Superchargers coming to French side of Channel Tunnel

Excellent news! A matching installation on the other side would really make crossing the channel a delight.

mgboyes said:

Excellent news! A matching installation on the other side would really make crossing the channel a delight.

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Wish granted (nearly) !

the tunnel is a massive waste of money and really not much faster than taking the ferry. You have to be there early, there is always a delay and as a result it takes you pretty much as long as the ferry. So... when are they gonna build superchargers at Dover/Calais/Dunkirk port? (I know Calais has a supercharger but it's unfortunatley not in the waiting area for the ferrys)

spottyq said:

Wish granted (nearly) !

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Time will tell, but that doesn't look anything like a supercharger install to me :-(

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Candleflame said:

the tunnel is a massive waste of money and really not much faster than taking the ferry. You have to be there early, there is always a delay and as a result it takes you pretty much as long as the ferry. So... when are they gonna build superchargers at Dover/Calais/Dunkirk port? (I know Calais has a supercharger but it's unfortunatley not in the waiting area for the ferrys)

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I'm fairly sure the majority of Tesla owners would disagree with you (even before charging facilities were added). Of all the (many) trip reports I've read from UK and European owners over the last year not a single person has mentioned getting the ferry. I certainly wouldn't.

Allowing for the minimum recommended check in time for each, the ferry takes more than twice as long (135 minutes) as the tunnel (65 minutes).

Ferry is about 1/4 - 1/5 of the price of the tunnel. I have been allowed on the ferry a few times arriving 20 min* before departure. So thats about 110min. Eurotunnel you usually have to get there well early due to the long queues. Then there is usually a 20min-45min delay (which you find out about via text message 30min beforehand by which time you are almost there). So you save maybe 30min... Big deal. I'd rather spend the 70 quid I save on something else.


*I once arrived at the checkin about 10min before departure at UK site and they still let me on (DFDS). I think the ferry did leave port about 10min later than planned though.

Why would one need Super chargers on both ends of the Chunnel, given that the driving distance between either ends is close to zero miles ?

Candleflame said:

Ferry is about 1/4 - 1/5 of the price of the tunnel. I have been allowed on the ferry a few times arriving 20 min* before departure. So thats about 110min. Eurotunnel you usually have to get there well early due to the long queues. Then there is usually a 20min-45min delay (which you find out about via text message 30min beforehand by which time you are almost there). So you save maybe 30min... Big deal. I'd rather spend the 70 quid I save on something else.

*I once arrived at the checkin about 10min before departure at UK site and they still let me on (DFDS). I think the ferry did leave port about 10min later than planned though.

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Out of curiosity I just checked the prices for our crossing dates in July/August. The ferry is more expensive. In fact I couldn't find any itinerary where the tunnel was anywhere near 4-5x the price of the ferry.

I've never experienced a queue or a delay on the Eurotunnel.

YMMV I guess

mkjayakumar said:

Why would one need Super chargers on both ends of the Chunnel, given that the driving distance between either ends is close to zero miles ?

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If you have to wait to board the train, you might decide to charge beforehand so you don't lose any travel time.

Ferry's usually 35-45 pounds, tunnel i usually see around 120-150 pounds. but maybe things have changed. Last time i took the tunnel was on christmas day, so obviously much more expensive then.

Cheapest EuroTunnel fare *each way* if you book well in advance (at least a month or 2) travelling out of the silly season, for a larger car, for a day or over-night trip, leaving Folkstone in the morning, is £30. If you are planning to buy some (well, quite a lot of) wine then I would suggest using Pidou (www.pidou.com) as they do a 'buy £300-worth of wine and get a free crossing' offer - ferry or ET. I used it yesterday and it was pretty painless.

Incidentally, half-decent plonk can be had for as little at €1.50 a bottle there (in France generally?) which was a bit of a shock having given up booze-cruising 15 years ago due to the lack of a worthwhile price differential between here and there. Maybe it's just the strong £, but I bought 160 bottles back in the MS (plus 50L of beer and another 40-odd bottles of wine my traveling companion bought), about 60% of it half-decent US & Australian brands (Blossom Hill, Yellow Tail etc) with the rest being cheap French stuff and it came out at an average of ~£1.60/bottle (not including a rather nice - if a tad expensive - lunch on the P&O boat). At the UK price of at least £4/bottle, I saved over £350! Sacré bleu!

The MS handled it all wonderfully, BTW, and with boot & frunk full, we only had 18 bottles (3 boxes) on the back seat. The MS' boot appears to have been designed by a wine-lover...

... these 36 bottles fitted absolutely perfectly into the boot's well.

Gad, they're everywhere...


Charging at L'Haut'Aile hotel, Cité Europe, Calais - which was very good. Hotel receptionist very friendly, offered free coffee etc and wifi access whilst waiting. Looked like a perfectly pleasant hotel for a night or 2 if on the typically bland, modern-looking side and easy access from the A16...


Charging at Maidstone (at 2230 - about 3 hours behind schedule due to striking ferry workers and migrant issues)


All in all, a very enjoyable day out (bar the waiting for ferries) and perhaps a booze-cruise revival is on the way?! MW