From Denmark to England, overnight on the ferry: 18 hours on a floating hotel - Exploring Holland, Germany and Denmark on a Recumbent Tandem - CycleBlaze
From Denmark to England, overnight on the ferry: 18 hours on a floating hotel
We had a mellow day at the Hostel in Esbjerg enjoying the amenities and comfortable surroundings. We had to vacate our room at 9:30 and our ferry wasn't leaving until 6:45, so we were glad of the Hostel's hospitality. To our surprise, the weather today is sunny and wind free. The past week the forecasts had been for heavy wind which makes the crossing on this ferry notoriously rough. Found a Lidl and stocked up on food for the 18 hours on board. We have read about the high prices for food on the ship and decided to give it a miss.
We didn't find much to interest us in Esbjerg - exploring the downtown, we noticed that there was a bit of a run down feel and there were a lot of bars. Which is in contrast to the Hostel which was an oasis of classy Danish design and hospitality.
Mary Ellen had read that we could check in and board early at 4 pm. Well, that was wrong - we checked in but had to stand in the parking lot until half an hour before sailing. This gave us the opportunity to get to know two men from Britain, travelling by motorcycle who had been in Europe watching motorcycle racing ...really nice guys. We laughed that they had ridden 950 miles in two days - that's more than we do in a month.
The ship impressed us with its amenities and cruise-like feel (on a small scale). There were 3 restaurants and a lounge. Our cabin, an outside double was very nice. The cost of the ferry is quite reasonable, but the compulsory cabin is where they make money.
For us, having been on the road for 3 months, it was a pleasure to be forced to relax and not worry about the bike or where we were going. We enjoyed relaxing in the cabin and reading our books and checking out our Holland maps. The view out our window was of a moon over smooth water - a lovely sight.
We arrived in England at one of the largest container ports in Britain. It was very interesting to watch the mega container ships being loaded.
Charmaine RuppoltNice you all had the 2 motorcyclists to talk to about their travels, while you waited to board the ship. :) Reply to this comment 6 months ago
Another ferry goes to Fano Island, just offshore from Esbjerg. As you can see, most people are foot passengers and leave their bike in a parking garage for bikes.
Our bike is safely secured on the car deck, and we think happy to have a break from the perils of the road. In the last week on Denmark, the bike/trailer had many flat tires.
Getting so close, we could appreciate the immense size of these container ships. We always wonder, what is in them and do we really need so much stuff?
