Southsea Ferry Terminal

Southsea ferry port is 1 mile from Portsmouth in Hampshire and is the passenger gateway to Ryde on the Isle of Wight. With a crossing time of just 10 minutes, Hovertravel operate up to 39 hovercraft crossing a day.

Book Ferries

Southsea Ferry Port

Situated between Gosport and Hayling Island, Southsea lies on the edge of Portsmouth, a short distance from Portsmouth Historic Dockyard (home to the Mary Rose Museum and HMS Victory), the University of Portsmouth and Fratton Park Football Stadium. Hovertravel's Southsea "Hoverport" is just next to Clarence Pier - not to be confuse with South Parade Pier - with a car park just across the road, and public toilets available. Clarence Pier features an amusement arcade, fairground rides and a crazy golf course, along with fast food outlets and a coffee shop. Hovertravel offers the fastest way to cross the Solent between Southsea and Ryde on the Isle of Wight. The low tides at Ryde take the sea out far past the town's esplanade, making it impossible for any ship to berth so close to the town centre. The hovercraft however can travel at very low tides and so in 1965 Hovertravel was established, and more than 29 million passengers have travelled on the service since then. Today, Hovertravel run two hovercraft, for foot passengers only, with a journey time of just under 10 minutes. For those of you who want to take the car, the Wightlink ferries terminal, which also runs to Ryde on the Isle of Wight is just over a mile away, close to the iconic Spinnaker Tower, about half an hour's walk from the hovercraft terminal.

Get directions for Southsea Ferry Terminal

Port address: Clarence Esplanade Southsea Portsmouth, PO5 3AD

Southsea terminal is served by these ferry routes:

Travelling to Southsea Ferry Terminal

Head towards Portsmouth and onto the M27. Join the M275 and continue past the continental ferry port towards Portsmouth, following the signs for Isle of Wight ferries, Seafront and Historic Waterfront. You'll now see signs for the Hovercraft which you now need to follow.

Leave the train at Portsmouth & Southsea Station and follow signs to the Hoverbus - bus stop C. See below for details of the Hoverbus service.

The specially operated Hoverbus Service takes you directly from the train station to the Hovercraft Southsea Terminal. Prices are £1.70/Adult & £1.50/Child. The Hoverbus connects with our hovercraft and will make sure you are at the Hovercraft Terminal in time for your craft.

Southsea: Port Facilities

The terminal has a comfortable waiting area with a Costa Coffee Express machine as well as various vending machines selling a variety of crisps and snacks. Free wifi is also available - search and select 'Hovertravel-FREE-WIFI' to enjoy complimentary internet access whilst you wait at the terminal.

There is Disabled access to the terminal and toilets are located inside.

Motorised wheelchairs must have a sealed battery. Hovertravel cannot carry motorised scooters or people movers however they are able to provide a wheelchair for use (free of charge) to travel between the ports. Please advise staff on arrival if you wish to travel in a wheelchair. We also suggest that you advise of any special requirements at the time of booking.

'Southsea -The Esplanade' is a large council operated pay and display car park which is located directly opposite the port. Both long and short stay parking is available. Additional parking is available behind Clarence Pier funfair, adjacent to Southsea Common and further along the Esplanade at D-Day Museum and Pyramids.

This information is provided for guidance only.