Regional Ferry Operator FRS Express des Îles announces temporary fuel surcharge on inter-island routes

Leading regional maritime transport provider FRS Express Des Îles, operator of the iconic L’Express Des Isles high-speed catamaran fleet, has unveiled plans to roll out a time-limited fuel surcharge across all its cross-border ferry services connecting Dominica, Guadeloupe, Martinique and Saint Lucia, effective November 1, 2026. The new levy will add €5 to every one-way international passenger ticket, and €10 to all round-trip bookings, as the carrier grapples with unprecedented spikes in global petroleum costs that have pushed operational expenditures to unsustainable levels. Company leadership emphasized that the interim measure is designed exclusively to offset steeply rising energy bills, ensuring the long-term continuity, strict safety standards and consistent reliability of its inter-island ferry network that serves as a critical transport and trade lifeline for the Eastern Caribbean. This latest adjustment comes on the heels of a broader baseline fare hike implemented on March 31, 2026, which local booking agents including Dominica-based H.H.V. Whitchurch & Co. Ltd confirmed was enacted after five consecutive years of the operator absorbing volatile fuel price fluctuations rather than passing costs onto consumers. In a public statement addressing concerns over added financial strain on regional travellers, FRS Express Des Îles stressed that the surcharge will not be a permanent fixture: the levy will undergo a formal quarterly review tied directly to real-time global energy market trends, and will be fully eliminated as soon as fuel prices stabilize to pre-surge levels. The new surcharge will be applied on top of the adjusted baseline fares rolled out following the March 2026 price revision, across all three passenger service tiers. For cost-conscious travellers booking the TOUPITI Promotional Class, which is restricted to Thursday and Saturday departures, one-way fares will rise to €64 from the previous €59, while round-trip rates will climb to €109 from €99. Passengers opting for the year-round, daily ZEN Standard Class will see one-way fares set at €75 and round-trip fares at €125, marking a €5 and €10 increase respectively. For travellers who require full itinerary flexibility including full refunds and free modifications, the FLEX Flexible Class will be priced at an average of €90 one-way and €155 round-trip. It is important to note that all listed fares exclude the mandatory local departure tax of approximately EC$89 (equivalent to ~€32) that all adult passengers must pay in person when departing Dominica, though children under the age of 12 are fully exempt from this government-mandated fee. The carrier has confirmed that no changes will be made to existing baggage policies, with every passenger across all ticket classes retaining the standard 25 kg checked hold baggage allowance at no extra cost.