Questions about Bookings
Having problems making your booking? Already booked but need to amend your sailing? Get help with your booking questions here.
Frequently asked questions
Having problems making your booking? Already booked but need to amend your sailing? Get help with your booking questions here.
If you are driving a car or a van, you won’t be charged. Motorcycles are also exempt.
The only vehicles to be charged will be the oldest and most polluting ones – taxis, private hire vehicles and older buses, coaches and lorries (HGVs).
The charging zone boundary can be seen at www.wightlink.co.uk/caz. Unfortunately, if your vehicle is subject to the charge there is no route you can take to avoid the zone when leaving the Wightlink’s terminal.
You may wish to consider travelling by Wightlink’s Lymington-Yarmouth route instead.
Smaller motorhomes look likely to be treated as vans and won’t be charged. Larger motorhomes, on the scale of lorries, may be charged.
You should enter the registration number on Portsmouth City Council’s website to find out: www.travel.portsmouth.gov.uk/schemes/charging-clean-air-zone
If you are driving a car or a van, you won’t be charged. Motorcycles are also exempt.
The only vehicles to be charged will be the older taxis, private hire vehicles, buses, coaches and lorries (HGVs).
The charge will be £10 a day for older taxis and Private Hire Vehicles, and £50 a day for older HGVs, buses and coaches.
You will only be charged once per day no matter how many trips into the zone you make.
The charge won’t be issued automatically, so you’ll need to be aware if your vehicle is subject to the charge and pay it online within the payment window. You won’t receive a notification or reminder to tell you that you’ve driven through the zone in a vehicle that qualifies for the charge and need to make payment.
If you are driving a car or a van, you won’t be charged.
The only vehicles to be charged will be the older taxis, private hire vehicles, buses, coaches and lorries (HGVs). Motorcycles are also exempt.
You can find out if you’ll be affected by putting your registration number into this website: www.travel.portsmouth.gov.uk/schemes/charging-clean-air-zone
Portsmouth City Council was identified by the UK government as one of over 60 local authorities with air pollution levels higher than legal limits. It was told to make improvements as soon as possible.
The council believes that a package of measure that don’t involve charging measures, even with the natural reduction in polluting vehicles over time, won’t be enough to achieve the necessary level of improvement in air quality. Therefore, the UK government has required the council to implement a charging Clean Air Zone.
Portsmouth City Council is introducing the Clean Air Zone as some areas of the city centre have levels of pollutants, like nitrogen dioxide, that are likely to remain above safe legal limits unless action is taken now.
Standard Tickets, if cancelled up to 24 hours before the scheduled sailing time, will be refunded less a £5.00 cancellation fee.
Our Economy Tickets, any Standard Tickets cancelled within 24hrs and tickets paid in full or in part with Tesco Clubcard Voucher Codes are non-refundable.
Booking fees and amendment fees are non-refundable.
You can request your refund by completing our online form here or by contacting our Contact Centre with your Booking Reference Number.
Refunds can take up to 28 days to show on your bank statement.
You must contact your holiday provider direct to make amendments to your travel arrangements. They will then contact us to authorise the amendments. If the amendment is within 2 hours of your scheduled sailing time, and your holiday provider is not available, we will do our best to help you make any requested changes subject to availability and restrictions. If there are any additional costs, payment will be required in full when amending before the booking can be secured.
Don’t worry! If you booked with us directly you can correct any errors by going online to ‘My Bookings’, select the correct booking and click ‘Modify’. Remember, changes to dates and times of bookings may be a higher price and you will need to pay any differences before the booking can be secured.
If you prefer, you can complete the Booking Enquiry Form or you can call our Contact Centre and let us sort it out for you.
Let us know. If your vehicle is a different size to the vehicle booked or you just need to change the registration number, you can amend the details online or by using the Wightlink app for free. If you call our Contact Centre we will be happy to amend the booking but there may be an amendment fee.
Remember to check your vehicle size as there may be additional costs. Visit our Vehicle Size guide for full details.
Yes, click ‘Add booking’, then enter the booking number and the last name of the lead passenger on the booking.
If you need to amend your sailing for any reason, it’s easy to do.
You can change your booking online or by using the Wightlink App up to an hour before your sailing time.
You can call our Contact Centre service or visit our Customer Service Point at port if you prefer not to change your ticket online. To do this you’ll need to contact us at least an hour before your outward sailing. There is a £5.00 fee to change Economy tickets and no fee for standard tickets, foot passenger tickets or tickets that cannot be changed online.
If you change your sailing time or travel details, then the new booking may cost more than your original ticket. Any increase in cost must be paid when you change your booking.
If you’ve booked your travel through a holiday provider, you must contact them directly to make any changes to your booking. However, if it is less than two hours till your sailing and your holiday provider is not available then we will do our best to help.
Any requested change is subject to space being available and the booking restrictions of your ticket.
We have introduced Customer Service Points at each of our ports, where you will be able to purchase and amend tickets as you would have previously at our Ticket Offices. However, you will still need to apply for Season Tickets and Multilink Passes online.
Any payments made at our Customer Service Points will need to be by card as we are no longer accepting cash.
You can add a new card by choosing ‘Pay by card and save it for next time’ when paying. You can’t update old card information, but you can remove cards you no longer use by updating your details.
If infants aged 4 and under are travelling with you they travel for free but must be included on your ticket, we need to make sure we count everyone travelling! Children aged 5-15 years travel at the child rate.
We offer several convenient ways for you to book a sailing with us.
You can book in advance online free of charge, or, for a £5.00 Booking Fee for Economy tickets, for vehicles only, you can call our Contact Centre.
If you decide to travel on a sailing within the hour (Go Show) you can buy a vehicle or foot passenger ticket from our Customer Service Point or Self Service ticket machines in our Customer Building.
We always recommend you book in advance to ensure space on your chosen sailing. During holiday periods and festivals, it is essential. Also, the further in advance you book, the more likely you are to pay a lower price.
If you’re travelling by foot you can purchase a ticket on the day of travel, but we do recommend you book in advance during our busier periods.
There are several ways to pay that make booking with us easy.
Online bookings can be paid for using PayPal and credit and debit cards. If you call our Contact Centre or book at our Customer Service Point at the port , we will accept credit and debit cards.
If you want to pay in part or in full using Tesco Clubcard Voucher Codes you can book online using the special link from Tesco or by following the Tesco link in our Offers & Discounts section. Simply add your code in at the payment stage when requested.
A 50p Ryde Pier supplement will be added to your ticket price if you’re travelling on our FastCat service to or from the Isle of Wight for Adults, Seniors, Students and one adult only in a Family ticket.
It’s important we know your correct vehicle size and type when booking as it may affect the ticket price. The vehicle’s size is the true maximum length and height, including any tow-bars, overhanging items and roof loads (e.g. a top box or bicycles).
Take a look at our Vehicle Guides to see which vehicle type you should book.
That’s OK. If you’re booking online just add TBC in the Vehicle Registration field. You can update the details free of charge online when you find out.
There could be several reasons for this. It could be:
If you’re still unsure call our Contact Centre, we’ll be happy to answer your questions.
Children must be 12 or over to travel unaccompanied on our ferries and FastCats. If your child is under 12 then a responsible adult must be with them at all times.
We understand that sometimes you may need to drop younger children off or pick them up on the Island or mainland, so we offer an Escorted Child discount card.
Call us on 0333 999 7333 to get a discount card and complete the application form. You’ll need to provide proof of the birth certificate of the child you travel with and provide a passport-sized photo for the accompanying adult.
Please read the rules on the form carefully to make sure it’s the right ticket for the journeys you make. Remember, you will need to be travelling with the child (either for your outward or return journey) and the discount can only be used to make a round trip on the next sailing.
With the app, you just need to show your boarding pass to board. You don’t need to get a printed ticket.
As long as the car is no longer than 5m and no higher than 2.4m it’s fine. However, if you can change the vehicle registration online before arrival it will speed up the check in process when you arrive.
Yes, as long as you cancel at least one hour before the scheduled sailing time. Please be aware we are unable to refund Priority Boarding if you pay with Tesco Clubcard Voucher Codes.
Yes, you can. If you no longer need Priority Boarding, you can cancel up to one hour before your scheduled sailing time and receive the Priority Boarding refund. Please be aware we are unable to refund Priority Boarding if you pay with Tesco Clubcard Voucher Codes.
Sorry, no. Priority Boarding is for cars only.
Sorry, something went wrong. If you call our Contact Centre or complete the Contact Us form on our website, we will investigate as quickly as possible for you.
If you have a Multilink Vehicle Pass you can book Priority Boarding for a car up to 5m long and no higher than 2.4m high but you will need to pay the Priority Boarding fare separately, not from your pass.
Not at the moment. You can book Accessible Travel & Customer Assistance or Priority Boarding, but not both.
You can use your Blue Badge discount to purchase your ticket, but the discount will not be applied to the Priority Boarding price.
No. Discounts on ticket prices will not be applied to the Priority Boarding price.
Priority Boarding is available to customers booking travel directly with Wightlink online or by calling our Contact Centre and travelling in a car no longer than 5m and no higher than 2.4m.
Priority Boarding is not currently available to customers booking ferry travel with, or through a holiday or accommodation provider.
There are several ways to pay that make booking with us easy.
If you pay online or choose to call our Contact Centre, we will accept credit and debit cards
You can also use Tesco Clubcard Voucher Codes or customer service vouchers. Please be aware we are unable to refund Priority Boarding if you pay with Tesco Clubcard Voucher Codes
We recommend you book Priority Boarding in advance as the number of spaces available is limited on each sailing.
You can enjoy Priority Boarding on most of our car ferries on our Portsmouth- Fishbourne route.
When booking online, you’ll get the option to add Priority Boarding to each leg of your journey if it’s available.
You can also make your booking as normal and then call our Contact Centre on 0333 999 7333 or, if you have a Business Pass, you can all the Sales Team on 02392 855 260.
Priority boarding can be booked on sailings between 07:00 and 19:00.
Priority Boarding is a new service that allows you to be one of the first cars on and off our car ferries. It’s available on most of our car ferries on our Portsmouth to Fishbourne route.