Hayling Island Ferry from Eastney

By road, Eastney and the west end of Hayling Island sit about 15 miles apart, all the way around Langstone Harbour. Across the harbour mouth the gap is a few hundred metres. The Hayling Island Ferry exists for that crossing. From Eastney Landing in Southsea, the Pride of Hayling carries foot passengers and bikes to Ferry Point on Hayling.

Baker Trayte Marine, a Portsmouth marine firm, brought the service back in 2016 after a gap when the previous operator closed. The boat itself is the same purpose-built vessel used on the route since the late 1980s, licensed for 63 passengers, with boarding ramps and racks for cycles.

Bicycles travel free. Cars do not travel at all. On the Portsmouth side the landing sits at Eastney Point, with the Southsea seafront path close behind it.

The crossing is short enough that the practical point is the link it creates, not the time spent on board. National Cycle Route 2 uses it to join the Hayling Billy Trail with the Southsea seafront path. Walkers on the Shipwrights Way and on the Langstone Harbour circuit use the same pontoons. On the Hayling side the Ferry Boat Inn sits next to the landing. In summer the boat also carries people heading for Hayling’s west beaches, a few hundred metres from the terminal.

The service runs year-round and puts on extra crossings for large Portsmouth events. Commuters and schoolchildren use it on ordinary weekdays. Live details sit on haylingferry.net, and a regular crossing does not need to be booked in advance.

For anyone already on the Eastney or Southsea shore, or finishing a walk or ride on Hayling, this is the direct way between the two islands. The long way remains the road.