Free Tool
Canal vs. Cape Calculator
Suez or the long way around? Compare distance, time, fuel and voyage cost for the canal route against the open-sea alternative — and see the toll at which the answer flips.
Canal-vs-Cape comparison needs modelled route geometry, so this picker covers the 111-port modelled network only. For any other port pair use the port distance tool (full port index).
Via Suez Canal
- Distance
- 8,368 nm
- Sea time
- 21.8d
- Fuel
- 654 mt
- Toll
- $700,000
- Voyage cost
- $1,669,729
Open sea (via Cape of Good Hope)
- Distance
- 11,856 nm
- Sea time
- 30.9d
- Fuel
- 926 mt
- Toll
- —
- Voyage cost
- $1,373,938
Voyage cost = fuel + daily vessel cost × sea days + canal toll. Sea time excludes port, pilotage, canal convoy and waiting time — canal transits typically add 1–3 days in practice. The alternative avoids all canals; routes via a different canal can exist and would carry their own toll. Distances are routing-model estimates; enter your own toll from the official calculator: Suez Canal. Not a fixture or routing decision.
How it works
The canal decision, in numbers.
Two real sea routes
Both distances come from the same maritime routing network — the primary route through the canal, and the alternative with all canals removed, so the open-sea option is a genuine, toll-free sea route, not a straight line on a map.
Breakeven toll
Canal tolls depend on vessel type, tonnage, direction and current tariffs — so instead of guessing yours, the tool shows the exact toll at which the two options cost the same. Get your figure from the official canal authority calculator linked in the result.
Planning comparison
Sea-time only: convoy scheduling, waiting time, pilotage and canal transit days are not modelled and typically add time to the canal option. A commercial comparison aid, not a routing or fixture decision.
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