7 minute read | Author: Richard Hammond

There are lots of ways to travel from the North of England to Europe without flying – by ferry (either in a car or as a foot passenger), by coach or by train. The ferries head east from Newcastle and Hull across the North Sea to Amsterdam, Rotterdam or Hook of Holland from where you can head further into Europe.

If you're travelling as a foot passenger, see below for information to how to take public transport to the three main ferry ports that depart from the North and East of England to The Netherlands.

The coaches and trains both use the Channel Tunnel, so you have to factor in the time it takes to get south. If you take the train, once on the other side of the tunnel, you’re then connected to the European high-speed rail network, which can whizz you to many European capitals and beyond within hours. Our team has tried and tested many of the routes and so we have tried to summarise all the available options in this post based on our experience.

The DFDS ferry from Newcastle goes direct to Amsterdam. DFDS PR

Ferries from the North and East of England to The Netherlands

Ferry from Newcastle to Amsterdam

The ferry port closest to the Scottish border that connects with Europe is Newcastle, from which DFDS takes foot passengers on its 17.00 overnight sailings to Amsterdam.

Journey time: 15.5 hours (overnight)

Timings*: Departs Newcastle 17:00, arrives Amsterdam 9.45am.

Facilities on board the ferry: bars, restaurants, casino, cinema and kids club

Sleeper Cabins: take from 2-5 people, and, unlike most ferry operators that insist dogs are kept in cars or kennels, there are cabins suitable for up to two dogs to travel alongside their owners.

Luggage: There’s no limit on luggage. Foot passengers can travel with a bicycle for a charge of £5 each way, and those without wheels can hop onto a coach on arrival at the port of Ijmuiden to travel the 25 miles into central Amsterdam. Other info: DFDS offers a ‘mini cruise’ option, which includes breaks in Amsterdam from five hours to two nights and include coach transfers at either end. From Amsterdam it’s easy to connect by rail to cities and regions across the Netherlands, as well as onto France, Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Italy, Switzerland and beyond.

Ferry from Hull to Rotterdam (The Netherlands)

Scottish travellers willing to travel further south still along the east coast can travel with P&O Ferries overnight between Hull and Rotterdam in the Netherlands.

Journey time: 12 hours (overnight). On arrival at Hull station by train, there’s a bus that goes to the port from the adjoining interchange station. Number 70 operates from Paragon Interchange to the ferry terminal at 5pm and takes 15 minutes, but for more flexibility, a taxi is a good bet.

Timings*: Hull to Rotterdam departs 20:30 and arrives Rotterdam at 8:15 (9:00 at weekends)

Facilities: Restaurants, bars, cinemas, a casino and kids play area.

Sleeper Cabins: options range from a standard cabin, with a toilet and shower room, to a sea view cabin or a club cabin with extra space and a television - sleeping between two and five people per cabin

Luggage: There’s no limit on luggage, and you can travel with a pet and a bicycle. Pets are charged at £22 each way and must travel in a kennel. Bicycles are carried free of charge but only one is allowed per foot passenger booking, so a group travelling with multiple bikes need to make a separate booking per bike.

You can book the ferry solely as transport, but for some, it’s the holiday in itself - a mini cruise out of Hull with P&O offers two nights on a ferry to and from Rotterdam with a day trip (which can be extended to an extra night) to explore the city between sailings. Themed mini breaks take this up a notch with entertainment such as live music or darts competitions onboard. Many passengers use Rotterdam as a gateway to Brussels, Antwerp or Paris but from either point, it is straight-forward to connect by rail to other destinations in the Netherlands and Belgium as well as Germany, Luxembourg  and France.

Ferry from Harwich to Hook of Holland (The Netherlands)

The shortest ferry route across the North Sea from the UK is from Harwich in Essex with Stena Line to The Hook of Holland (known as ‘Hoek van Holland’). You can choose to go across the North Sea either during the day or overnight.

Journey time: it is a 7-8 hour crossing (day time or overnight)

Trains stop at Harwich International Station, which is next to the ferry port.

Timings*: departs Harwich at 9am, arrives Hook of Holland at 17.15; overnight service departs Harwich at 23:00, arrives Hook of Holland at 08:00. Facilities: restaurants and bars, a cinema and shops.

Sleeper Cabins: on the overnight ferry you can choose from a range of cabins, from a single inside cabin with television and ensuite bathroom to cabins for two, three, four of five people, including the Comfort Class cabins with sea view and complimentary minibar.

Luggage: There’s no limit on luggage. Foot passengers with bicycles pay an extra fee of £5 for adults and £2.50 for children and it costs £20 to bring your dog, which must travel in a kennel.

The slow relaxing route to Europe, by overnight ferry from Harwich, Hull or Newcastle to The Netherlands. Photos of interiors DFDS, ferry: Stenaline.

How to travel by public transport to the ferry ports

*Ferry sailing times and journey times can change so do check with the operator for the latest times before you book.