3:04pm Monday 11th January 2010
As the sinking pound threatens to drop beneath the euro early in 2010, Sarah Whitfield-King asks can anybody still save money by catching the Channel ferry for a day trip or a short break?
In the early months of the year, leading ferry companies need to offer attractive prices to be sure of filling their ships at a quiet time of the year.
Market leader P&O Ferries offers each way fares from £25 for car and up to nine passengers on some of the daily Dover-Calais crossings, while the £119 each-way fare for car and two passengers on the Hull-Zeebrugge or Rotterdam service includes an en suite cabin.
I took the 105-minute voyage from Dover on an uncrowded LD Lines ship into Boulogne, to lift the January gloom.
Starved of ferry services in recent years, Boulogne is actually a real foodies treasure trove. Excellent special wine shops such as Le Chais, with more than 800 wines, let you try before you buy.
Boulogne is easier to explore than Calais, more self-contained, and feels a friendlier place without the huge, concrete bypasses which typify a more crowded Calais.
There are great delicatessens, patisseries and France’s finest cheese shop, Philippe Oliver, with more than 30 different sorts of cheese from northern France alone.
At the Place Dalton market (Saturday and Wednesday, 8.30am-12noon), local farmers sell produce including home-made jams, chutneys, honey, cheese and hams. Stalls selling spit-roasted chickens sit side-by-side cheese stalls along with tables of freshly-picked veg. Fresh flowers and pot plants add to the colour of the square.
After the market, head for specialist shops. The main shopping streets in the lower town of Boulogne are the Grande Rue, rue Thiers, rue Victor Hugo and rue National.
If time allows, explore the pedestrianised old town, enclosed by 13th century walls, with its dinky antique shops, bars and a good selection of restaurants.
Le Chateau Mussee, Castle of the Counts of Boulogne, dates back to the early 13th century, and is next to the cathedral and worth popping into to see a great collection of Egyptian and Greek artefacts.
For overnight stays, track down Hotel Metropole on rue Thiers – it’s ideally placed and on the doorstep of several specialist food shops. Breakfast is packed with jovial British visitors.
* INFORMATION: LD Lines operates four return Dover-Boulogne crossings daily, from £28 for a car and up to four passengers for day or 24-hour overnight return. Foot passenger fare is £18 return. Day return for a car and two passengers £36. Premium Lounge upgrades from £7 per person each way. Reservations: 0844 5768836 and ldlines.com.
Hotel Metropole double rooms start at £88 per night, with parking. Reservations: 00 333 21315430 and hotel-metropole-boulogne.com.
For Boulogne short breaks, contact The Travel Market on 01304 50100, or visit ferrytravelclub.com. One-night breaks from £89 include ferry crossings for a car and passengers.
Boulogne Tourist Office: 00 333 21108810.
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