What to expect when travelling with us

At the start of this outbreak of coronavirus, we reviewed our systems and procedures to make sure we were following all official guidance from Public Health England and our regulators, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA).

We installed more hand sanitisers at our ports and on our ships and emphasised the importance of good hygiene to everyone. This includes frequent hand washing, using tissues to catch coughs and sneezes and keeping your distance from others as per the Government guidelines.

Crew members are continually cleaning our vessels and passenger terminals. All our ships are well-ventilated with fresh, not recycled, air, and you can choose to travel on the outside decks of our car ferries (subject to weather conditions) if you prefer.

We temporarily suspended some of our services because of extremely low volumes of traffic following the outbreak of coronavirus and the Government direction requiring people to stay at home, except for very limited purposes. These changes were made to reduce the risk of the disease spreading to Wightlink colleagues and further into the community.

Wightlink continues to work closely with the relevant authorities including local councils and the NHS through membership of the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Local Resilience Forum.

The safety of our customers and colleagues is our top priority and we are following all the advice and guidance issued by HM Government.

The official advice highlights that the most effective way to avoid contracting the virus is to wash your hands with soap and hot water and practice social distancing. We are therefore reminding travellers and colleagues of the importance of hygiene, such as frequent hand washing, through notices in our bathrooms. We have increased the number of hand sanitisers around ships and ports.

The government has made it mandatory for passengers to wear face coverings when using public transport in England. All our customers, except for children under the age of 11 and those that are exempt, are now required to carry a face covering with them at all times. Customers will be required to wear their face covering when travelling on our ferries (inside and outside) and when using facilities inside our customer buildings. Customers can take off their face coverings to eat and drink.

Why do we have to start wearing face coverings on ferries?

On 15 June 2020 the government made it mandatory for passengers over the age of 11yrs to wear face coverings when using public transport in England.

When it is necessary to use public transport, people may be more likely to be in enclosed spaces for longer periods of time where there is a greater risk of the spread of coronavirus.

The Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) has set out that using face coverings in this setting can provide some small additional protection to fellow passengers and can help people to avoid unknowingly spreading the virus if they are suffering from coronavirus, but not showing symptoms.

What if I don’t have a face covering or I forget mine?

Whether you are travelling on foot or in a vehicle, unfortunately you will not be permitted to travel if you are not wearing a face covering.

We will also not be able to permit you inside our customer buildings without a face covering.

There are some circumstances, for health, age or equality reasons, whereby people are not expected to wear face coverings. Please refer to the Government’s advice for more detail.

There’s plenty of advice for making your own face coverings on the government website.

Do I need to buy a face mask?

Face coverings are not the same as face masks. It is important that you do not use medical grade PPE masks and ensure that these remain available for frontline staff.

Face coverings should cover the mouth and nose while allowing you to breathe comfortably and can be as simple as a scarf or bandana that ties behind the head to give a snug fit.

There’s plenty of advice for making your own face coverings on the government website.

Will you be supplying face coverings or masks for customers?

No. You must bring your own face covering in order to travel or visit our customer buildings.

How will you be policing this?

If you’re travelling on foot, you’ll be asked to put your face covering on before boarding the ship. If you don’t comply, unfortunately you will not be permitted to board the ship.

If you’re arriving in a vehicle, you will be asked to put your face covering on when you leave your vehicle for the the lounges or if you use our customer buildings.

Are certain people exempt from this?

Some people don’t have to wear a face covering for health, age or equality reasons. Children under the age of 11 also do not have to wear a face covering.

Please refer to the government guidelines for more information.

In line with the Government guidelines, you should avoid travelling outside the Very High alert level area you are in, other than for things like work, education or youth services, to meet caring responsibilities. Guidelines also state that you should avoid staying overnight in another part of the UK if you are resident in a Very High alert level area.

Customers travelling on our ferries are asked to follow the limits on the number of other people you should meet with as a group – gathering with no more than six people unless you all live together (or are in the same support bubble). We also ask you to avoid social interaction with anyone outside the group you are with, even if you see other people you know.

Please do not move furniture from its original location, as it has been positioned to allow for social distancing.

To reduce the risk of catching or spreading coronavirus, try to keep at least 2 metres away from others and you must wear a face covering when travelling.

Please also follow the Government’s advice on travelling safely.

To protect others, please do not travel if you are experiencing symptoms of Coronavirus or self isolating.

Furthermore, if you recently had a test because you had symptoms, you and anyone you live with must stay at home (self-isolate) until you get your result. Anyone in your support bubble must also self-isolate until you get your result.

Please do not travel across the Solent for a COVID-19 test. If you are offered a test on the other side of the water, please request a home testing kit or try the booking service again in a few hours to find one locally to you.

We suspended some of our sailings temporarily because of extremely low volumes of traffic following the outbreak of coronavirus and the Government restrictions. We have recently added more sailings and are constantly monitoring demand in line with government guidance.

The current combined timetable has been agreed with the Isle of Wight Council’s Transport Infrastructure Board. It is designed to provide enough capacity for Islanders and visitors while helping all operators survive financially, fund our vessel maintenance programmes in the autumn and protect jobs and services for the future.

As all cross-Solent routes are now operating, the agreement between Wightlink, Red Funnel and Hovertravel to accept foot passenger tickets on each other’s services has ended. Customers should now ensure they book with the operator they intend to travel with.

Can I get a refund on my Season ticket, Multilink foot pass or Business pass?

You can choose to have a refund on your Multilink foot pass or Season ticket if you prefer, just email [email protected] with your details. If you would prefer a refund on your Business pass, please email [email protected].
Please allow up to 28 days for a response as our teams are very busy at the moment.

Our Multilink Foot and Vehicle Pass holders can apply for a full refund of any unused journeys. Season Ticket holders and Business Pass holders can apply for a refund of all part and full unused weeks or months. All administration fees have been waived.

We are receiving a high volume of calls and enquiries during this unprecedented time, therefore it may take up to 28 days for our Contact Centre or Business Development team to get back to enquiries or refund requests.

Can I get a refund on my 30 day parking pass?

You can choose to have a refund on your day parking pass, just email [email protected] with your details. Please allow up to 28 days for a response as our teams are very busy at the moment.

Wightlink previously made an agreement with our regulator, the Maritime and Coastguard Agency, to allow people to stay in their cars on a temporary basis, and on account of low passenger numbers at the beginning of the pandemic. As more people are now travelling, customers will be required to leave their vehicles after embarkation and cross the Solent in our spacious passenger lounges.

There is plenty of room on board for everyone to find seats and respect social distancing.

Ships are cleaned frequently and to high standards, hand sanitisers are available and there are facilities for customers to wash their hands in both passenger lounges.

Everyone over the age of 11 will be wearing a face covering on board.

If you have a specific medical condition which requires you to remain in your vehicle, you need to tell us at least 48 hours before you intend to travel and we will try and accommodate your request. It is up to the Captain to decide whether to allow this on any particular sailing, taking account of the other freight we are carrying and passengers on board. You may be asked to travel at a slightly different time to allow us to meet your request.

A takeaway café service will be available on most vehicle sailings.

Our Camber Café (Portsmouth Gunwharf port), Creek Café (Fishbourne port) and Wight Taste Cafe (Lymington port) are also open for takeaway drinks and snacks.

Payment will only be accepted by card or contactless devices. You must wear a face covering to enter our customer buildings but you can take it off to eat and drink.

What is Wightlink doing to make its cafes safe?

We are displaying social distancing signage and floor markers, asking our customers to keep a metre or more apart. There are also Perspex screens on the counter in front of our colleagues who are serving.

Customers are able to choose to self-scan their items, if they are buying pre-packed snacks. We are only accepting card or contactless device payment.

Our port cafes operate on a take-away only basis – there is no café seating for the time being.

We will also be selling hand gel and face coverings, if customers require them, while stocks last.

What food & drink will you be serving?

For the time being we’re serving a simpler range, to keep queues to a minimum and reduce contact between our colleagues and customers. Hot drinks, sandwiches and pastries, packaged snacks (such as crisps and confectionary) and soft drinks will be available. Unfortunately, we won’t have hot food items, such as paninis and toast, just yet.

What are the opening times?

The opening hours of each outlet will be advertised within the respective building.

If our cafes are closed, you are welcome to use any of our vending machines which are available 24/7.

Can I bring my own cup or mug?

Unfortunately, at the moment we’re unable to refill reusable mugs, however, we will still honour your discount if you present one.

We have closed our ticket offices to reduce the risk of the spread of coronavirus to members of staff and the wider community.

If you’d like to book during this time, you can easily do so here on our website and on ticket vending machines are available at all our ports for foot passengers. Our Contact Centre is currently open 09:00-18:00 Monday to Friday and 09:00-17:00 Saturday and Sunday. Our Sales Team are available 07:00-17:00 Monday to Friday, 09:00-13:00 Saturday, 09:00-12:00 Sunday.

Even though our ticket desks are closed, customers can still access our customer buildings. In some ports, the toilet facilities have been closed as they do not allow sufficient social distancing. Currently these are: Yarmouth and Portsmouth Harbour.

The Government is not advising transport companies to screen customers as it is not an accurate way of detecting people with the illness.

We ask that all our customers continue to respect the official advice on social distancing by staying a metre or more away from other people at all times.

Our services could be changed at short notice due to the coronavirus pandemic. Please check back to this page, which is updated regularly, for more information before you travel and check our live timetables page.

See the NHS website for more information about Coronavirus and advice for travellers https://www.gov.uk/coronavirus
You can also email [email protected] to ask us any questions related to ferry travel.

Islanders returning home from abroad, from countries not in the ‘travel corridor’ list, must follow new instructions, based on the government’s requirement to self-isolate for 14 days. Returning quarantining customers must travel by car and notify us 48 hours ahead of travel that you need to stay in car due to quarantining.

We will then make arrangements for you to remain in your vehicle but we may have to adjust your sailing time to make this possible – depending on other traffic being carried on the car deck.

Those quarantining, who travelled out as foot passengers are asked not to return on foot in line with government guidance on avoiding public transport. You will need to make arrangements to travel by car with family or friends or taxi.

If your booking was made through a third party ticketing service, comparison site, holiday company, tour operator or travel agent, please contact that company direct to make changes or request a refund. You will be able to find their details on your booking confirmation.

You can book with confidence because you can always transfer your ticket to another date if circumstances change. During the current restrictions, there are no amendment fees on Standard or Economy tickets.