Brittany Ferries sails Portsmouth to Saint-Malo in around 7.5 to 11 hours, depending on whether you catch a day or night sailing. It’s the route into Brittany, and it drops you at a genuinely good destination in its own right: a walled old town, once known as the pirate city, that’s worth a night rather than a straight drive-through.
Our own crossing: we sailed Saint-Malo to Portsmouth (the outbound direction of our trip) on the brand-new “Saint-Malo” in August 2025, a daytime sailing of 7 hours 30 minutes. Full account on FerryGoGo’s trip report.
Departures
Brittany Ferries runs both day and overnight sailings on this route, and which one you get shifts by season. Ours was a daytime crossing, useful if you’d rather see the coast than sleep through it. Check current times and frequency at Brittany Ferries before booking, this route’s schedule moves around more than the shorter Normandy crossings.
Ship and stay
We sailed on the “Saint-Malo” itself, one of Brittany Ferries’ new LNG-hybrid ships, sister to the “Santoña”. Two vehicle decks with easy space for cars, motorhomes and caravans, the lower deck sits noticeably higher, useful if you’re bringing something tall. On board there are two restaurants (Le Littoral, a bistro, and Le Jardin, a buffet), a sundeck with a play area, a bar (Breizh Ma Bro), several lounges, a small spa, an arcade, a dog kennel and a duty-free shop. Pay extra for the CClub Lounge if you want a quieter space with food and drinks included.
We didn’t book a cabin for this daytime crossing, our two kids napped fine on the sofas, but with a longer or overnight sailing a cabin would make more sense. Cabins here are the same style as on the Santoña: simple, clean, decent-sized bathroom.
Departure, from either side
Check-in at Saint-Malo was quick for us: passport control and check-in took about half an hour, customs were friendly and fast. From Portsmouth, follow the same general check-in guidance as our Portsmouth port guide. Whichever direction you’re travelling, keep your boarding pass on you, it’s your cabin key and you’ll need it in the restaurants and duty-free shop too.
Saint-Malo terminal facilities
- Check-in desks and passport control, separate lanes by destination
- Vehicle marshalling area with digital departure boards
- Security gate before boarding
- Parking near the terminal for drop-off
Travelling to the UK? Apply for your ETA in advance, it can take up to 3 working days and costs about £16 per person, children included. Since Brexit you need a passport for this route in both directions, a driving licence is no longer enough.
Arrival
Sailing into Saint-Malo, get up on deck as you approach: the ramparts and historic harbour make a proper arrival. If you’ve got the time, stay a night or two inside the walled old town (intramuros). It’s small enough to walk everywhere, historic, and a good base for the Breton and Normandy coasts or a trip out to Mont St Michel. Arriving in Portsmouth instead, the same deck-side view works in reverse: the Isle of Wight’s cliffs, then the Spinnaker Tower and the Solent as you come in.
Costs and booking
As with the other routes, treat any fixed price as a snapshot. We paid £315.50 for four people and a car, no cabin, on a daytime sailing in August 2025. Brittany Ferries lists fares on this route from around £165. Check current prices at Brittany Ferries for your dates.
Worth the detour: Dinard and Mont Saint-Michel
Dinard sits right across the estuary from Saint-Malo, close enough to see from the ferry as you sail in, and worth a short trip over while you’re there. Mont Saint-Michel is further, but well within reach as a day trip from Saint-Malo if you’re staying a night or two, one of those places that’s worth planning around rather than skipping.
Alternatives
If Brittany isn’t specifically the plan, Portsmouth to Caen or Portsmouth to Cherbourg are shorter and land you in Normandy instead, useful if you’re heading to Paris or further east. See all five routes on the Portsmouth ferries overview.
Our verdict
Genuinely one of the better crossings we’ve done, and one of the few where the port itself is worth the trip. The one real hiccup wasn’t the ferry’s fault: our car’s clutch started acting up while boarding in Saint-Malo, and gave out completely a few days later, disembarking in Portsmouth. Brittany Ferries staff pushed the car off by hand and sorted a tow, and a flexible ticket meant we could still get home once it was fixed. Worth spending a night or two in Saint-Malo itself if your schedule allows it, rather than treating it as a drive-through port.