Red Funnel was very quick at responding to my enquiries they answererd in a easy to understand way & made me feel like I was valued as a customer. Everytime I contact Red Funnel or travel on there boa... See more
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We travelled to the Isle of Wight recently with Red Funnel. The booking process was simple & entry at the ports was all done by car registration recognition so no worries about finding tickets etc. On... See more
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Sailing on time. Dog lounge easily accessible. Good selection of food and beverages available. Having arrived earlier than expected on the return crossing from Cowes to Southampton we were offered ins... See more
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Never had any issues with Red Funnel( so far), staff are always friendly, helpful & ferry always running to time ( used a several times in last few years) Yes this time going was strange as the la... See more
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Company details
Written by the company
We are proud to be the original Isle of Wight Ferry, with over 164 years of experience sailing between Southampton and the Isle of Wight. We aim to deliver a First-Class customer experience from start to finish and operate more than 35 crossings a day. Use our easy online booking service to secure your Vehicle Ferry spot and step aboard to enjoy a range of facilities during your crossing. Customers can enjoy our premium Signature Lounge, pet-friendly lounge, licensed bar, café and retail shop plus outdoor sun decks before arriving at your destination in just 1-hour. Foot passengers can turn up and go via our Hi-Speed Red Jet service, arriving in just 30 minutes.
Discover the Isle of Wight with Red Funnel Ferries
Written by the company
- Just 1-Hour from Southampton
- Discover the wonderfully different Isle of Wight with Red Funnel Ferries. Set sail for sandy beaches, dramatic coastlines, rolling countryside, dazzling dark skies and charming villages; the Isle of Wight packs a lot of adventure and natural beauty into its modest size. Within an hour’s drive time, you can bask on 25 different beaches, visit more than 50 attractions, and experience the UK’s favourite Island holiday destination from end to end. Not only are we the original Isle of Wight Ferry, transporting visitors between Southampton and the Isle of Wight for over 164 years, but we also offer a fantastic selection of places to stay and visit, all bookable online via our website. Book your hotel, holiday park, cottage and your attraction tickets with us, and save on your ferry travel.
Contact info
12 Bugle Street, SO14 2JY, Southampton, United Kingdom
- 02380019192
- customerservices@redfunnel.co.uk
- www.redfunnel.co.uk
4.4
Excellent
553 reviews
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Replied to 90% of negative reviews
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Good service.
In spite of not being able to board the ferry to the Isle of Wight at the booked time due to a major accident on the A33 right outside the ferry entrance, we were able to get on to the ferry later the same day without any problems. Return journey on 01/5/26 was fine being boarded and departing East Cowes bang on time. Loading and unloading process was very efficient. I would definately use this service again.
April 24, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for taking the time to leave us your review.
I am sorry to hear that you were impacted by the incident outside our terminal, and I apologise for any inconvenience this caused. Due to restricted entry and exit of our terminal, we unfortunately saw some suspensions to our vehicle ferry service; however, we endeavoured to return to service as soon as possible.
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your review - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Smooth boarding and exit from ferry
Smooth boarding and exit from ferry, good breakfast on board and great to be able to walk around the ship to kill the time for an hour. Will do Red funnel again no doubt!
April 13, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your review. I am pleased to hear you enjoyed the breakfast and we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Seamless crossing both ways and on time
April 30, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your review - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
All went well
April 25, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your review - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Well organised ferry
Well organised with the vehicles getting off and onto the ferry and the ferry runs on time
Plenty of seating lots of choice of food and drink and the fare is more reasonable then the other ferry route
Would rebook
April 17, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback. We are happy to hear that you would travel with us again and we hope to welcome you back on board again soon.
Customer service was poor
Queue in East Cowes was chaotic. Merged with chain ferry queue but as we were too far up York Avenue we didn’t know this. A member of staff should have been sent to direct drivers round the chain ferry queue
April 29, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for taking the time to leave us your feedback. I am sorry to hear that you felt the queue was chaotic.
York Avenue is a single-laned road until it reaches the town centre, where it divides into two lanes. The road markings for these lanes show Chain Ferry on the left lane, and So'ton Ferry on the right. Until this carriageway splits, it would be unfeasible to direct traffic around the chain ferry queue.
If there is substantial traffic in the right-hand lane, our shoreside colleagues would be busy checking in or marshalling traffic in our yard, and may not be able to leave their current task to assist elsewhere. I shall ensure your feedback is reviewed by our Operations Manager for East Cowes for future consideration.
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you onboard again soon!
Friendly and efficient staff
May 2, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Very average.
Ferry was far too busy, people struggling to find a seat. Long queue for a coffee, which tasted awful. Departed almost on time which is a positive.
April 19, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for taking the time to leave us your review. I am sorry to hear that you struggled to find seating. Excluding the Signature Lounge, we have over 550 seats available on board each of our vehicle ferries. Should you experience difficulty locating seating in the future, please do not hesitate to ask our Onboard Services Officer (at the top of the yellow stairwell) for assistance.
I found the staff helpful at the docks…
I found the staff helpful at the docks and on board the ferries. Loading and unloading was quick and efficient and no real delays for the onward journey.
May 1, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Great crossing
You did a great job, especially considering the accident in the port gateway, our delay was minimal And we had a great crossing.
April 24, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Ferries efficient and staff helpful
Ferry trips were efficiently loaded and unloaded, ferries left and arrived on time and staff were polite and helpful.
May 1, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Very good experience as usual
Very good experience as usual, the service was impeccable, I would recommend Red Funnel to everyone.
April 25, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Booking was simple and straightforward
Booking was simple and straightforward, with prompt and informative confirmation.
We arrived a little ahead of time for both the outbound and return journeys and were swiftly accommodated on an earlier ferry.
We used the Signature Lounge on both journeys and found it very comfortable and with charming, friendly staff.
May 3, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for taking the time to leave us your feedback. We are delighted to hear that the booking process was simple, and that you enjoyed the Signature Lounge. We hope to see you on board again soon!
Everything went like clockwork no issues
April 28, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for your feedback - we hope to welcome you on board again soon!
Always great service
Never had any issues with Red Funnel( so far), staff are always friendly, helpful & ferry always running to time ( used a several times in last few years)
Yes this time going was strange as the lane of cars that arrived after the one we were in all boarded first & we had paid for priority boarding but journey back made it ok as we managed to get an earlier ferry then booked.
Dog lounge is looking smart as all redone - some people still don’t grasp that dogs should be on the floor ( no seat !! unless you put use something to protect seats🙄) Definitely prefer Red Funnel ( have used other ferry many times in previous years)
May 2, 2026
Reply from Red Funnel Ferries
Thank you for taking the time to leave us your review. We are pleased to hear that our staff are always friendly and helpful.
When loading, there may be times when we load a few other vehicles before those with Priority Boarding, and I apologise if this was not communicated to you at the time.
If we are using one of the drop-down mezzanine decks on the lower vehicle deck, we may load this first due to the time it takes to lower and raise. Loading a mezzanine deck can take about 10 minutes to load, raise and stow safely into position. This means that while they are technically the first on the ship, they will be the last off, and would be highly unlikely to find seats before the majority of the upper deck had been loaded.
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