Ramsgate, Ferries and Ferry Crossings

Welcome to the Ramsgate (UK) section of FerryCrossings.org, the site for information about major UK and continental ports and the ferries between them. Our site includes an introduction to a number of ports and feature pages about the various crossing ways, lanes and routes and companies operating between them to help you plan your journey and discover interesting travel destinations along the way. You can even compare prices and save money on your ferry tickets with ads from selected booking sites and major ferry lines.

Port of Ramsgate

Ramsgate. Ramsgate, in Kent, has been an important, although originally relatively small, port for many centuries and was one of the later ports closely associated with the group of Cinque Ports. It is a popular seaside resort, and has been since the 19th century, whose main economy depends on tourism and fishing. It now has a large marina and is located on a beautiful stretch of coast. It is from Ramsgate that you can take the ferry across to Ostend.

Historically Ramsgate's early existence was as a fishing and farming village. Legend asserts that Hengist and Horsa landed in this area of Kent in the 5th century, subsequently declaring it the Kingdom of Kent. Their arrival in Kent was followed, in the late 6th century, by the more solidly documented figure of the Benedictine Monk who was sent from Rome to convert the pagan Anglo-Saxon King of Kent to Christianity. This monk was the man who would later become known as St. Augustine of Canterbury. A cross was erected at Cliffsend, in 1884, on the spot on which the saint was said to have celebrated his first mass on British soil in front of the Kentish King.

The construction of Ramsgate's harbour was begun in 1749 and took around 100 years to complete, but it was this harbour that made Ramsgate the prosperous harbour port that it is today. In and around Ramsgate, and its situation in the Isle of Thanet (once actually an island cut off from the mainland by a river) there are many interesting attractions to visit and explore. In nearby Margate is the mysterious Shell Grotto, a series of passages covered in a mosaic of shells. It was discovered in 1835 but no-one seems to know the history of why, when or by whom it was made. A museum with a slightly different appeal is the Powell-Cotton Museum with it collections African & Asian Natural History exhibits and other artefacts. Minster Abbey, a beautiful little building not far from Ramsgate, is the site of the first English Monastery in the 7th century. It was destroyed by Vikings but re-built in the early 11th century. If you'd like to visit a working windmill and buy stone ground flour then you might enjoy a visit to Sarre Windmill. Or, if aviation hisory interests you then there is the RAF Manston History Museum which tells the story of the airfield from 1916 to the present and, on the same road, is the Battle of Britain Memorial Museum with a Spitife and Hurricane on display along with exhibits commemorating all aspects of the war in the air. In Ramsgate, on the clifftop above Pegwell Bay, you'll be able to see the Viking replica ship 'Hugin' which was the ship that was was sailed from Thanet to Denmark in 1949 to celebrate the 1500 years since the landing of Hengist and Horsa. Monkton Nature Reserve and Sandwich & Pegwell Bay Nature Reserve are both local reserves dedicated to the study and conservation of the wildlife and flora of the area.

Ramsgate Harbour is where you can watch boats big and small, coming and going, racing and idling, to your heart's content. There is a full programme of events, regattas and competitions throughout the season including visits from the Tall Ships taking part in the Heineken Race of the Classics, the Powerboat Grand Prix and 'Ramsgate Week', the annual regatta organised by the Royal Temple Yacht Club of Ramsgate. The harbour is also regularly visited by the replica ships such as 'The Grand Turk', Overlooking the harbour are many interesting listed buildings and there is a Maritime Museum, housed in the 19th century 'Clock House', which has on display artefacts and collections reflecting the sea-faring life of the sailors of this coast. It includes items recovered from wrecks of ships that have foundered on the notorious Goodwin Sands, and those from the 'Stirling Castle' a ship that went down in 1703.