From the North (through the Little Russel):

The preferred route from the North is through the Little Russel. Your initial starboard hand mark is the Platte Fougère Lighthouse, situated one mile off Guernsey’s north-east tip. Depending on your course and visibility, you can align the metal tower on Roustel with the squat flat Bréhon Tower (bearing 198°) or align Bréhon with the light on St Martin’s Point (bearing 208°). For your final approach, once the leading light at the end of St Peter Port’s breakwater aligns with the light on Belvedere (a white tower behind Castle Cornet), come onto a bearing of 220°. This approach will leave both Roustel and Bréhon to port, and Platte to starboard.

In conditions of poor visibility, the Big Russel, located between Herm and Sark, offers an alternative. It is two miles wide, clearly marked, and does not require specific transits. At night, follow the white sector of Noire Pute Lighthouse as far as the Lower Heads Buoy and then turn north-west into the Little Russel towards St Peter Port.

From the South (Approaching via the West):

If approaching from the West, the best route is to proceed south about. Give Les Hanois Lighthouse a wide berth, maintaining more than a mile offshore along the south coast. Round St Martin’s Point, ensuring Bréhon is kept open to the east to avoid the rocks south of St Martin’s Point.

IALA System

Please note that all lights in Guernsey waters operate under the IALA system.

Important Note for Mariners

St Peter Port is a busy harbour with significant commercial traffic. This includes inter-island ferry companies and Brittany Ferries, operating both high-speed craft and conventional ferries. Guernsey is also a popular destination for cruise ships, which may often be anchored outside the harbour, operating tenders ashore. Therefore, a sharp lookout is always required when approaching and within the harbour area.

Guernsey Vessel Traffic Services (VTS)

Guernsey VTS is your first point of contact for all commercial vessels and recreational craft using the harbours of St Peter Port and St Sampson. Based at the Signal Station at the end of the White Rock Pier, VTS Officers monitor radar, AIS, CCTV, and VHF radio channels to ensure the safety and efficiency of maritime traffic. CCTV, VHF radio transmissions, and telephone conversations are all recorded for training and quality purposes.

• Compulsory Participation: Participation in Guernsey VTS is compulsory for vessels of 20 metres or more in length, and all vessels engaged in towing, within the designated VTS area.
• VHF Monitoring: We recommend you keep a listening watch on VHF Channel 12. Even if your vessel is under 20m in length (i.e., not a VTS participating vessel), it is good practice to listen to Guernsey VTS on VHF Channel 12 for commercial traffic movements.
• Port Entry and Exit (IALA Port Traffic Signals):
  • For St Peter Port, IALA Port Traffic Signals are used to control harbour entry and exit.
  • When two-way traffic is permitted, both the inward and outward traffic light on the end of the White Rock Pier will display two green lights and one white light in a vertical line.
  • Following the issue of a “Traffic Clearance” to a large commercial vessel, three red lights in a vertical line will be displayed on both the inward and outward traffic lights. When three red lights are displayed, no other vessel is permitted to enter or leave the harbour.

Pilotage

For St Peter Port, private leisure vessels under 30 metres Length Overall (LOA) are generally exempt from compulsory pilotage. However, if your leisure vessel is between 30 and 40 metres LOA, pilotage is only exempt if you do not proceed to the east of a line joining the south-east corner of Cambridge Pier and the north-east corner of the Castle Emplacement (old Lifeboat Slip).

For St Sampson’s Harbour, private leisure vessels under 25 metres LOA are exempt.

More information relating to pilotage