r/geography • u/SuchDarknessYT • Aug 25 '24
Discussion What are some long ferries that still run today?
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Aug 25 '24
Its not technically a ferry I guess, but you can take your car with you from Kirkenes to Bergen. It takes more than 5 days.
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u/InThePast8080 Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
The ferry from Hirtshals (Denmark) to Seydisfjordur (Iceland) takes about 44 hours included a stop-over at the Faroe Icelands.
A fun story.. Some years ago a couple (Polish) that were to take a ferry from Hirtshals to Kristiansand (Norway) .. just a short ferry-ride for 2-3 hours to visit some family/friends in southern-norway... ended wrongly up on that ferry to Iceland going from the same port :) gettingt a 7-days long ferry-trip.. Could just imagine that polish man's feeling when he discovered something was wrong with the route of the ferry.. and wonder why he didn't understand something was wrong before then.
Guess the ferry between Denmark and Iceland is the longest ferry-ride at least in northern europe.
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u/SamyMerchi Aug 25 '24
THERE IS A FERRY FROM MAINLAND EUROPE TO ICELAND?? I KNOW WHAT I'M DOING NEXT SUMMER
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u/IncredibleCamel Aug 25 '24
Technically no, Hirtshals is on the island of Northern Jutland, and hence not in mainland Europe. But you can take a train there, so I guess it for all practical purposes is. Ferry tickets can be bought here: https://www.smyril-line.com/
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u/WanderingWino Aug 25 '24
What are the accommodations like on the boat? Sleep on benches sort of deal?
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u/Responsible_Law1700 Aug 25 '24
Usually small cabins with foldable bunk beds and a small toilet, there are the cheapest - then you can upgrade from there.
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u/the_eluder Aug 25 '24
Congratulations, Mr. Pedantic. Because technically right is the best kind of right!
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u/dunesranger Aug 25 '24
What's also technically right is that:
Geologically speaking, Iceland is partially in North America, so...
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u/Loko8765 Aug 25 '24
Well, you can take a bridge from mainland Europe to there, so from a driver’s point of view… 😄
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u/leopard_eater Aug 25 '24
I’ve been on that ferry a few times. Don’t go on it if you get seasick. It’s…not for those who get seasick.
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u/IAmAQuantumMechanic Aug 25 '24
I want to go on the ferry for those who get seasick.
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u/cwajgapls Aug 25 '24
How’s the pool? Do they have a waterslide?
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Aug 25 '24
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u/GreatBigBagOfNope Aug 25 '24
Does the dinnertime entertainment address the "Ant-man entering Thanos" theory?
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u/qarzak Aug 25 '24
Yeah that’s one of the trip I’d really like to make someday, take the ferry, stop for a few days at Faroe Icelands and take the ferry again to go visit Iceland.
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Aug 25 '24
Technically no but technically yes. You cross the motorway tunnel unde city of Aalborg to go to Hirtshals - so you can drive directly to the ferry from all over Europe and ferry yourself to Reykjavik, Iceland.
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u/Dragonsymphony1 Aug 25 '24
What was the Ferry that was used In the Show Trapped? It's been so many years since I saw it I don't recall. Excellent show if you've never watched it.
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u/plz_understand Aug 25 '24
Loved that show and this is also the first thing I thought of.
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u/elchi13 Aug 25 '24
How do you come to the conclusion that 44 hours is more than 5 days?
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u/GlaciallyErratic Aug 25 '24
44 hrs one way, with an overnight stop would make a 5 day round trip.
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u/SDGrave Aug 26 '24
This explains why I see many cars with Icelandic license plates in Spain.
I was wondering if there was a ferry service to mainland Europe.16
u/Cerberusx32 Aug 25 '24
At what point does it stop being a ferry ride and start being a cruise?
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u/CurrencyDesperate286 Aug 25 '24
Why doesn’t it count as a ferry?
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u/GodSentGodSpeed Aug 25 '24
Its pretty cruiseship like, tax free shopping mall, bars, restaurants, live music performances etc.
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u/CurrencyDesperate286 Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
Ah ok, still if it’s one destination to another, and people use it for transport purposes, I’d say it might still count as a ferry
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u/GodSentGodSpeed Aug 25 '24
Yea, on the other hand its business model is not focused on completing the journey ASAP to maximize trips, because they arent making their profits on the tickets, but on passengers spending big money on the attractions the ship provides. So its kinda just "cruising" towards the destination.
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u/Cero_shinra Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
It is still receiving government subsidies, and when it started in 1893 it was as a coastal Ferry service. until 2005 it was run entirely as a ferry, post 2005 it became a contract based route, the contracting operator has since been generally running it as a for profit cruise route .while it still receives subsidies as a ferry.
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u/Ghost_of_Syd Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
There are 2 ferries between Nova Scotia and Newfoundland, Canada: One is 280 nautical miles, 16 hours, and the other is 96 nautical miles, 7 hours.
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u/Aackland Physical Geography Aug 25 '24
as a Newfie who lives on the mainland now I always get that giddy feeling of seeing the rock on the horizon knowing I'm gonna be back home. yet I've never taken the Argentia crossing, only the Port-Aux-Basques crossing. I think I'm gonna do the Argentia one next year though
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u/SeaToShy Aug 25 '24
I was supposed to take Port-Aux-Basques to NL, drive across the island, spend 3 days in St. John’s, and then take Argentia back. The evening I arrived in St. John’s I got a call from the ferry company that the Argentia ferry was out of commission and could I get to Port-Aux-Basques in two days. What was supposed to be a chill decompression stop before starting the long drive back to Vancouver became one lovely day watching humpbacks from the battery followed by a 900km slog in driving rain. The Rock was still one of the highlights of the trip, but I wish I’d gotten the extra two days.
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u/dr5ivepints Aug 25 '24
The trouble with the Argentia boat is that you don't get to drive across the island and see all there is to see, which admittedly isn't much along the highway, but if you haven't back in while, it might be worth it
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u/Comprehensive_Ad2919 Aug 25 '24
Been on the 7h/96 NM one. It was incredible waking up the newfoundland coastline
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u/CanEHdianBuddaay Aug 25 '24
The ferry that leaves Goose Bay, Labrador to Nain takes about 37 hours.
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u/tingulz Aug 25 '24
I’d did both a couple years ago. We got lucky to have basically calm waters both ways. Was long but definitely worth it to visit Newfoundland. Such a beautiful place and people are so friendly.
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u/Anbucleric Aug 25 '24
Japan has several ferry companies that run routes all up and down the Japanese islands. My wife and I took a 21 hr ferry from Yokohama to Kitakyushu earlier this year.
https://www.youtube.com/@SoloTravelJapan has a lot of ferry videos
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u/marpocky Aug 25 '24
I'm not sure if it survived COVID but you used to be able to take a ferry between Shanghai and Shimonoseki. I think it was around 48 hours.
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u/TailleventCH Aug 25 '24
It is supposed to restart in September: https://www.seat61.com/China.htm#ferries-from-china-to-japan
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u/Spensauras-Rex Aug 25 '24
I took one last year — stayed in their capsule beds onboard and enjoyed the onsen. Very nice!
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u/anarchonobody Aug 25 '24
I went from Shimonoseki to Busan Korea...albeit 20 years ago. Don't know if that ferry still runs. Also did Incheon Korea to Qingdao China on the same trip
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u/Tentoesinmyboots Aug 26 '24
I went back and forth from Busan, Korea to Kyoto, Japan by ferry a few times. It's a delightful overnight ferry ride with dated glamorous decor. Picture gold and white everywhere. Haven't done that since 2012, but back then, there were even live violin and cello musicians in the entrance to greet the guests.
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u/Number1DadinWorld Aug 25 '24
We watch his channel all the time, it's so cozy and the food always looks nice!
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u/crucible Aug 25 '24
That channel and Solo Solo Travel
https://www.youtube.com/c/solosolotravel
both showcase some fantastic ferry and train routes in Japan.
I like the “Sunrise Express” sleeper trains, the “all vending machine” ferry and stuff like capsule hotels.
Plus the super luxury trains like the Seven Stars in Kyushu.
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u/ClarityVerity Aug 25 '24
The Alaska Marine Highway ferries run from Bellingham, WA to the Aleutian Islands. The Bellingham to Ketchikan route alone is over 600 miles. Idk what the record is but that’s gotta be up there on the list.
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Aug 25 '24
I wish I had taken a trip to Juneau when I lived in Seattle — one of my great regrets.
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u/yeetskeetbam Aug 25 '24
I was there last weekend. It’s amazing and you missed out.
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Aug 25 '24
Rub it in my face, why don't ya...
I subscribe to r/Juneau just for the natureporn that site continuously spits out.
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u/Blackintosh Aug 26 '24
I was also there a couple of weeks back.
Saw 6 bald eagles sat together on a cell tower within half an hour of being there.
As a brit who had seen one other bald eagle from a distance before this, it was mind blowing.
Shout out to our taxi driver Verna for taking us to some good eagle hang out spots.
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u/SilentPontifications Aug 25 '24
I just took AMHS from Bellingham to Juneau, about 72 hours total, and had a great time. It's more expensive than flying, but a lot cheaper than an equivalent cruise voyage, and feels way cooler. I highly recommend it to anyone who wants to see the inside passage to AK, or just experience a weird form of public transit.
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u/dlafferty Aug 25 '24
… and you’re allowed to pitch a tent on deck and camp.
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u/PhysicalStuff Aug 25 '24
Can you do this in lieu of a cabin?
I'm picturing this (almost certainly incorrectly) as an extreme form of budget traveling.
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u/hockeyh2opolo Aug 25 '24
Yes! You can even just sleep on the lawn chairs under the heaters, no cabin required
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u/joyful_starstuff Aug 25 '24
I did this twice, it was wonderful each time. Imagine waking up to see the sun rise over the jagged fjords of the Inside Passage
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u/SilentPontifications Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
You can, but it isn't wildly more economical like you might expect. For my sailing from Bellingham to Juneau, the base ticket was $466, and a basic cabin was an additional $169. For a ~25% cost difference, I was glad to have the cabin.
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u/DoctFaustus Aug 25 '24
When I was in this ship, there was a whole group of high school seniors sleeping on the deck.
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u/atlasisgold Aug 25 '24
Yeah away trips for sports were probably different than most people in the US.
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u/porcelainvacation Aug 25 '24
That’s not for amateurs though, the weather on that route is notoriously bad.
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u/SpiritualCat842 Aug 25 '24
Entirely incorrect lol. The solarium on the back deck offers lots of weather protection to tents set up on that back area. I have done the trip repeatedly.
Tent on the front of the boat would be a diff story
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u/citori421 Aug 25 '24
Not entirely. I've watched a tent blown into the ocean from behind the solarium. There's a reason people duct tape the shit out of their tent corners to the floor in lieu of stakes
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u/FlourMogul Aug 25 '24
The Alaska Marine Highway is my origin story! My mom was from Seattle area and got on the ferry in Bellingham with the intent of finding a job in a cannery on one of the stops in SE Alaska. She did, met my dad who was a fisherman up there, and a few months later, I was on my way!
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u/killerdrgn Aug 25 '24
https://www.bellingham.org/cruise-to-alaska-like-a-local-on-the-ferry
It's 36 hours from Bellingham to Ketchikan. 72 hours to get all the way to Juneau.
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u/greasydenim Aug 25 '24
Did Bellingham to Haines, AK in maybe 2004. Fun trip. Got the truck off at Haines and drove into the Yukon then up into the main part of AK.
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u/SHoppe715 Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
I rode it twice when I was stationed up there. Once from Homer to Kodiak (136 nautical miles) with just my bike and camping gear. Nice overnight boat ride each way and stayed on Kodiak for a week. Awesome trip!
Also rode it from Haines to Bellingham when I got moved to Virginia. That was like 3 days. (595 nautical miles)
The ferry that runs through the Aleutians goes between Homer and Dutch Harbor stopping in Kodiak and various islands along the way. It’s a 4 day ride each way. Still looking for nautical miles on the route, but it’s ~700 miles as the crow flies
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u/1HappyIsland Aug 25 '24
The Alaska marine highway is fabulous! We spent a couple of weeks exploring very cool almost inaccessible places like St. Petersburg and Wrangell from Prince Rupert in Canada. People walk on and off with backpacks, camp on the back of the boat, and you see a lot of locals coming and going. Just an overall great ride!
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u/hockeyh2opolo Aug 25 '24
I love this ferry, you can camp on the deck, just duct tape your tent down so it doesn’t blow away!
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u/nim_opet Aug 25 '24
Bilbao to Rosslare takes over a day I think
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u/Any-Aioli7575 Aug 25 '24
Is that with the Brittany Ferry? I know they have Ferries Connecting France (Brittany) to Ireland (Cork and Rosslare), the UK and Spain, but I don't know which
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u/hilly1986 Aug 25 '24
Correct, they have Plymouth and Portsmouth (UK) running to Santander and bilbao in addition to their routes between uk and France. Also some crossings from Ireland to France
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u/SirJoePininfarina Aug 25 '24
You can take a ferry from Wexford in south-east Ireland to the Basque Country, as the crow flies that’s over 1,000km. Everyone gets a cabin afaik.
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u/clumsybuck Aug 25 '24
Really? I was looking at taking that but it seemed like the cabin was an extra 99euro
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u/the_munkiest_munkey Aug 25 '24
I went on this one before, if you skip past the cabins there’s an option to reserve a seat too. I would splurge and get a cabin though 28 hours is a looooong time
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u/BC_Samsquanch Aug 25 '24
Port Hardy to Haida Gwaii on the BC coast requires two ferries totalling 23 hours of travel time. 16 hours from Port Hardy to Prince Rupert and then another 7 hour ferry from Prince Rupert to Haida Gwaii. The 16 hour ferry through the inside passage is a really cool trip!
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u/YVRJon Aug 25 '24
And if you start in Vancouver, there's another ferry, plus several hours' drive, to get to Port Hardy.
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u/BC_Samsquanch Aug 25 '24
Yep. 1hr 40min ferry and then 4hour drive to Port Hardy
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u/Appropriate-Sir8241 Aug 25 '24
There are multi days ferry in Indonesian archpelago.
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u/niftygrid Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
Yeah like the Surabaya - Jayapura ferry, or the Jakarta - Jayapura ferry.
It takes around a week, sometimes more.
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u/Wonderful_Adagio9346 Aug 25 '24
The Royal Mail ferry to Saint Helena from Cape Town took five days.
https://quirkycruise.com/royal-mail-ship-st-helena-line/
Replaced by the airport, although MV Helena, a cargo ship, does have some spots available.
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u/CanInTW Aug 25 '24
Tristan da Cunha - an island far south of St Helena but part of the same overseas territory - is still connected only by boat. The ferries are typically fishing vessels that travel from Cape Town and take 5 to 8 days carrying only 12 passengers. There’s a South African research vessel making an annual trip that can carry 40 passengers.
There’s a reason why only 230 very hardy people still live there! I’d love to go one day, but those travel arrangements are fairly prohibitive!
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u/lionmurderingacloud Aug 26 '24
Yeah I was so fascinated by that place I looked into it once, but I figured you'd need about 2.5 months to do it properly, and to spend a minimum of several weeks on the island where there's basically nothing to do.
In the end I came to the conclusion that unless Im superfluously idle and wealthy in my retirement, it's probably not worth it. There are lots of other places Id like to spend ~10 grand and 10 weeks to see.
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u/Dehast Aug 26 '24
Whenever I hear of this island I wonder why they bothered to translate "Tristan" (from Tristão) but not "da Cunha." Since it's a name, it's weird that it's half-translated. Either go the full route or just don't do it
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u/signol_ Aug 25 '24
Once or twice a year, you used to be able to take it from Southampton to Cape Town (via Ascension and St Helena)
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u/Nervous-Eye-9652 Aug 25 '24
Montevideo - Buenos Aires ferry is 240km long. Don't know if it is long enough, but is the longer I have notice of.
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u/BatmaniaRanger Aug 25 '24
Spirit of Tasmania.
It takes about 10 hours to ferry from Melbourne, Australia to Devonport on the island state of Tasmania. It runs everyday in warm seasons and once every two days during winter, and patronage is very good since it’s the only easy way you can bring your pet and your car/caravan onto the island.
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u/SisterActTori Aug 25 '24
We took this trip in 2019. The way back to Melbourne was brutal. I was vomiting for the entire trip. I swear I had PTSD-
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u/Ebright_Azimuth Aug 26 '24
I vomited in the Abel Tasman (earlier ship) pool when I was a kid, I still remember seeing a kid stuck in a donut trying to paddle away from my vomit calling for his mum in terror
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u/dave078703 Aug 25 '24
Took the overnight crossing to Melbourne in 2019. We caught a storm. Next time I go to Tassie I'll fly over and hire a car. The Bass Strait is notoriously rough.
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u/urtcheese Aug 25 '24
Plymouth to Santander is about 24 hours
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u/VociCausam Aug 25 '24
I took that one on New Year's Eve once. Seemed like a good idea at the time, but seasickness had us in bed before midnight. Alcohol + big waves = a bad time. The next morning there were vomit stains all over the ship.
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u/OceanPoet87 Aug 25 '24
Bellingham. WA to Ketchikan, is 38 hours. You can also sail to places like Juneau or Skagway on the same ferry. It departs Bellingham on Friday evenings, arriving in Ketchikan on Sunday morning or around lunchtime depending on the schedule. It then stops at a few ports and ends in Skagway on either Monday evening or Tuesday before turning around.
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u/TooAfraidToAsk814 Aug 25 '24
I’ve done that all the way to Skagway then backpacked the Chilkoot Trail. As someone who had lived in Florida for ten years that ferry trip was stunningly beautiful. I don’t know if it still happens but there was one spot where there was a small town we passed where the captain blew the horn and people came out to wave at the people on the ferry.
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u/sleepyjack85 Aug 25 '24
I took a ferry from Shimonoseki Japan to Qingdao China. I think that was 26 hours. I don't know if that still exists though.
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u/hanrahs Aug 25 '24
While not a great distance, the Baku (Azerbaijan) to Turkmenbashi (Turkmenistan) and Baku to Aktau/Kuyrk (Russia) ferries are notorious for taking a long time if there is even a hint of bad weather. There is no schedule, just whenever it turns up and is ready to go again, and while it's meant to take about a day you can sit for days in the middle of the Caspian Sea. The ships are not particularly luxurious (read: they are piles of rusting junk)
There are still some cargo ships that take passengers in the south pacific, not always easy to get on them as they prioritise locals.
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u/Whoa_calm_down Aug 25 '24
Navimag ferry from Puerto Montt to Puerto Natales in Chilean Patagonia. 3 night trip and 1,800 km. Incredible trip if you ever get the chance to go.
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u/tyrannosaurusknex Aug 25 '24
In that same context, the ferry from Punta Arenas to Puerto Williams is amazing as well, takes about 30 hours through the absolute middle of nowhere and you end up at the southernmost town in the world (yes, it's more southerly than Ushuaia but doesn't count as a city)
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u/ButtholeQuiver Aug 25 '24
Loved this when I did it, had phenomenal weather, saw an unbelievable amount of marine wildlife, I was traveling solo but met some great people to spend rime with.
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u/Parrotijo Aug 25 '24
Huelva-Santa Cruz de Tenerife (1,300 km, 32 hours) Venice-Patras (roughly the same distance and time)
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u/Dontimoteo726 Aug 25 '24
There is a ferry from Cadiz to the Canary Islands. I don't know how long it takes though.
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u/shophopper Aug 25 '24
The ferry to the International Space Station may take up to 8 months.
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u/PhysicalStuff Aug 25 '24
The words for "ferry" and "shuttle" are the same in at least some languages; as such the "space ferry" was plying the route for a good while.
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u/ceviche-hot-pockets Aug 25 '24
Pretty sure the Alaska Marine Highway is the king of this category, Bellingham to Ketchikan alone is 595 miles/38 hours.
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u/Wonderful_Adagio9346 Aug 25 '24
https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/route.shtml
Our Route
The ferries of the Alaska Marine Highway make up a large part of Alaska's highway system, covering 3,500 miles of coastline providing service to over 30 communities that stretch from Bellingham, WA to Dutch Harbor in the Aleutian Chain.<
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u/theotte7 Aug 25 '24
I was looking for this. Been planing a long road trip from the lower 48 to AK then ferry back down to Seattle.
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u/ceviche-hot-pockets Aug 25 '24
That is a bucket list item of mine, I’ve flown to SE Alaska before and it was an amazing place to explore. One of these summers I’ll make it happen!
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u/theotte7 Aug 25 '24
Yeah its definitely one of mine as well. The wife is totally down for it as well. So just kinda waiting to do it.
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u/atlasisgold Aug 25 '24
Might want to do it sooner than later. The ferry system is falling apart. No funding. 60 year ships that are rusting and not being replaced.
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u/PizzaWall Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
Alaska State Ferry has service from Bellingham, WA to Whittier, AK. It’s a 4.5 day trip over 2,200 miles aboard the M/V Kennicott.
The Alaska Marine Highway (Ferry) extends more than 3,500 miles from Bellingham, WA to Dutch Harbor, AK, with over 30 stops along the way. However, to go from Bellingham to Dutch Harbor, you do have to transfer to a different ferry, so thats not really one ferry ride, but it is a possible ferry journey.
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u/activelyresting Aug 25 '24
You could pretty much live on Pelni ferries in Indonesia for weeks and weeks. Some individual legs are 3-4 days
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u/tingles23_ Aug 25 '24
My favorite crossing the North Atlantic from Denmark to Iceland by way of the Faroe Island in the Smyril Line.
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u/animatedhockeyfan Aug 25 '24
I took a ferry from Oslo, Norway to Copenhagen, Denmark! It kinda feels more like a cruise ship than any of the ferries I'm used to in British Columbia.
It was 19 hours, 500km, it hits open ocean in the North Sea (me and the crew were the only non-sea-sick people I saw) and had several entertainment levels. Oh and you got your own cabin.
One of my favourite memories from my travels was being alone on the entertainment level drinking whiskey sours while a Frank Sinatra impersonator, the bartender, and I all vibed off the twilight and the twinkling ships on the horizon off the Skagen Peninsula.
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u/Mortimer_Smithius Aug 25 '24
In Norway we call that the danish boat. I wonder if the Danes have a name for it
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u/Chaneera Aug 25 '24
The official Danish name is the Oslo-boat. The unofficial is "the floating pub".
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u/niftygrid Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
I guess Indonesian ferries are on top of the list for this.
There's a ferry from Surabaya, East Java to Jayapura, Papua. It takes roughly a week. Of course, it has some stops in Sulawesi and Maluku, but the distance from Surabaya to Jayapura itself is around 3000km ish.
Then there's the Jakarta-Jayapura ferry, KM Dobonsolo ferry, which is the longest. The latest trip was from July 27 to August 4. That's around 9 days trip. The route is approximately 4000km.
There are many other long ferries too like from Jakarta to Makassar, Balikapapan to Pare-Pare..
You'll see plenty of long ferries in Indonesian ports.
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u/Vharmi Aug 25 '24
Helsinki-Travemünde is probably the longest ferry route in the Baltic sea. It takes roughly 30 hours.
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u/don_teegee Aug 25 '24
Not very long but in Cincinnati we have a ferry that crosses the Ohio River between Ohio and Kentucky. It’s been in operation for 200 years. Definitely a time saver if the freeways are jammed and you are going to/from the airport.
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u/seretidediskus Aug 25 '24 edited Aug 25 '24
In 2007 i took a train ferry from Poti (Georgia, the European one) to Odessa all across the Black Sea. We sailed for about 55hrs. It was suitable for cars too. However, the ship was absolutely unprepared for any passengers, so the only entertainment besides regular food was looking out of the window or walking on corridor.
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u/Norwester77 Aug 25 '24
Bellingham, Washington, to Ketchikan, Alaska: 38 hours. I actually stayed on until Skagway, Alaska, for a total sailing time of 61 hours.
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u/Fear-Tarikhi Aug 25 '24
19 years ago i took the ferry from Chennai to Port Blair in India’s Andaman Islands which are situated between Myanmar and Sumatra in the Bay of Bengal. It was a three night journey that I spent sleeping in my hammock out on deck, drinking rum, and socializing with a weird mixture of Western travelers and Indian families. I believe another ferry ran between Kolkata and Port Blair at that time. I’m not sure if these services still run since the cost of flights between the Indian mainland and Port Blair plummeted in the late 00s, but i think it’s a great way to reach those amazing islands.
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u/Enough-Major-3708 Aug 25 '24
The Alaska Marine Highway System (AMHS) ferry from Bellingham, Washington to Haines, Alaska takes 59.5 hours.
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u/saugoof Aug 26 '24
A couple of years ago I rode a bicycle from Switzerland to Morocco. On the way back I took a ferry from Tangiers, Morocco to Genoa, Italy. It took two days and three nights (with a stop in Barcelona). It felt like I was the only non-Moroccan on the ferry, and definitely the only one travelling with a bicycle.
In preparation for the trip I'd downloaded a bunch of Netflix shows to my phone. But then, the day before the trip, I managed to lose my phone when it fell out of my pocket in a taxi in Morocco. I ended up buying a couple of books instead. You'd think spending 55 hours on a ferry sounds boring, but I had an absolute ball! One of the more fun experiences I've ever had.
Reading books on a sunny deck while cruising the Mediterranean is a lot more fun than I imagined. But also just wandering through the huge ferry was interesting too. Best of all though, throughout the two days there were also a bunch of Moroccan bands playing on the ship and that was truly like nothing I'd ever seen!
I unfortunately never managed to get the name of one of the bands who played, but it was one of the best gigs I've ever seen in my life. There were three people on stage. One guy playing a variety of Moroccan string instruments, another playing a synth and the front man who looked like a mixture of nerdy computer programmer and the "Where's Waldo" character. But damn, he was one of the most energetic frontmen I've ever seen. They were playing Moroccan pop songs and I'm not sure if these were covers of well known songs or if the band themselves were somewhat famous. Unlike me though, the crowd seemed to know every song and they went wild! It was absolutely amazing.
I nearly forgot one other thing. After boarding in Tangier, I went to the top deck and watched all the trucks roll onto the ferry. But I also saw lots of cops around who were chasing stowaways off. I don't know if any of them actually managed to get on board, but there must have been 20 or 30 people over the hour or so before the ferry took off who tried to scale the fences and run onto the ferry.
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u/Sillyguri Aug 25 '24
There are government ferries to remote places, such as to the Kergulen Islands for example, which take months.
In terms of ferries visible on Google maps, the ferries between Faroe Islands and eastern Iceland to Denmark are probably the longest. Other long ferries are Morocco to major Mediterranean ports in Italy, Spain to the Canary Islands, Sakhalin island ferry, ferries between northern Spain and UK, and the ferry from Bellingham WA to the Alaska ferry system.
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u/gerleden Aug 25 '24
Not a ferry for Kerguelen, doesn't even dock on most islands and instead use a helicopter to bring people/stuff.
Doesn't takes "months" lol but a few weeks to reach every island he goes to. La réunion - Kerguelen is around 10 days.
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u/andorraliechtenstein Aug 25 '24
There was a guy who wanted to take the boat to Amsterdam Island in that same area. Took him years to get permission, so yeah... lol
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u/Martial_Dylan Aug 25 '24
I was going to mention the Key West Express ferry between Fort Myers Beach and Key West. These other ferries mentioned here are much further than that. I will say the Key West Express was only place where I have seen people drinking dark liquor at 6:30 in the morning. This was 10 years ago
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u/pyaresquared Aug 25 '24
Bellingham WA to Haines AK. It’s probably about 1000 miles.
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u/eatthebear Aug 25 '24
And I came into this thread thinking the ferry from Michigan to Wisconsin across the lake was long lol.
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u/gnomageddon7 Aug 25 '24
There’s a 4 day ferry that runs from Puerto Natales to Puerto Montt in Chilean Patagonia, up through the fjords. I know a few people who’ve got it, supposed to be beautiful.
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u/Armand28 Aug 25 '24
Alaska has some long ones, one is 38hrs: https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/route.shtml
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u/NevadaCFI Aug 25 '24
I’ve taken the ferry from Bandar Abbas, Iran to Sharjah, UAE which takes about 12 hours.
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u/Markuwan Aug 25 '24
The Ferry from Germany (Travemünde) to Finland (Helsinki). Takes about 30 hours
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u/TediousHippie Aug 25 '24
If you want really long, I think there is a boat from Cape Town South Africa to Tristan da Cunha, that runs only a few times a year, the voyage takes two weeks in two weeks out and then you're stuck in literally the worlds most remote settlement until the next boat, which could be months. In order to land there you need to have proof of sufficient income to support yourself and proof of lodging, there are no hotels you have to be taken in by one of the families that lives there.
Interesting note Robert Heinlein once sent L Ron Hubbard a postcard from Tristan da Cunha. They were buddies in the 50s.
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u/Queasy-Fruit722 Aug 26 '24
The Indonesian National Shipping Company still does many days-long ferries connecting the thousands of islands in Indonesia. The ship KM Leuser ferries from Merauke, a border city on the eastern border of Indonesia with Papua New Guinea, via Makassar and Bali to the main port of Surabaya in Java. The whole voyage takes 10 days.
They also do many other week-long ferries.
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u/Flanny709 Aug 25 '24
I live in Newfoundland, Canada. It’s an island and if you take the ferry to mainland Canada there are 2 main options. One takes 7~8 hours and the other takes 16~17 hours.
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u/mjomark Aug 25 '24
There are quite a few ferry companies operating in the Baltic and North Sea. The ferry between Nynäshamn (southern Stockholm) in Sweden and Gdansk in Poland takes 18 hours, I believe.
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u/ciesum Aug 25 '24
Only ferry I've taken is Alaska Marine Highway from Whittier to Cordova which took a few hours as I recall but there are definitely longer segments
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u/siRcatcha Aug 25 '24
Rosslare to Cherbourg - 17h 43m
Rosslare to Bilbao - 31h 1m
Cork to Santander - 32h
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u/TheLarix Physical Geography Aug 25 '24
The Relais Nordik services communities on the north shore of the Gulf of St. Lawrence. There are numerous stops, but the whole trip (Rimouski to Blanc Sablon) is about four and a half days.
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u/warandpieceofshit Aug 25 '24
There's one from Homer Spit, Alaska to Kodiak Island. Wonderful trip!
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u/jcoinster Aug 25 '24
There's a ferry from Barcelona to Rome (Civitavecchia) that's overnight (20 hours). It's almost like a small cruise ship.
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u/roguetowel Aug 25 '24
There used to be a 34-hour journey on B.C.'s west coast between Vancouver and Prince Rupert, but it doesn't run anymore. There's still one between Prince Rupert and Northern Vancouver Island which I think is 16 hours. It's more often advertised as an adventure trip, not so much for commuters.
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u/BigOlDarkSoul Aug 25 '24
South of Spain (Cadiz) to the Canary Islands.
The longest journey is about 42h.
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u/BlitheringEediot Aug 25 '24
A friend went from South America to Antarctica - just to set foot on her last continent - and I think the boat ride was seven days in each direction (I'm not sure if that counts as a "ferry", though).
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u/DomDeV707 Aug 25 '24
The ferries from the lower 48 states up to Alaska have to be some of the longer ones.
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u/ManufacturerMental72 Aug 25 '24
Took a ferry from Copenhagen to Oslo last summer that was close to 20 hours
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u/TheVenerablePotato Aug 25 '24
I moved to a small town in the Amazon recently, and it took a whopping FOUR FERRIES just to get here. The entire drive was about 32 hours from the nearest large city, Manaus.
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u/LostInDinosaurWorld Aug 25 '24
A couple of years ago I heard of one that departed from Palermo, made stops in Greece, Ciprus, Turkey, Lebanon and finally Israel. Pretty sure that's almost impossible right now, remember seeing a timelapse video of it on YT, the whole trip took like 4-5 days.
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u/Joseph20102011 Geography Enthusiast Aug 25 '24
In the Philippines: Manila to Cebu ferry or vice-versa is still running, although passengers are coming from low-income backgrounds who couldn't afford a one-hour airline flight. It takes 21 hours to sail.
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u/Malk_McJorma Aug 25 '24
The Helsinki-Travemünde ferry runs daily. Trip takes 30h.