the hovercraft so yes its maybe 30 seconds further than the ferry to pier head station but much more convenient for the buses (erghhh buses !). Anyway, I have lived down here 40 years and previously always used the ferry partly because of plugwash's comment as I perceived the bus link as a pain but having had my first hovercraft trip I can honestly say it really was no more hassle than hanging around on a windswept harbour station awaiting the ferry boarding. With luggage, prams and kids in tow though I can see the appeal of the ferry link.

The bus link seems to work quite well but the hovercraft is much more weather dependant than the ferry which may be a consideration.

 

[45669]

The ticket machine at Farnborough Main was happy to sell me a through ticket to Shanklin yesterday - it even gave me the choice of the ferry or the hover thingy. I chose the ferry because it was a nice day and I wanted to sit on the upper deck. However, they only allow thirty people up there and guess what? I was the thirty-first person in the queue. I had also phoned the day before and booked a passage.

Travelling downstairs is like riding in a floating bus. I much preferred it in the days of the paddle steamers.

 

[hermit]

Travelling downstairs is like riding in a floating bus. I much preferred it in the days of the paddle steamers.

A little hard on the Wightlink catamarans. They are actually quite spacious inside, and the seats are much easier to get in and out of than on the competition, the Cowes - Southampton Redjets.

They also have the great advantage of being able to cope comfortably with sea conditions on the Solent. Unlike the two previous generations of fast craft on the route, they are almost never cancelled because of bad weather.

Of course, the paddle steamers were great, but they did take a lot longer to get across.

 

[ajs]

Hoverport is slap bang by Ryde Esplanade bus/rail station

That's true but is reached by a footbridge over the railway. It's a longer walk for those with heavy luggage, push chairs, prams etc or who have mobility problems.

Unlike the two previous generations of fast craft on the route, they are almost never cancelled because of bad weather.

Remember a time in the late 70s when someone l worked with commuted from Ryde to Portsmouth on the old Sealink Motor Vessels (similar to MV Balmoral). Was going home one dark, wet windy night, nice and snug in the saloon when as the ship was making the sharp dog leg turn of Southsea, the force of the waves and wind blew in the porthole and to say that he was drenched , is an understatement. I think he was given a few glasses of brandy for the shock but had to get home in his soaking wet clothes. Apologies for going of topic.

 

[Meerkat]

Went to the island last week. Accidentally booked the hovercraft as wrongly assumed the ferry was cheaper and hit the button for the cheapest fare.
The bus connection is so slack that there is plenty of time to stay on to Portsmouth Harbour then walk round the walls/esplanade to the Hoverport (though might want to book a reservation on busier flights), which is a much nicer view!
Glad I did go that way if there is little chance of being outside on the ferry

 

[45669]

A little hard on the Wightlink catamarans. They are actually quite spacious inside, and the seats are much easier to get in and out of than on the competition, the Cowes - Southampton Redjets.

They also have the great advantage of being able to cope comfortably with sea conditions on the Solent. Unlike the two previous generations of fast craft on the route, they are almost never cancelled because of bad weather.

Of course, the paddle steamers were great, but they did take a lot longer to get across.

Life in general was much less frenetic in the days of paddle steamers, so a leisurely crossing was to be expected.