Ferries to Belgium — routes, schedules & crossing times

Belgium's ferries are not the big sea crossings you might expect. There is no longer any scheduled international passenger ferry to the country at all — what remains, and what makes Belgian ferry travel genuinely distinctive, is a dense web of small, mostly free river and harbour ferries built for pedestrians and cyclists. In a flat, bike-loving country laced by the Scheldt, the Leie, the Meuse and a network of canals, these little crossings are part of everyday mobility rather than a holiday event.

No international passenger ferry

It is worth being clear about this, because it trips up many travellers: Belgium has no scheduled international passenger ferry today. The last one, P&O Ferries' overnight Hull–Zeebrugge service, closed on 1 January 2021 after decades of operation, a casualty of Brexit and the pandemic. Zeebrugge remains a major port, but purely for freight ro-ro and cruise ships. To reach Belgium by sea you now sail to Calais in France or to Rotterdam or Hoek van Holland in the Netherlands, and continue by road or rail.

The free Flemish ferries (veren)

The heart of Belgian ferry travel is the network of free crossings run by De Vlaamse Waterweg, the Flemish waterway authority, as a deliberate mobility and cycling-infrastructure policy. These veren carry pedestrians and cyclists — most take no cars — across the Scheldt, the Leie, the Meuse and various canals, and they are genuinely free of charge. The network carried around 5.4 million passengers in 2025, with the busiest single crossing, Antwerp's Sint-Anna, handling close to a million on its own.

Crossing the Scheldt in Antwerp

Antwerp is the centre of gravity. The free Sint-Annaveer links the city's right bank with the Left Bank for pedestrians and cyclists, and since September 2025 it has run around the clock. It is easy to confuse with the separate, ticketed Waterbus that also crosses the Scheldt here — but the Sint-Annaveer is the free municipal-style veer, and it is the workhorse that moves commuters and day-trippers across the river.

The Antwerp Waterbus

The one significant ticketed service is the Antwerp Waterbus, operated by the Flemish public-transport company De Lijn. It is a commuter and tourist boat running along the Scheldt between Lillo in the north and Hemiksem in the south, calling at Steenplein, Kruibeke and other landings, roughly every half hour through the day. Unlike the free veren, it charges a modest fare, bought through De Lijn or the Waterbus rather than as a standard bus ticket.

Bicycle ferries and the cycling network

Many of the smaller crossings are true fietsveren — bicycle ferries that plug gaps in Flanders' famous cycling-node network. The bicycle ferries across the Meuse have been free for everyone since 2023, and along the Scheldt and the canals these little boats let a cyclist stitch together a full day's ride without a long detour. For visitors, a bike-and-ferry outing is one of the most enjoyable ways to see the Flemish countryside.

Ferries on the coast

The Belgian coast has its own free harbour ferries, known as the Overzet. At Ostend a free crossing links the Visserskaai with the Oosteroever, now run by a fully electric vessel every ten to fifteen minutes, and Nieuwpoort has a similar free harbour-mouth crossing for pedestrians and cyclists. These are short hops across the harbour channel rather than coastal voyages.

How to pay and book

The rule is simple. The Flemish veren, the bicycle ferries and the coastal Overzet crossings are all free, turn-up-and-go, and oriented to pedestrians and cyclists — no booking, no ticket. The Antwerp Waterbus is the exception, a paid service run by De Lijn. Because none of the crossings carry significant car traffic, Belgian ferry travel is really about getting yourself and your bike across the water.

When to travel

The core Antwerp and Scheldt crossings, including the Waterbus, run year-round, while some rural bicycle ferries and coastal crossings operate mainly in the cycling season from spring to autumn. Services can be busy at commuter peaks and on sunny summer weekends when the cycling routes fill up, so allow a little extra time.

Where to check timetables

Open the crossing you are travelling on for its operator and check the current schedule, since some seasonal and rural ferries change hours through the year. The ferry information on this page is reviewed and updated regularly.