All About Ferries
From downtown Seattle, for example, you can take ferries to three different places (Vashon Island, Bainbridge Island and Bremerton) for about seven bucks round-trip, sit in the cabin or the open-air deck and enjoy great views of Mt. Rainier, the city lights and vast Puget Sound. One tip: Don't ride them at rush hour, when they're packed with grumpy commuters. The 6:20 a.m. ferry from Bainbridge Island to Seattle, for example, is like Grand Central Station. The other tip is to walk onto the ferry, don't drive, because driving jacks the round-trip fare up to nearly twenty-nine dollars.
I've ridden on ferries from Circular Quay in Sydney, Australia, with wonderful views of the Opera House, in crowded little boats across Hong Kong Harbor and even in Toronto to reach the quiet island communities in Lake Ontario. From the town of Lahaina in Maui, I've taken the early-morning ferry across the channel to the island of Lanai for a day of golf, and returned with the workers in the afternoon, and I think that I enjoyed the boat rides nearly as much as the golf (but then, you haven't seen me golf).
I'm thinking about this now because another ferry is about to get underway in Hawaii that should be very interesting. The Hawaii Superferry Alakai has arrived in Honolulu and will begin daily departures later this summer to both Kauai and Maui, which will take several hours in each direction. I'll bet the views and aquatic sightings will be incredible, but I'm wondering how many people will be willing to brave those rough waters for that long of a journey when you can fly to the neighbor islands in twenty minutes.
I'm certainly willing to give it a try. Tell me what your favorite ferry experiences are, particularly ferries that we can ride this summer to charming little islands and watery outposts. Happy sailing.