Ridership to surge as Memorial Day travelers move around the Sound
Washington State Ferries expects ridership to soar in the days ahead. More than 435,000 travelers and tourists are expected to hop aboard a ferry during the Memorial Day weekend, the first busy travel weekend of the summer.
Typically, WSF sees a 50 percent upsurge in ticket sales between Memorial Day and September compared to winter sales. Last summer saw the highest number of passengers the state ferry system has welcomed aboard in a dozen years. With an improving economy and low gas prices, high ridership numbers are expected to continue this year.
“Nowhere else in the world has a ferry fleet and the beautiful inland waters and great scenery of Puget Sound. I encourage you to travel on one of your ferries this holiday weekend,” said WSF Assistant Secretary Lynne Griffith.
Know before you go
-
If possible, walk on to reduce or eliminate wait times. Passenger capacity is far greater than vehicle capacity on all of WSF’s ferries.
-
Make a vehicle reservation to the San Juan Islands, Sidney, BC and Port Townsend/Coupeville.
-
Check the terminal conditions website.
-
Sign up for ferry travel alerts.
-
Keep an eye on Twitter for ferry alerts on travel conditions.
-
Review the summer sailing schedule and best times to travel.
Peak travel times on most routes are expected to be westbound Thursday and Friday, May 26-27, and eastbound Monday, May 30.
Ridership highlights
- Upwards of 435,000 passengers are expected to travel system-wide between Thursday, May 26, and Tuesday, May 31.
- The busiest route is Seattle/Bainbridge Island. It is expected to carry 111,000 passengers during the extended holiday weekend.
- Another 77,000 passengers will travel the Edmonds/Kingston route, and 74,000 will come aboard in Mukilteo or Clinton.
- System-wide, ridership is up 2.7 percent over the past 12 months.
- WSF carried approximately 24 million passengers last year.
WSF is the largest ferry system in the United States, safely moving people and goods through some of the most majestic scenery in the world.
