Seattle–Bainbridge ferry: 35 minutes from Colman Dock, paid on the Seattle side

Check the table first, then decide how you are traveling, because that decides where you pay. On foot or by bike, you buy one ticket at Colman Dock on the Seattle waterfront and ride both ways on it; WSF charges passengers nothing at Bainbridge. In a car, you pay a one-way vehicle-and-driver fare in each direction, and anyone riding with you buys a passenger ticket in Seattle.

The fall 2026 schedule runs from September 20 to December 26 with two boats, the Puyallup and the Wenatchee, and gives 23 departures each way on weekdays. Bainbridge gets the earliest weekday boat, at 04:45, and Seattle's first is at 05:30; the last of the night leave Bainbridge at 00:55 and Seattle at 01:35. Allow about 35 minutes on board.

No reservations are taken on this route, so cars simply queue at the tollbooths. Walk-on passengers rarely have a capacity problem, but drivers should look at WSF's terminal cameras and the vehicle-space counter before setting out at commuter times.

Fall sailings from Colman Dock and from Winslow

WSF Fall 2026 Sailing Schedule, September 20 – December 26, 2026; read from WSDOT on October 15, 2026 and checked against WSF's day-by-day schedules for October 17, 18 and 19   WSF — Fall 2026 Sailing Schedule for Seattle / Bainbridge Island · 2026-10-15

Pay once on foot, twice by car

Pay for walk-on travel only at Colman Dock. WSF collects the passenger fare in Seattle and nothing from passengers in Bainbridge, so the $11.35 adult ticket covers the round trip. Riders 18 and under travel free, but at a terminal with turnstiles, such as Colman Dock, a young passenger must come to the ticket booth to get a free youth ticket, which is good for six hours.

Vehicle fares work differently: they are one-way and include the driver only, and you pay them at both tollbooths. Everyone else in the car buys a walk-on-priced ticket in Seattle. Since March 1, 2026 every credit or debit card purchase carries a 3% surcharge; cash at the staffed booth or an ORCA card loaded somewhere other than a WSF terminal avoids it.

WSF fare calculator for Thursday, October 15, 2026 (no peak-season surcharge after September 30); matches the Washington State Transportation Commission tables in effect since May 1, 2026   WSF — Fare Information, Seattle to Bainbridge Island · 2026-10-15

A downtown pier at one end, a tollbooth for cars only at the other

This route and the Southworth–Vashon crossing belong to the same state system, but Colman Dock is a different kind of place: a walk-on commuter terminal in the heart of downtown, where most passengers arrive by foot, bus or bike. On the Kitsap side of the Sound, the Kitsap Transit foot ferry between Port Orchard and Bremerton is a different operation altogether, with its own agency and fare system.

Across Elliott Bay to Eagle Harbor

The boats back out of Pier 52 into Elliott Bay, cross the main channel of Puget Sound heading west and run into Eagle Harbor, the narrow inlet on Bainbridge's east shore where the terminal stands. The crossing takes about 35 minutes. On a clear day the downtown skyline stays in view behind you most of the way.

Getting through Colman Dock and onto the boat

• Walk-ons: arrive 15 minutes early

  WSF suggests about 15 minutes before sailing for foot passengers. The boats carry 1,500 to 2,500 people, so walk-on space only runs short around big sports events.

• Bikes have their own entrance

  Bainbridge-bound cyclists can use the dedicated bike entrance north of the Marion Street exit, which leads to slip 3 and is staffed from 14:15 to 18:30 on weekdays, or ride through the regular tollbooth. Bikes load first and pay only in Seattle.

• Coming back with a bike

  At Bainbridge, arrive 20 minutes before departure to load with the first group. During the 06:00–08:45 commute the crew also lets cyclists on mid-load; there are racks for 32 bikes at the terminal.

• Dodge the 3% card fee

  Pay cash at the staffed Colman Dock booth (not at the kiosks) or use an ORCA card loaded elsewhere. ORCA cash value loaded at a WSF terminal is charged the surcharge.

• Motorcycles stage separately

  In Seattle, Bainbridge-bound motorcycles stage in lane 38; pre-ticketed riders can use booth 4 in commuter hours. Loading order is bikes, motorcycles, then cars.

• Galley hours this fall

  Vessel 1's galley opens at 4:45 a.m. on weekdays and closes at 7:45 p.m.; vessel 2's runs 5:20 a.m. to 8:15 p.m. Both espresso stands are closed Monday to Wednesday.

Why the fare depends on which way you are going

Across Washington State Ferries, walk-on tickets are round trips on every route except Port Townsend–Coupeville and the Sidney sailings, while vehicle tickets are one-way except on the San Juan and Vashon routes. Seattle–Bainbridge follows the general rule on both counts: passenger fares are collected at Colman Dock only, vehicle fares at both ends. The rates themselves are not set by WSF but adopted by the Washington State Transportation Commission; the Commission's 2025–2027 rulemaking put the current figures into effect on May 1, 2026, and the WSF fare calculator gives exactly the same numbers today.

The same short list of rules applies across the system: youth ride free, passengers who are 65 or older or have a disability get half price on foot, and multi-ride cards last 90 days. What changes from route to route is where the tollbooths are and which direction pays.

The two boats on the fall schedule

Seattle–Bainbridge questions before you leave the waterfront