Terminal 5 chaos 'boosted ferry demand'

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William Gibbons of the Passenger Shipping Association noted that many of the difficulties surrounding air travel are not relevant to people who visit foreign shores on a boat.

Singling out T5's baggage handling system - which broke down on the first day and resulted in thousands of bags going missing - he stressed that taking luggage aboard a ferry is an almost entirely-stress experience.

"When you take your car on a ferry you can take as many passengers as you can legally get in a car and as much luggage as you want," Mr Gibbons affirmed. "You can literally take the kitchen sink."

The industry expert went on to criticise the restrictions facing air passengers, noting that on a ferry: "You don't have to worry about weight, you don't have to worry about hand luggage, you don't have to worry about excess charges."

Recent research has shown that almost eight out of ten holidaymakers find ferry ports more flexible than airports.

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