Which ferry and ship journeys are covered
If an eligible ferry is cancelled or expected to leave more than 90 minutes late, the practical starting point is a choice: reimbursement of the ticket within seven days, with a free return to the first departure point where necessary, or rerouting to the final destination at the earliest opportunity under comparable conditions and without extra cost. Do not let the operator quietly turn that legal choice into a voucher or a new sailing that no longer serves the purpose of the journey.
EU ship-passenger rules cover more than international sea ferries. Regulation (EU) No 1177/2010 applies to many passenger services by sea and inland waterway when the port of embarkation is in an EU country. It can also apply when a service starts outside the EU and arrives at an EU port, but only when an EU carrier operates it. Cruises embarking in the EU can receive parts of the protection, although some of the core reimbursement, rerouting, and arrival-compensation rights do not apply to cruise passengers.
There are exclusions worth checking before building a claim. The regulation does not cover ships certified for no more than 12 passengers; ships with no more than three crew members; services whose overall one-way distance is under 500 metres; ships not mechanically propelled; specified original or replica historic ships; or sightseeing and excursion services that are not qualifying cruises. A domestic, island, river, lake, or canal journey can still qualify if it is a covered passenger service—the word ferry is not the legal test.
Start by identifying the transport contract. Record the carrier, performing carrier, departure and destination ports, scheduled times, booking channel, ticket type, vehicle or cabin reservation, and whether several legs were sold together. Save the ticket, boarding pass, booking confirmation, app screens, text messages, terminal notices, photographs of the departure board, and every receipt. A ferry delay is measured against scheduled departure and arrival, so evidence of both matters.
Cancellation, delay and the 90-minute choice
When a cancellation or delay occurs, the carrier or terminal operator must communicate the situation as soon as possible and, in any event, no later than 30 minutes after the scheduled departure time. It should provide the estimated departure and arrival time as soon as that information exists. If a cancellation or delay makes you miss a connection, the carrier must make reasonable efforts to tell you about alternative connections, except for the cruise-specific exclusion.
The 90-minute rule concerns expected delay at departure, not arrival. When a covered passenger service is cancelled or expected to depart more than 90 minutes late, the carrier must offer reimbursement or rerouting. Reimbursement should cover the part or parts not made and any completed part that no longer serves the original travel plan, together with a free return service to the first point of departure where relevant. Rerouting must be under comparable conditions, at the earliest opportunity, and at no additional cost.
The regulation does not set one mechanical definition of the earliest opportunity for every port, weather pattern, ship, cabin, vehicle space, or route. Ask the carrier to state the available sailing or other comparable rerouting in writing. If you are told to arrange your own alternative, ask for written authorisation and cost conditions first where possible. Keep the replacement booking and show why it was reasonable rather than assuming any taxi, flight, hotel, or premium cabin will automatically be reimbursed.
Meals, accommodation and arrival compensation
Care is separate from the refund-or-rerouting choice. For a cancellation or expected departure delay of more than 90 minutes, passengers should receive snacks, meals, or refreshments in reasonable relation to the waiting time, provided they are available or can reasonably be supplied. If nothing is offered, ask the carrier or terminal staff, document the answer, and keep itemised receipts for modest necessary purchases.
If an overnight stay becomes necessary, the carrier should provide accommodation on board or ashore where and when physically possible, plus transport between the port terminal and the accommodation. The carrier may cap shore accommodation at €80 per passenger per night for no more than three nights. It does not have to provide accommodation when it proves that cancellation or departure delay was caused by weather conditions endangering the safe operation of the ship. That weather exception removes the accommodation duty, not automatically every other right.
Arrival-delay compensation uses the scheduled length of the whole journey. The minimum 25% of the ticket price applies when arrival is at least one hour late on a journey scheduled up to four hours; two hours late on a journey over four and up to eight hours; three hours late on a journey over eight and up to 24 hours; or six hours late on a journey over 24 hours. If the arrival delay reaches twice the relevant threshold, compensation rises to 50% of the ticket price.
Compensation is calculated in relation to the price actually paid for the delayed passenger service. A carrier may set a minimum payment threshold, but it cannot be more than €6. Payment is due within one month after the request and may be made in vouchers or services only under flexible conditions; it must be paid in money when the passenger asks. Reimbursement, rerouting, care, and arrival compensation answer different harms, so qualifying for one does not necessarily cancel the others.
Arrival compensation is not due when the passenger knew about the cancellation or delay before buying the ticket, caused the disruption, or the carrier proves that weather endangering safe operation or extraordinary circumstances that could not have been avoided even with reasonable measures caused it. A rough sea, strike, technical defect, port closure, or security event should not be classified by slogan alone. Ask the carrier to identify the cause and how it affected the particular sailing; legal responsibility depends on the evidence and rule, not only the phrase used in an email.
A delay at departure and a late arrival are not interchangeable. A sailing can leave two hours late and make up time, triggering the 90-minute choice and care rules without reaching the arrival-compensation threshold. It can also leave closer to time and arrive sufficiently late to trigger compensation. Record the actual time the ship reached the destination and when disembarkation became possible, along with the operator's stated arrival time.
Cruises, accessibility and maritime accidents
Cruise passengers receive information, accessibility, complaint, and some assistance protections, but the regulation excludes them from the standard 90-minute reimbursement-or-rerouting choice and arrival-delay compensation. A cruise sold as a package may separately fall under EU package-travel law, making the organiser responsible for included services and substantial changes. The EU package travel rights guide helps separate that contract from stand-alone ferry rights.
Passengers with disabilities or reduced mobility should be able to book without a discriminatory surcharge and receive assistance free of charge at designated ports and on board, subject to safety requirements and the design of the ship or port infrastructure. Give the carrier or terminal operator the requested assistance notice at least 48 hours before it is needed and communicate seating, mobility-equipment, medication, or recognised-assistance-dog needs. If no arrival time was specified, the regulation cannot generally require you to appear more than 60 minutes before the published embarkation or check-in time.
A carrier can refuse a booking or boarding where binding safety requirements or the ship, gangway, port, or equipment design makes safe carriage impossible. It must explain the reasons, look for an acceptable alternative where possible, and in some cases allow an accompanying person whose assistance makes the journey feasible to travel free. If a wheelchair or other mobility equipment is lost or damaged because of the carrier's or terminal operator's fault, compensation should match the replacement value or repair cost and temporary replacement equipment should be arranged rapidly where possible.
Death, personal injury, vehicle damage, and luggage loss caused by a shipping incident sit under a separate liability framework, Regulation (EC) No 392/2009 and the Athens Convention rules it incorporates. Notice periods and proof differ from an ordinary delay claim. Apparent luggage damage should be reported before or at disembarkation or redelivery; non-apparent damage or loss normally requires written notice within 15 days. Court claims are generally subject to a two-year limit, but national law affects calculation and interruption, so serious accident claims need prompt specialist advice.
Complaints, enforcement and current law
Complain to the carrier or terminal operator within two months of the service or the date it should have been performed. The operator should tell you within one month whether the complaint is substantiated, rejected, or still being considered, and provide a final reply within two months of receipt. State the remedy separately: refund, rerouting cost, care expenses, accommodation, arrival compensation, accessibility loss, or accident damage. Attach copies, keep originals, and ask for a traceable case number.
If the operator does not resolve the complaint, contact the national enforcement body for the country where the incident took place, following that country's allocation of carrier and terminal complaints. A cross-border consumer dispute may also justify help from the European Consumer Centre in your country. For a proportionate civil claim up to €5,000, the European Small Claims Procedure guide explains Form A, jurisdiction, evidence, fees, and enforcement. An enforcement authority may investigate compliance without collecting every individual payment for you.
As of 13 September 2026, the existing maritime rights remain the working rules. The Parliament and Council reached a political agreement on 26 June 2026 on better enforcement across passenger modes, including clearer information and common reimbursement or compensation forms, but the text still requires formal endorsement and adoption before it can be treated as applicable law. Check the final act and application date rather than assuming the announced reform already changes today's ferry claim.
These rules show why European rights matter most when a border crossing goes wrong. One shared framework cannot calm the sea or create an empty vehicle deck on the next sailing, but it can make the passenger more than a request in an operator's queue. A stronger Federal Europe should make multimodal journeys, enforcement, accessible travel, and cross-border complaints more coherent while keeping safety decisions with the people responsible for ships and ports.