The most notable rise in ferry passengers continues to be on the St Malo route, where numbers increased by 78% in June alone (an increase of 6,312 people) and are up 68% year-on-year. This growth is largely attributed to Brittany Ferries’ revised schedule, which now includes convenient day-trip sailings from St Malo, along with enhanced promotional efforts by VisitGuernsey across Brittany and Normandy.

Visitor numbers travelling from Poole dropped from 14,504 to 11,421 from June 2024 to 2025 – a decrease of 3,083 passengers, or just over 21%. The decline is largely attributed to the removal of day trip options.

As expected, the launch of the Islands Unlimited service on 5 June, which provides daily sailings between Guernsey and Jersey, has given June figures a boost on the Jersey route, with just a 7% decrease, or 595 fewer people. This is an improvement on previous months, which was due to limited service availability earlier in the year. The year-on-year comparison is still down, but we expect to recover some of this over the next quarter.

Meanwhile, efforts continue behind the scenes to grow cruise tourism. Sixty-five cruise ships are scheduled to visit this summer, and discussions are ongoing with several major operators to attract larger vessels and boost passenger volumes from 2026 onwards.

The above factors mean that overall, ferry passenger numbers rose by 12% in May, bringing an additional 4,401 visitors to the island compared to the same month in 2024. This growth strengthens the year-on-year figures, which now show a 6% increase - equivalent to 7,311 more passengers.