The slot was confirmed in a press release from the region and has been secured thanks to close working between Brittany Ferries, the Brittany region, Port of Saint Malo, and the States of Guernsey.

Redevelopment work due to be taking place on the Port of Saint Malo starting next year will mean one of the two RoRo ramps will not be accessible, which was due to create congestion and pressure on the Port in the morning.

The Brittany Ferries slot for 2026 is just 15 minutes later than the slot used during Brittany Ferries' successful summer season in 2025. The security of this slot is thanks to the careful and complex planning by the Ports of Saint Malo as well as the flexibility of Brittany Ferries in delaying the arrival of their Portsmouth operation at an increased cost to be absorbed by the operator.

In recent months the Committee for Economic Development has been working to develop new trade, tourism, cultural and political relationships with counterparts in Brittany, and alongside the work of Brittany Ferries, this helped see a significant increase in French passengers travelling to the Bailiwick by ferry throughout the summer of 2025.

Confirmation of this time slot will allow the French day-tripper and short-stay visitor markets to continue to grow in 2026.

Christophe Mathieu, Chairman of the Board of Directors of Brittany Ferries:
"Securing the 8:15 a.m. slot from St. Malo is great news for Guernsey and Poole, and allows us to capitalize on a very successful first season. Our group activity in Saint-Malo saw freight volumes increase by 48.1% and passenger numbers by 14.1% compared to 2024, underlining the key role of the port in our network.

These new schedules also allow us to better coordinate day-to-day operations between Voyager and our Portsmouth ship, the Saint-Malo. Finally, it is regrettable to say the least that, out of unbridled enthusiasm, the Government of Jersey and DFDS clearly communicated prematurely last week, while the discussions were still ongoing. Reason prevails and the port of Saint-Malo's call schedules have regained economic and political good sense, which I can only welcome."

Jean-Marc Roué, Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Brittany Ferries:
"I obviously welcome this excellent news, which reinforces the anchoring of Brittany Ferries, the last French company on the Channel Crossing, in this port of Saint-Malo that is so dear to us. This was also the reason why we acquired the Condor Ferries company in September 2024, which thus became Breton.

With these schedules for 2026, the arbitration of the Brittany Region allows our Company to further strengthen the very strong link that unites us to Guernsey. I would like to take this opportunity to greet its representatives, first and foremost Deputy Sasha Kazantseva-Miller. They have become our best partners for the development of the extraordinary tourism potential of their island and the 2026 season will live up to their expectations!

Of course, I regret that the uninformed choices of Minister Kirsten Morel and the Danish company DFDS weaken the Jersey destination even more. However, it was obvious that the work undertaken on the port and the absence of a second ramp would make it very difficult for two players to coexist to serve the Channel Islands. But thanks to our goodwill, the worst was avoided for DFDS' early departures and the compromise found by the Region satisfies all parties, which I welcome."

© Shippax