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Portsmouth Harbour Boarding and Disembarking - Changes to travel

The ongoing essential maintenance of the gangway and berth improvements at our Portsmouth Harbour port means there is a change to the way customers will board and disembark the FastCat.

Instead of using our usual ‘North End’ gangway to get on and off the FastCat, customers will use our ‘South End’ gangway at the opposite end of the port instead.

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Why is this necessary?Harbour facilitiesNeed Help with Your Booking or Have a Question?

From Tuesday, 14 to Sunday, 19 July 2026 the following adjustments will be in place:

  • Pushchairs and prams: Still permitted but in some cases, they may need to be folded and carried. Our teams are always happy to assist so please ask for help if you need it.
  • Bikes: Will no longer be permitted unless they can be folded and carried. This is due to the narrow gangway and steep slope, which are harder to navigate in poor weather.

Customers travelling with bikes are recommended to use the Portsmouth- Fishbourne car ferry service.

Hovertravel will also accept Wightlink tickets if that’s more convenient for your journey.

Heavy luggage is allowed provided you can safely carry and manage it independently.

For booking help, call 0333 999 7333 (Monday to Fri, 09:00 – 18:00 and weekends, 09:00 – 17:00).

There are no changes to boarding or disembarking at Ryde Pier Head.

Why is this necessary?

The Portsmouth Harbour North End berth is the main gangway for all customers boarding and disembarking at Portsmouth Harbour. To ensure it continues to remain safe and reliable for the future, we’re carrying out some essential maintenance.

As part of this work, we’ll be replacing the roller bracket sheath that allow our gangway to be moved in and out of position.

Harbour facilities

All café and toilet facilities at Portsmouth Harbour and Ryde Pier Head will remain open and available for customer use as usual.

Need Help with Your Booking or Have a Question?

If you need any help with your booking, our friendly team is here for you. You can call us on 0333 999 7333, or our dedicated Accessible Travel line on 0800 093 8236.

  • Monday to Friday: 09:00 – 18:00
  • Weekends: 09:00 – 17:00

We’ll be happy to assist you.

If you have any questions about the maintenance work or improvements at Portsmouth Harbour, feel free to email us at [email protected].