Brittany Ferries accepts bicycles for foot passengers for no additional charge on routes between Portsmouth and France (Caen, Saint Malo, Cherbourg and Le Harve), Portsmouth to Spain (Santander and Bilbao) Poole to Cherbourg and Plymouth to Roscoff in France, or Plymouth to Santander in Spain. They also have a useful video showing you the experience of putting a bike on board. Visit brittany-ferries.co.uk or call 0330 159 7000.

Caledonian MacBrayne accepts bicycles with foot passengers free of charge on its multiple routes to from Scotland’s West Coast to islands from Arran to North Uist. Passengers travelling to the terminal by train will need to check with scotrail.co.uk to check if they need to book their bikes onto the connecting train service. Visit calmac.co.uk for more information.

DFDS accepts bicycles as part of a car booking for no additional charge on its routes between Newcastle and Amsterdam, Dover Calais, Dover to Dunkirk and Newhaven to Dieppe. Its website is packed with useful cycling tips and cycling route advice. Visit dfdsseaways.co.uk for more information.

P &O Ferries accepts bicycles with foot passengers as well as part of a car booking for no additional charge on its routes between Dover and Calais, Hull to Rotterdam, Hull to Zeebrugge and Cairnryan in Scotland to Larne, Northern Ireland. A clever interactive adventure planner on its website gives ideas for cycling adventures and gives tips about travelling to watch professional cycling overseas. P&O Ferries doesn’t accept bicycles on its Liverpool to Dublin route. Visit poferries.com or call 01304 44 88 88

Red Funnel accepts bicycles for no extra charge on its route from Southhampton to East and West Cowes. It’s worth noting that bikes cannot be carried on the Red Jet Hi-Speed service because of the design of the ship unless they are of the folding type and carried in a purpose designed bag. Visit redfunnel.co.uk or call 02380 248500

Stena Line accepts bicycles for no additional charge on its routes between Cainryan in Scotland and Belfast, Liverpool to Belfast, Holyhead to Dublin, Harwich to Hook of Holland and Fishguard to Rosslare. Visit stenaline.co.uk for more information.

Wightlink allows foot passengers to take a bike free of charge on routes from Lymington to Yarmouth, and Portsmouth to Ryde on the Isle of Wight. Its website site is also packed with tips about cycling on the island and cycle festival details. Visit wightlink.co.uk for more information.

The Isle of Man Steam Packet Company allows foot passengers to take a bike free of charge. They operate regular ferry sailings to the Isle of Man from Heysham and Liverpool (Birkenhead during winter) and seasonal sailings from Belfast and Dublin. Visit steam-packet.com for more information.

Isles of Scilly Steamship Group packs bikes into a luggage hold and therefore must be booked in advance due to the limited availability of space. Bicycles are £26 return (inc trailers) and children’s bikes and scooters (under 5) are £10. Visit islesofscilly-travel.co.uk for more information.

Bicycles are permitted on board all Irish Ferries crossings including Dublin – Holyhead, Rosslare to Pembroke and Rosslare to Cherbourg/ Roscoff. The price when travelling with a bicycle is £20/ €20 return. Visit irishferries.com or call 08717 300 400.

Cyclists can sail through the heart of London on the MBNA Thames Clippers ferry services, stopping off regularly and sightseeing by bike from each pier. MBNA Thames Clippers serve 22 piers across London, from Putney in the West to Woolwich in the East. Each ferry has space for up to 10 cycles on a first come, first-served basis at no extra charge. Visit mbnathamesclippers.com for more information.

For more general information on taking your bicycle on a ferry, visit this page of CyclingEurope.org.

Information supplied by Discover Ferries, an industry body representing 11 ferry operators in the UK and Ireland operating more than 75 routes.

Information correct as of April 2018.