The English Channel (French: la Manche, the "sleeve") is an arm of the Atlantic Ocean that separates Great Britain from northern France, and joins the North Sea to the Atlantic. It is about 560 km (350 mi) long and varies in width from 240 km (150 mi) at its widest, to only 34 km (21 mi) in the Strait of Dover.
Tourists have a good choice of options for crossing the English Channel from the European mainland. Depending upon the departure point, taking a high speed train or a ferry can be a faster, cheaper, more comfortable and eco-friendly choice than flying.
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There are two ways to use the Channel Tunnel, one of the engineering marvels of the 20th century.
Eurostar - The high speed rail link from Paris, Brussels, Lille and Disneyland Paris to London and Ashford in Kent.
Eurotunnel - Shuttle the car shuttle from Coquelles, near Calais, to Folkestone in Kent. Le Shuttle also carries bicyles and coaches.
Brittany Ferries - from Santander, Spain, and Roscoff, Brittany to Plymouth from Cherbourg to Poole, Dorset from Caen, Cherbourg and St. Malo, Brittany to Portsmouth
Condor Ferries - from St. Malo to Poole and Weymouth
LD Lines - from Le Havre to Portsmouth and Newhaven and from Dieppe to Newhaven (summer only)
Seafrance Ferries - Calais to Dover
Speed Ferries - Boulogne to Dover
P&O Ferries - from Bilbao, Spain to Portsmouth and from Calais to Dover
Norfolk Line - from Dunkerque to Dover