TT 2015 in a Van?

[budd]

As stated previously many people place a provisional booking as soon as they return, it’s really the only way to guarantee the sailings you want, the other problem you face is that there is no provision for vans in the online booking system, to book a van you have to ring them direct with details of the vans size and contents etc, this is a PITA because it means you can’t keep checking ferry availability online you must ring them.

I had the same issue for years booking our van on until I was told by one of the phone staff that if the van wasn’t sign written and wasn’t carrying ‘for profit’ goods or tools of a trade then it could be booked on as a camper, after all a sleeping bag and a camp stove is all you need to camp in a van, it doesn’t have to be a full blown VW type camper. Booking it on a as a camper allows you to use the online system and makes it much easier to get a booking,

If your van looks like a work van then you may have problems booking it as a camper and your only option is to get on the phone the day the advance bookings are payable, because as stated in previous posts lots of people who’ve made reservations don’t actually complete the booking and those sailings are re-offered, with some persistence and a little luck you should get on a boat but you may have to be prepared to sail at inconvenient times.
Sailings around the start, middle and end of the event tend to be booked up solid, it’s often possible to get on with a single bike but a van is much more difficult.
I want over in ’02 with a big Nissan pathfinder and a trailer with the bikes on, we got a sailing over mid practice week but couldn’t get a return boat till Tues evening the week after the final race, it was actually quite good because it was much quieter and we got some of the best riding in on the Sun, Mon and Tues ( plus it stopped raining which was nice), the bottom line is keep trying and hopefully you’ll get a place.