Stena Line

An excellent option if you’re doing the overnight from London to Amsterdam, I just wish the instructions were a little more clear on which train to take.
Continuing our adventures through Europe, my girlfriend and I booked passage on the Stena Line’s Rail & Sail from London to Amsterdam overnight. The ticket includes «rail from London to the coast, (2) the overnight boar ride, and (3) rail from the coast to Amsterdam. Unfortunately, the website doesn’t take American credit cards for some reason, so I had to give them a call in order to book, which went very smoothly (turns out English accents are difficult to understand over the phone).
Immensely convenient, the all-​in-​one ticket if for any train from London to the coast and from the coast to Amsterdam. This was source of immense confusion for us as to which train to take — fortunately the employees at Liverpool station were very helpful and told us which train to pick up (we just flashed the ticket at the turnstile and we were let in by the rail station employee on the side). The train ride was a commuter train that ends at Harwich.
After getting to Harwich, just follow the crowd to the Stena line processing. If you can try to get in front of everyone, as processing can take a long time since they had only one (then alter two) people processing. We then hopped on a tram that took us to the boat. The accommodations were excellent — we got a cheaper inside cabin with a bunk bed, TV (with a special channel that shows all the pets in the hold), and shower. The beds were surprisingly comfortable and we didn’t even feel like we were on the water.
Wake up call is 6AM, and they’re pretty efficient getting everyone off the boat. Here we encountered major confusion about our train again re: which one we should be taking. Make sure you scan your ticket on the way to tracks — there will be a post thingy outside along the path. If you arrive on time, the train you take will be the next one coming. We probably over-​complicated the whole thing, but it wasn’t entirely straightforward, and not a lot of English signs in Holland. Once you find the train it’s easy to get to Amsterdam.
Overall, I would definitely do Stena Line again, and now that I know what I’m doing I won’t be as stressed. I highly recommend, just don’t be afraid to ask some questions so you don’t end up in another part of Europe.

This is a great overnight trip from London to Amsterdam. There were a few boarding hassles (one ticket agent in London for a long line of people, and a bus to take you to the ferry in lieu of a gangplank), so beware that, if you have a lot of luggage, actually getting on and off the ferry itself might be annoying and cumbersome.
But once you’re on board, man oh man. My boyfriend and I booked a Captain’s class cabin, where we had free wine and beer (Heineken and not bad wine at all) and two free mini-​bottles of Cava. It was the perfect amount of pampering, and our room was beautiful and well-​stocked. The bathroom was clean, the shower great, the TV just what was needed, and the beds equipped with nightlights and nooks for reading materials. Very well-​designed.
The breakfast buffet is quite good; much better than what we expected. Definitely try the scrambled eggs.
The one thing I would suggest to Stena, aside from a providing smoother boarding experience in London, is to increase its travel time. What, you say? Well, we didn’t get on board until 10:00, at which point we weren’t going to be availing ourselves of Stena’s dining opportunities. We wished for more time to enjoy our cabin and amenities, but had to get to sleep quickly so as to get up and eat breakfast in time (you lose an hour going to the Netherlands). Having passengers be able to board as early as 6:00 p.m. and then disembark as late as 9:00 a.m. would give everyone more time to enjoy the trip, use more of the amenities of the ferry, and get more out of the experience.

Terrific and surprising option for travel between London and the Netherlands, and beyond.
We made the trip overnight, which I recommend. (You can make the most of your vacation time on both ends, as well as save on lodging for the night.) The crossing was mostly calm. The cabin was clean, and perfectly designed for convenience in tight quarters. The public areas are nicely maintained and offer a lot of space for working, socializing, and just hanging out. The wifi was the only real disappointment, so marginal as to be almost useless, and not available in our cabin at all. We did not eat in either restaurant, but neither looked particularly impressive.
One of the nicest things about a ferry crossing was how civilized it felt, compared with air travel. The Stena agents in Hoek van Holland were genuinely friendly and attentive. The ease of transfers from/​to trains cannot be overstated, and going through Immigration is a completely different experience than what you’ll endure at Heathrow.
The only thing that might give you pause is the amount of walking required to access the ship. The gangway is a very long walk, and anyone without rolling luggage is going to suffer. On the U.K. side, the gangway was completely inoperable, so we had to walk down multiple flights of steps to board a shuttle bus that drove us ashore. They handled this glitch very professionally, and I’m sure assistance is available for anyone who needs it. Still, travelers with a lot of luggage had a tough time of it.

London to mainland Northern Europe? Stena Line is a great way to do it!
And it’s a great cost option as well. We go a train from London to Harwich, the Stena Line to Hoek van Holland, and then another train over to Berlin… all for £249 return!
We have a dog, so it makes it hard to get them around Europe, though Stena Line has a special area where you can leave them happy and content!
The whole trip is so relaxing. There is massive public areas, a blockbuster movie cinema AND even a massage chairs!
People have said it’s best to do the overnight trip. It depends. If you get the overnight, you MUST book accommodation, which can add the cost up a lot! As there’s great internet on the ship, I preferred to save the money, read my kindle and catrch-​up on some emails looking over the great water view ;-)
I would recommend also taking your own food… not that the food is terrible (there’s two restaurants, one sort of okay (3 starts) and the second is really bad (1 star), it’s just that it’s rather expensive.
After going by Sena Line, you’d wonder why you went by plane ever again :-)

I would recommend the rail and sail overnight service from London to Amsterdam to anyone making the trip. It’s like a mini cruise ship with great amenities and state room. Really enjoyed the experience.