getting to Dover cruise terminal from London

[ontheweb]

We will be on the Ocean Princess next month, and are looking for transportation from London to Dover.

 

My DW found a website for buses. One goes to the City Center and one to the Ferry station. The City center station is less expensive, but one website she read did not recommend it because "it was in a scruffy part of town and you were less likely to get a cab."

 

Has anyone used the bus service? Which terminal worked out better?

 

BTW, the Princess phone person recommended using their transfer, which would be an option except they do not have a transfer from London to the port of Dover, only back to London or from the airports.

[Post Captain]

For the coach (bus) from London to Dover, you can often get fantastic bargain fares if you book your tickets in advance via the National Express website:

http://www.nationalexpress.com/home.aspx

 

Select London (Victoria Coach Station) as your point of origin and Dover (Town Centre) as your destination.

 

(Note: The ferry terminal is on the opposite side of the harbor from the cruise terminal. The National Express website may give the option of "Dover cruise terminal" as a destination for certain journeys, but these are limited and--if memory serves--are tied in to sailings by ships of the Fred. Olsen Line.)

 

Frankly, the description of the area around the Pencester Road bus stop in the centre of Dover as a tad "scruffy" could apply to much of the town, but don't let that deter you; the area is perfectly safe, and you shouldn't have any trouble getting a cab from there. The cab drivers are well accustomed to taking passengers from the bus stop to the cruise terminal, & vice versa; a good part of their business comes from this run.

 

You could also take the train from one of three stations in London--St Pancras, Victoria, or Charing Cross. (Trains from St Pancras are a bit faster than those from the other two stations.) Use the National Rail journey planner to check train times & prices:

 

http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/planjourney/search

 

The station in Dover is called Dover Priory.

 

You might also find this web page useful in planning your trip from London to Dover:

http://www.londontoolkit.com/travel/dover_bus_train_stations.htm

Edited July 28, 2014 by Post Captain

[ontheweb]

For the coach (bus) from London to Dover, you can often get fantastic bargain fares if you book your tickets in advance via the National Express website:

 

http://www.nationalexpress.com/home.aspx

 

Select London (Victoria Coach Station) as your point of origin and Dover (Town Centre) as your destination.

 

(Note: The ferry terminal is on the opposite side of the harbor from the cruise terminal. The National Express website may give the option of "Dover cruise terminal" as a destination for certain journeys, but these are limited and--if memory serves--are tied in to sailings by ships of the Fred. Olsen Line.)

 

Frankly, the description of the area around the Pencester Road bus stop in the centre of Dover as a tad "scruffy" could apply to much of the town, but don't let that deter you; the area is perfectly safe, and you shouldn't have any trouble getting a cab from there. The cab drivers are well accustomed to taking passengers from the bus stop to the cruise terminal, & vice versa; a good part of their business comes from this run.

 

You could also take the train from one of three stations in London--St Pancras, Victoria, or Charing Cross. (Trains from St Pancras are a bit faster than those from the other two stations.) Use the National Rail journey planner to check train times & prices:

 

http://ojp.nationalrail.co.uk/service/planjourney/search

 

The station in Dover is called Dover Priory.

 

You might also find this web page useful in planning your trip from London to Dover:

 

http://www.londontoolkit.com/travel/dover_bus_train_stations.htm

 

Thank you so much for your prompt reply.

 

My DW was looking at the National Express site, but did not know which station to book as the destination. Our hotel in London is near Victoria Station.

 

It did also show cruise terminal, but said not to use that because it did not go there.

[sddsddean]

As you are in Victoria, you can use either the train from Victoria or the NE coach from Victoria coach station (they are not the same place! The coach station is 300yds down the road from the train station). Pay your money...make your choice. Only thing I would add is that it is not unknown for the coach driver to drop you at the cruise terminal if you ask nicely and there are a few of you on the coach heading there too. If he/she does, its well worth a £5 tip. Otherwise it is not necessary to tip NE coach drivers.

 

Simon

[ontheweb]

DW tried to book tickets online on the National Express site. Her first problem was she did not know the country code for the US. I solved that by calling our TA.

 

Then the last step was to make our credit card secure. She failed at that step, and then was locked out for trying to many times.

 

I called the credit card provider, (I was going to have to call them anyway before the trip to let them know of our foreign travel). The representative I talked to thinks it was because she put a period after her middle initial. We'll try again tomorrow.

[sddsddean]

Its quite common for US card companies to block overseas spending as they assume its a fraudulent transaction. Hopefully as you have spoken to your card provider they will have taken any blocks off their computer system. Good luck!

 

Simon

[ontheweb]

Its quite common for US card companies to block overseas spending as they assume its a fraudulent transaction. Hopefully as you have spoken to your card provider they will have taken any blocks off their computer system. Good luck!

 

Simon

 

It was not really an overseas transaction; it was a website transaction. It seems to have been caused by her putting a period after her middle initial. Hopefully, it is straightened out. We'll find out later today.

[newport dave]

It was not really an overseas transaction; it was a website transaction. It seems to have been caused by her putting a period after her middle initial. Hopefully, it is straightened out. We'll find out later today.

 

It's still classed as on overseas transaction, as it's a UK website. Quite a few people from the US have problems because of this. It's regularly reported on here.

[ontheweb]

It's still classed as on overseas transaction, as it's a UK website. Quite a few people from the US have problems because of this. It's regularly reported on here.

 

I do not doubt what you said, but earlier my wife had no problem buying tickets to the Scottish Military Tattoo online. That was also in pounds, not dollars.

[ontheweb]

It's still classed as on overseas transaction, as it's a UK website. Quite a few people from the US have problems because of this. It's regularly reported on here.

 

We now have the tickets. I decided to try my debit card after neither of us could get the credit card to work.

 

The transaction sailed right through; did not even ask to make the card 3D secure. The ticket was there for us to print, plus I got a confirmation e-mail.

[sddsddean]

Glad it all worked out OK.

 

Simon

[Giantfan13]

We will be on the Ocean Princess next month, and are looking for transportation from London to Dover.

 

My DW found a website for buses. One goes to the City Center and one to the Ferry station. The City center station is less expensive, but one website she read did not recommend it because "it was in a scruffy part of town and you were less likely to get a cab."

 

Has anyone used the bus service? Which terminal worked out better?

 

BTW, the Princess phone person recommended using their transfer, which would be an option except they do not have a transfer from London to the port of Dover, only back to London or from the airports.

 

As has been said, many times, the driver of the bus will ask whatever passengers that are still there, when arriving at Dover, if they would like him to take them right to the cruise terminal. It is a common practice. Obviously everyone still on the bus wants to go there, so they all say yes and off you go. The driver is doing this for a nice tip, so the cost of a cab would be about 7 pounds, so tip the driver at least 5 pounds. When we went they had porters right at the place the bus lets you off, so, from there, you don't have to handle your luggage.

 

Cheers

 

Len

[John Bull]

Travelling TO Dover, Len's post is spot-on, drivers normally volunteer to run cruisers to the cruise terminal -

"as a favour" :rolleyes:

"thank you, squire, very kind" ;)

 

Travelling FROM Dover, better to get the coach from the Town Centre stop (Pencaster Road) because although booked seats are guaranteed, they're not allocated - other than disabled-priority seats, you sit where you want.

The coach starts at Pencaster Road & picks up at the ferry port five minutes later.

 

Travelling in EITHER direction, don't book to/from "cruise terminal". Coaches only stop there when a Fred Olsen ship is scheduled, a special Nat Express/Fred Olsen thing.

If there's no Fred ship, the website will say "no availability", giving the impression the coaches to/from Dover are fully-booked.

If there is a Fred ship that day, the price to the Cruise Terminal is excessively-loaded compared to the other two Dover stops.

 

Lousy web service, good coach service,

 

JB :)

[ontheweb]

As has been said, many times, the driver of the bus will ask whatever passengers that are still there, when arriving at Dover, if they would like him to take them right to the cruise terminal. It is a common practice. Obviously everyone still on the bus wants to go there, so they all say yes and off you go. The driver is doing this for a nice tip, so the cost of a cab would be about 7 pounds, so tip the driver at least 5 pounds. When we went they had porters right at the place the bus lets you off, so, from there, you don't have to handle your luggage.

 

Cheers

 

Len

 

I did ask the bus driver, and he pointed to the direction we should go to get a cab.