Overview
The Viaferry connector is a remote Model Context Protocol (MCP) server. It lets Claude and other AI assistants look up ferry timetables and live prices across many operators, and hand the sailings you choose over to viaferry.com, where you add passenger details and pay.
Viaferry sells ferry tickets in Southeast Asia, the Pacific, the Indian Ocean, the Caribbean and north-west Europe.
| Server URL | https://viaferry.com/mcp |
|---|---|
| Transport | Streamable HTTP |
| Authentication | None. No Viaferry account or API key is needed. |
| Data access | Public ferry data only. The connector cannot see your Viaferry account or bookings. |
| Payments | Only on viaferry.com. The connector cannot book, reserve or charge. |
Set up in Claude
If Viaferry appears in the Connectors Directory in your Claude, connect it from there. You can also add it by URL:
Free, Pro, Max and Ultra Plans
- Go to Customize > Connectors.
- Click Add custom connector.
- Enter
https://viaferry.com/mcpas the server URL. If Claude asks about authentication, choose No sign-in. - Click Add.
Team and Enterprise Plans
An Owner adds the connector for the organization:
- Go to Organization settings > Connectors.
- Select Add, then Custom. If Claude asks for the connector type, choose Web.
- Enter
https://viaferry.com/mcpas the server URL. If Claude asks about authentication, choose No sign-in. - Click Add.
Members then find it under Customize > Connectors with the Custom label and click Connect.
Use It in a Chat
Click + in the chat, select Connectors and turn Viaferry on. Depending on your tool permissions, Claude may ask for your approval before it calls a tool.
Remove It
Go to Customize > Connectors (Owners: Organization settings > Connectors) and click Remove. To block a single tool, such as start_booking, select the connector under Customize > Connectors and set that tool's permission to Blocked.
Other MCP Clients
Any client that supports remote MCP servers over Streamable HTTP can use the same URL. See Anthropic's connector guide for more about the steps in Claude.
Tools
| Tool | Access | What It Does |
|---|---|---|
search_sailings | Read-only | Sailings between two ports or places, for a number of adults and children, in a chosen currency. Without a date: the timetable for the coming days. With a date: live sailings that day with times, duration, harbours, company, seat types and the price for your party. With a return date: a round trip, with one booking link for both directions. |
list_routes_from | Read-only | The destinations you can reach by ferry from a port or place, and the areas they make up. Where the list is shortened, it links to the full overview on viaferry.com. |
list_coverage | Read-only | The countries Viaferry sells ferries in, each with its number of locations and its searchable areas. |
start_booking | Write | Saves the chosen sailings, one way or round trip, and returns a link that opens them in the cart on viaferry.com. A sailing is named by its departure time and, where several leave at that time, by company, harbour or arrival time; if that fits more than one, the answer lists the matches instead. It books, reserves and charges nothing. |
In search_sailings and list_routes_from, a country's name answers with its locations, a place Viaferry does not sell with the countries it does, and a name that fits several places with those places, so you can say which one you mean.
In clients that support MCP Apps, results appear in an interactive sailings view where you can change the date, party and vehicle and pick sailings. The view uses two more tools, view_search_sailings and view_start_booking. They do the same as search_sailings and start_booking, and only the view calls them.
Example Prompts
- Show me the ferry timetable from Bali to Gili Trawangan.
- What does the ferry from Mahé to Praslin cost next Friday for two adults and one child?
- What does the ferry from Calais to Dover cost next Friday with my BMW 1 Series?
- Find a round trip from Newcastle to Amsterdam, leaving next Friday and back on Monday, with prices in GBP.
- Where can I go by ferry from Port Denarau?
- Which countries does Viaferry sell ferries in?
- Book the first ferry from Phuket to Phi Phi next Friday for two adults.
How Booking Works
- You ask for sailings, and Claude shows what Viaferry finds.
- You choose your sailings. Claude calls
start_booking, or you pick them in the sailings view. - You get a link that opens them in the cart on viaferry.com. Viaferry checks availability and price again there.
- You add passenger details and pay on viaferry.com, and receive your tickets from Viaferry.
Check the sailing, price and party on viaferry.com before you pay. The site's Terms of Service apply to your booking.
Limits
- Parties are made up of adults and children, with one vehicle where the route carries them. Pets cannot be added through the connector.
- Most routes carry foot passengers only. Some carry vehicles as an option, such as Amsterdam to Newcastle, and some only with a vehicle, such as Calais to Dover. The answer says which, and prices with a vehicle include it and its surcharges. Viaferry adds its service fee in the cart.
- Prices are live when you search and can change until you pay. Each leg of a round trip is shown at its one-way fare; viaferry.com prices the round trip as a whole, which can be lower.
- Long lists are shortened. The answer says how many results exist in total.
- Live searches are rate limited. When the service is busy the connector says so, and you can try again shortly.
- Only places Viaferry sells can be searched. For any other place, the answer lists the countries Viaferry does sell.
Data and Privacy
What the Connector Receives
Only what your AI assistant sends in a tool call: place names, dates, the number of adults and children, a currency and the sailings you chose. It also receives the client's name and version and its user agent. It does not ask for names, contact details, passport details or payment details, and it cannot read your conversations, memory or files.
What Is Stored
- Operational logs: the tool used, the client, the kind of answer given, how long it took and any place name that could not be matched.
- Usage analytics: the route, date and party size of dated searches, and that a booking link was created, with no contact details.
- Saved selections:
start_bookingsaves the route, dates, party size, currency and sailings, with no contact details. The answer states when the link expires, and the selection is deleted after that.
What Is Shared
Dated searches ask the ferry operators' systems for live availability, using the route, date and party size. As with any website, our hosting and network providers process connection data such as IP addresses to deliver and protect the service.
Links to viaferry.com
Links from the connector carry tags that name the AI assistant, such as utm_source=claude and vf_client=mcp_claude, so Viaferry can measure visits and bookings that come through it. Once you open viaferry.com, the Privacy Statement and Cookie Statement apply to what you do there.
Troubleshooting
- Claude cannot connect: check that the URL is exactly
https://viaferry.com/mcp. Opening it in a browser shows an error by design, because only MCP clients can use it. On a company network, make sure your firewall allows the connection. - A place is not found: ask which areas Viaferry covers, or where you can go from a nearby port, and use the name in that answer.
- No sailings on a date: the answer suggests the nearest dates with sailings when it can. If the route needs a vehicle, the answer says so: name your car or vehicle type and search again.
- A cart link no longer works: links expire. Ask Claude to start the booking again.
Support
Email support@viaferry.com or visit the Help Centre, for questions about the connector, security reports or help with a booking. Our office hours are Monday to Friday, 09:00 to 17:00 Central European Time.