P&O Portsmouth-Bilbao ferry service to end

[SpitfireTriple]

This will bump up the price of the Brittany Ferries Plymouth - Santander...
So if you want to take your bike to Spain, book now and go before 27 September

From http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/h...re/8461624.stm

Portsmouth to lose Pride of Bilbao ferry service


More than 250 people work on the Pride of Bilbao

A P&O ferry service to Spain operating from Portsmouth is to be withdrawn due to "unsustainable" losses, putting 252 jobs at risk.
The Pride of Bilbao's final crossing to Bilbao - which P&O Ferries has operated for 15 years - will take place on 27 September, the firm said.
The 252 employees, including 130 agency workers, all work on the vessel. Twelve others work on shore in Bilbao.
P&O said it was talking to unions. The RMT said the route "remains viable".
Contacting passengers
Steve Todd, the RMT's national maritime secretary, said: "We believe the Portsmouth-Bilbao route remains viable and that there is no case for axing the service.
"We will be working with the company to look at options to keep the route sailing.
"In the meantime, we have cast-iron assurances that there will be no compulsory redundancies and we are in negotiations with P&O to ensure that the interests of staff are fully protected."
Crossings are expected to operate as normal up to and including the 27 September.
It is understood the company is contacting passengers with bookings beyond that date in order to make alternative arrangements or offer refunds.
The news comes after Brittany Ferries announced just before Christmas that it was withdrawing the Barfleur ferry between Poole and Cherbourg because it had been losing money since 2003.

[Threewheelbonnie]

They'll be crying over on bingo-lovers.com, that boat was heaven for anyone who wanted to play for 96 hours at a go

It was a garbage service and at least the better service of the two is staying but I guess it is going to effect the price and you have to feel sorry for the workers.

Andy

[Warthog]

Ferry crossings seem to be dropping like flies: same with the Rostock to Helsinki crossing.

[stuxtttr]

ditto the Newcastle to Norway service.

I think I prefered the Portsmouth Ferry I could get down there in an hour and a half whereas the Plymouth route was a right mission and gave less drinking time

[pecha72]

Closing Newcastle to Norway was real sad. I went that way to see the Isle of Man TT in 2005, and that crossing made it a killer route (as opposed to riding through the flat areas bordering the North Sea).

Havent tried this one, and there only seems to be 12 cabins available, but this seems to be operating between UK & Norway (and they have motorcycles in their price list, too):

http://www.dfdstorline.com/DfdsTorLi.../NorBridge.htm

So what´s up with Rostock-Helsinki? The last time I checked, both Tallink Superfast and Finnlines operate regular ferries to either Travemunde or Rostock. Finnlines even has a new line to Gdynia in Poland, so Finland is better connected to these countries than it has been for a long time.

[Tim Cullis]

Interesting that Brittany has doubled its sailings to Spain with four per week from Portsmouth and Plymouth.