Eurotunnel fares

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Fri 14 Nov 2003 18:40
Eurotunnel fares - para
Eurotunnel is quoting me over £196 for a five day return fare for a Mondeo and two people in September 2004. If I go shopping to Calais for an afternoon I can sometimes get there and back for about £10 ! Why the big difference ? Can anyone tell me of a cheaper route - I am travelling to Holland. Thanks. Del Boy
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Fri 14 Nov 2003 19:28
Eurotunnel fares - budu
Try www.drive-alive.co.uk/ but their deals are linked with hotel bookings, with a minumuim stay of two nights.
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Fri 14 Nov 2003 21:34
Eurotunnel fares - para
Thanks Budu - will du !
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Fri 14 Nov 2003 19:34
Eurotunnel fares - cockle {P}
Put 'cross channel ferries' into Google and it'll come up with several online booking engines which will compare all the prices and routes for you.
Prices vary considerably depending on route, time of day and day of the week.
I'll bet that the £10 deal is probably something like a September Tuesday after 13:00, come back before midnight, rather than Saturday afternoon the week before Xmas!
Basically it all comes down to what the market will stand, if the Shuttles are running full with people paying £196 why would they charge £10? If they are empty then they will be glad to see your tenner, that's market forces for you. There were once rumours that Eurotunnel would levy a bad weather premium every time the wind got above Force 5 in the Channel to milk the poor sailor market which diverts from the ferries, again a commercial decision, would the market stand it?
Personally, I'm a big fan of the Tunnel and am happy to pay a little more for the speed and the comfort of people not being seasick all over me and mine!

Cockle
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Fri 14 Nov 2003 21:33
Eurotunnel fares - para
Thanks cockle
Interesting comments.
I'm a Eurotunnel fan too. The wife's got shares in the thing !
Para
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Fri 14 Nov 2003 22:09
Eurotunnel fares - PhilW
Don't seem to be any "cheap" crossings these days unless you want to go between 6pm and 2 am next morning for £29. Last Easter I got a 5 day crossing for £59, in October was quoted £183. However, Eurotunnel have just sent me an e-mail offering "early booking" 5 day fares for £113 at about the time you want. Check out
tinyurl.com/v1ea
for details
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Sat 15 Nov 2003 17:37
Eurotunnel fares - para
Hi, Phil

Great news ! I'll give them a try. Can't be much earlier than this.

Thanks. Para
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Sat 15 Nov 2003 10:00
Eurotunnel fares - Robbie
I'm a Eurotunnel fan too. The wife's got shares in the
thing !
Para


Hope she bought them before the bottom dropped out.:)

Probably the best investment, if you travel across the channel on a regular basis, is to buy 600 P&O Preference shares. These entitle you to 50% discount on Dover Calais, and 40% on the other crossings. You also receive the fixed share dividend of 5 and a half per cent per annum. They also have various offers, from time to time, for shareholders.

My shares have paid for themselves over the years.>>
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Sat 15 Nov 2003 17:44
Eurotunnel fares - para
Thanks, Robbie. She was one of the first - and is hanging on to them for our kids ! Thanks for that good tip. Para
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Sat 15 Nov 2003 18:29
Eurotunnel fares - frostbite
Hope she bought them before the bottom dropped out.:)

Er, hope she bought them *after* the bottom dropped out, surely?
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Sat 15 Nov 2003 18:47
Eurotunnel fares - Robbie
>> Hope she bought them before the bottom dropped out.:)
>>
Er, hope she bought them *after* the bottom dropped out, surely?


Yes, of course. Never noticed that.

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Sun 16 Nov 2003 18:40
Eurotunnel fares - Colin M
The £10 fares are only fillers with limited availability on off peak crossings.

I used the tunnel several times in the last year, mostly on one way journeys. It was impossible to bypass their system that charges full fare of around £150 for the one way ticket.

Several of my colleagues commute to France and have had their credit cards charged with the full fare after they were (electronically) caught using two cheapo returns to make the journey when they wanted.

If you buy 1,000 Eurotunnel shares (approx £507.50 worth at todays price) you get 30% off 3 standard returns a year. Mind you, looking at historic value of their shares, this concession would have cost you less than half that back in April.



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