10,000 inflatable whales are being given to passengers at Portsmouth International Port this summer and will be making their way all over Europe, and quite possibly the world.
PIP the whale is Portsmouth International Port’s mascot for the 2012 summer season. Passengers setting off on holiday will have a chance to collect a free inflatable as a souvenir of their trip. The idea is for people to take pictures of PIP on their travels, the most creative and interesting will win a brand new digital camera.

Since the holidays began Pip has been exploring France, Spain and further afield. He’s been snapped with Norman knights in Cherbourg, cheering Bradley Wiggins home to Tour de France victory on the Champs Elysées, at Mont St Michel and relaxing on a Spanish beach. Closer to home, he’s even been to the Olympics, taking a swim past the Aquatics Centre.

Pip will be a regular visitor to the Port’s stunning new terminal during the summer, to wish some of the tens of thousands of passengers a happy holiday. Anyone travelling through the Port on a ferry or cruise ship can pick up an inflatable whale and enter the Facebook competition. It runs until the end of September, when the public will vote for their favourite pictures.

Phil Gadd, Ferry Port Manager at Portsmouth International Port, said “Pip is already a firm favourite here at the Port, particularly with families from all over Britain heading off on their summer break. Normally we wouldn’t expect to see our passengers’ holiday snaps, but now they’re taking an inflatable Pip on their travels we’re starting to get an entertaining picture of their travels after waving goodbye to Portsmouth”.

Holidaymakers heading to Spain from Portsmouth this summer can hope to see real whales, on their journey. The Bay of Biscay is a rich habitat for porpoises, dolphins and whales. Brittany Ferries now has wildlife officers on each of its crossings to Bilbao and Santander, helping to point passengers in the right direction.

To collect your own Pip, simply travel through Portsmouth International Port (otherwise known as PIP) on a ferry with Brittany Ferries, LD Lines or Condor Ferries or on your cruise ship. Wherever you’re going, make sure you take Pip with you and snap a picture of him when you arrive.

Once you’ve taken a photograph of you, your family or friends with Pip, simply post the picture on the competition tab of our Facebook page. You can get to the competition page directly from the home page on the Port website at www.portsmouth-port.co.uk or send it by email to [email protected] and we will upload it for you. You can view the entries before you submit your own, so make sure it is your best shot!

The competition closes on 30 September so you have plenty of time to enter.

Voting starts on 1 October and it is your friends on Facebook who will decide who wins. The three photos with the most votes at the close of voting on 21 October will each win a fun-size blue Fujifilm digital camera.