Freighter Travel from Harwich: Routes, Lines and What a Berth Costs

Freighter travel from Harwich puts you on a working cargo ship with a cabin, three meals a day and no entertainment programme — and takes you to Hoek van Holland without boarding an aircraft. This is what sails from Harwich, what a berth costs and how to join the ship.

Where Harwich is, and what it handles

Harwich sits on the North Sea in England, with Colchester, 20 miles west. The port works ro-ro, ferries and offshore support.

Harwich International has its own railway station on the quay, so you can step off a London train and onto a ship without a road transfer.

Which lines carry passengers from Harwich

Only a minority of cargo lines take passengers at all, and which of them calls at Harwich changes from season to season as rotations are redrawn. That is the single thing most people get wrong when planning a voyage: a line that carried passengers here last year may not be running the route this year.

A freighter carries between two and twelve passengers. There is no tender, no second sitting and no alternative if the ship is full, so the practical constraint on freighter travel from Harwich is availability rather than price. Tell us the month you want and we will tell you which ships have a berth.

Where you can sail from Harwich

From Harwich the scheduled trades run to Hoek van Holland and the Dutch inland waterways.

What it costs

A berth is priced by the day rather than by the voyage, and the fare is full board: a private cabin with a window, usually with a separate sitting area, and every meal. There is no cheaper class, because there is only one standard of passenger cabin on a working ship.

Against a flight it looks expensive. Against a cruise of the same length it rarely does, and almost nothing is extra once you are aboard — bar drinks and the occasional port fee, and that is the list. Fares from Harwich move with the route and the season, so ask for a current figure for the sailing you want.

Getting to Harwich

The nearest airport is Stansted Airport. From there, Harwich International, direct from London Liverpool Street. Plan to be in Colchester the evening before your sailing date: cargo ships bring their departure forward as readily as they delay it, and a ship that finishes loading early will sail early.

Who can travel

There is a doctor on very few freighters, so most lines set an upper age limit around 79 and ask for a fitness-to-travel certificate above about 65. Deviation insurance is required — it covers the cost of putting the ship off its route in an emergency, and no line will board you without it. Children are accepted by some lines and not others.

Questions people ask about Harwich

Can you travel by cargo ship from Harwich?

Yes — Harwich handles ro-ro, ferries and offshore support, and some of the lines calling here carry a small number of passengers. Berths are limited to a handful per sailing and are usually booked months ahead, so availability rather than price is the real constraint.

How much does freighter travel from Harwich cost?

A freighter berth is priced by the day rather than by the voyage, and it is full board: a private cabin, every meal, and no second class. Fares move with the route and the season, so ask for a current figure for the sailing you want rather than working from a published table.

What is a freighter cabin like?

Larger than a cruise cabin and plainer. You get a private room with a window or porthole, a desk, a bathroom and usually a separate sitting area. There is no entertainment programme, no pool attendant and no wifi worth the name — which is the point for most people who choose it.

How do I get to the port?

Fly in to Stansted Airport, then continue to the quay — Harwich International, direct from London Liverpool Street. Lines normally ask you to be in the port city the night before sailing, because a ship that finishes loading early will sail early and it will not wait.

Read next

• Freighter travel from Tilbury — the other UK & Ireland option on the same trades.
• Freighter travel from London Gateway — the other UK & Ireland option on the same trades.
• Freighter travel from Hull — the other UK & Ireland option on the same trades.
• UK & Ireland freighter routes — how Harwich fits the wider picture.
• Read about freighter travel from the UK.
• Read about taking your car on a cargo ship.

Ask us what is sailing from Harwich — tell us your month and we will tell you what has a berth.