As first timers, this part was a little bit confusing to us, so I thought it might be helpful to share our experience for those of you who are like us.
Our Experience:
We put the ferry terminal in the GPS on our rental and it kept taking us around to a building where there is a restaurant on the second floor (buffet style - smelled amazing). We didn't stop to eat there, and yummy smells aside, this was the wrong spot. And while the ferry models were very cool, if you end up here, you'll need to go back out the way you came in and try again.
Instead, when you first come out of Calais to the port, take Av du Commandant Cousteau to a large roundabout. Take the second exit to Rue du Jusan. At the second exit, you'll be on Av. du Merite Maritime. The first right will lead you to the booths; if you are dropping off a rental car and crossing the ferry on foot, you'll want to go to the building on the left. Once you make it to this point, it's all pretty straight forward.
Going Through Border Control
As you turn right, you'll going to find a huge toll booth-like area. Choose the lane for your ferry line (we took P&O Ferries), and as you wait for your turn at this first booth, ready your passports by removing each one from its holder. You'll also want to pull out any additional paperwork you might need (ie. pet passport or pet health certificate if you are traveling with your fur babies like we are).
Once we made it up to the window, we had to provide our reservation number. Once they had that and had pulled up our reservation. Once they had the information on their screen, they asked for our passports and the documentation for the pets. They worked on that paperwork first, which was quite honestly the most stressful part of the process. After a few minutes, they cleared the pets, and then asked for our passports. At this point, they did ask to see everyone in the vehicle, so if you have people in the backseat, they will have to scoot forward so they can be seen. Once the man was satisfied with who was in the car, we made payment for the ferry ticket (the website had been glitchy, so we couldn't pay in advance. If you can pay in advance, I highly recomment you do. It's just one less point of stress). Finally, he handed us our ferry tickets, the sticker for the car window, and the rearview mirror tag, and we were free to move to the next booth.
This next booth was the British Border Control. Once again, we had to hand over our passports (so don't put those away after the first booth). They asked to see everyone in the car, compared the passports, and then stamped our books.
We drove forward a little ways, and then were stopped by another border control agent who pulled us forward for a few questions. They did not do this for everyone, but I believe we were stopped because we had a rental car with a French license plate. They asked about the car, our reason for visiting the UK, how long we would be staying, and where we intended to go afterward (I believe just to make sure we had a plan). Once they were satisfied, we were free to move forward, and that was the last border stop prior to boarding the ferry.
To figure out where to go next, you will need to look at your ticket. On it, you'll find your lane assignment. There are several lanes, and you will want to pull into the one that matches your ticket. Once you move all the way forward, and if you have a few minutes prior to boarding, you are free to get out of your car and go inside the Calais lounge.
And yes, if you have furbabies, they can go inside as well, just be sure they are on their leash (we left the cat in the car in her cage).
Inside, you'll fine bathrooms, a liquor store, a gift shop, and a food counter with muffins, croissants, coffee, and a few other goodies. My husband and youngest daughter both had blueberry muffins. They both enjoyed them, and the bite I had was good.
After about twenty minutes, we made our way back to the car and within another fifteen minutes, they started boarding the ferry. This part was painless, and once we were parked, we made sure the pets were secure (they are not allowed out of the car for the duration of the cruise over unless you purchase tickets to the pet lounge. That part of the ferry is for dogs only, and we relt it was better for both pets to keep them together instead of leaving the cat alone in the car).
We took an elevator up to the passenger deck, and were pleasantly surprised on what we found.
The Cruise from Calais to Dover
I'm not sure what I was expecting for the ferry, but it wasn't what we found. P&O Ferries is truly a beautiful vessel with bright indoor spaces, large windows overlooking the water, a little self-serve eatery with warm sandwiches, muffins and patries, beverages, and candy, a duty-free gift shop, and even a handful of slot machines. There was also game room with crane machines and video games along with a couple of small kid zones for younger ones.
Since the trip is about an hour and a half long, the girls and I treated ourselves to a slushie each and a little something from the gift shop:
Once we finished snaking and shopping, we were free to enjoy the cruise.
SPECIAL NOTE: If you suffer from motion sickness, rest assured that it isn't very noticable on the ferry. There were moments where we felt a little bit like Jack Sparrow for a few minutes, but the sensation would quickly pass, and if we were sitting, we didn't feel it at all. If it is a problem, however, it may not be a bad idea to bring medication to be on the safe side.
Arriving into Dover
The arrival into Dover was as easy as the rest of the trip. Don't feel like you have to rush for your car, however. The elevators are turned off up once the ferry begins crossing the chanel, and they don't turn back on until the ferry is docked. Once it is, the crew will make an announcement that it is time to return to your vehicle, and there are plenty of elevators to to the lower levels that you don't have to feel like you need to beat the rush.
Once everyone has made it to the cars and the light turns green, you can turn your vehicle on (not before), and the crew will start disembarking. It only took maybe ten minutes from the time we left the passenger areas of the area to the time we were driving on British soil.
Happy travels!