...

Taking the ferry from Yantai to Dalian | Road trip | Inner Mongolia 2021 | Day 3

You will get:
0

Share me!

Latest posts

Find us on social media

Channels in China

Saving some time by taking the shortest route from Qingdao to Dalian

Today, we drove from Yantai to Qingdao for about 3 hours, and we will take the ferry to Dalian instead of driving around Bohai Bay.

The ticket office at the highway location

A small ticket office located by the G15 highway, offering ferry tickets to Dalian. The building features a blue sign with bold Chinese characters and a digital scrolling display advertising services. A silver car is parked in front of the office, and a person is visible standing in the doorway. The setting, surrounded by a highway backdrop and minimal greenery, highlights the convenient roadside location for travelers.
Luckily, we found out that we could also buy ferry tickets in advance for our car at the highway service station on the G15 road.
Qixia Service Area

There are several ferries from Yantai to Dalian from three different ports, and we chose the night ferry to have a good sleep on board. Since our car and trailer will take two slots due to the length, we must pay for two places, each costing 600RMB. That will save us one day’s driving time around Bohai Bay. It is a safer way to book the tickets in advance than buying them on-site, as you may face the situation that the position has been sold out in the peak season. The passenger tickets are separately paid for accordingly, and we got the tickets at the last moment at the harbour by using an agent. The agent delivered them to us personally. Some pricing information from here.

A close-up of a business card for an agent offering ferry tickets to Dalian, prominently featuring the Yantai Port logo and contact details. The card displays phone numbers and an address in Chinese, with an image of a ferry on the water in the background. The handwritten name and circled contact number add a personal touch, emphasizing the accessibility and local expertise of the ticket agent.
Recommend these for purchasing personal tickets delivered at the harbour by a person.

No easy to enter the ferry to take us from Yantai to Dalian

Here, it starts to get interesting. Total panic was not well managed at the harbour, and someone needed to decide whether our vehicle should go through the passenger or truck lanes. Ultimately, the security manager decided we must go through the truck lane. Before entering the line, we needed to remove and leave our full 10kg gas bottle, as anything regarded as dangerous goods could not be brought on the ferry.

Ferry from Yantai to Dalian with our small Chinese caravan, Road trip China

As usual, our tickets take a very long time with checking passports/visas/latest entry to China and other questions. My wife and children needed to go the route for the passengers, and I needed to drive the car to the ferry. Saying bye to my wife/translator, I knew this would be interesting. Hope to see you tomorrow

Even though I have lived in China for many years, my Chinese language skills are almost zero, and the port workers’ English skills were the same as my Chinese skills. Going through the x-ray, I did not understand why I should step outside the whole building during the scanning, and only after workers waived enough with their hands did I understand the point.

After this, I got ready and waited in line to get on board. There were two ferries, and I didn’t know which one to drive into. I consulted my wife by phone, and she said I should drive the car to the other ferry and walk from there to the one she was taking.

A large ferry at Yantai Port, ready for its journey to Dalian, with its open ramp accommodating cars and trucks for transport. The well-lit ship, marked with bold Chinese characters and blue-and-white stripes, stands out against the night sky. Vehicles, including cargo trucks and passenger cars, are parked nearby, highlighting the ferry\'s capability to take cars and other vehicles, making it a convenient option for travelers
Great picture of the wrong ferry. The correct one was on the right side 🙂

The port worker asked me several times for an “inspection document,” and I had no idea what that was. Later on, found out that those who go through the x-ray will not receive the document. On the other hand, the passenger cars are inspected by a person and would receive an “inspection document.”

In my case, I have to separate pick it up from the harbour office, where all truck drivers get it. Walking into the office, they did not know why I was there as I didn’t have a truck. After some lengthy discussion with Google Translate, someone got a great idea that maybe I drove through the x-ray, and they should provide me with the document.

After receiving it, everything went smoothly, and I managed to drive to the correct ferry, not the one my wife had advised initially. They did some small security checks before driving in and almost jumped up as the caravan had one 5L fixed diesel tank with some diesel in it for the Webasto heater. They tried to pull it out but soon realized that it was fixed. After a short rolling-eye moment of what he should do, he let me go.

Some pictures from the Yantai Harbour and ferry

Soon after entering the ferry, I realized this was no luxury cruise. Unfortunately, we don’t have many pictures from inside, but I can ensure this is just a ferry taking you from point A to point B.

Cabins are basic, with four beds and no possibility of locking the doors, for safety, as I understand. One restaurant had basic noodles, and the supermarket had drinks, chips, and toilet paper. Someone is doing good business with toilet paper, as it was not included in the cabins 😉

In the morning rush, the other drivers get to the car and drive out. I heard a big bang from the trailer while exiting the ferry, quickly checked the harbour, and noticed one of the support legs had been taking a hit. The damage was even worse, and you can read what needed to be done In repairing the towing hitch in Manzhouli

WeChat Channels for CrissCrossChina

WeChat Channel Channels travel in China by RV

Chinese TikTok

China follow us on Chinese TikTok aka Douyin. RV travel in China
Seraphinite AcceleratorOptimized by Seraphinite Accelerator
Turns on site high speed to be attractive for people and search engines.