The Complete San Diego Bay Ferry Guide

The first ferry of the day on San Diego Bay sails at 4:50 AM, before sunrise, on the Broadway Pier route to Coronado, and the route keeps going until 10:30 PM. As of September 2026, that gives the Broadway Pier–Coronado Ferry Landing route the broadest schedule in the ferry system, and it's the most-used crossing on the bay. It starts on the Embarcadero in Downtown, it's the only route with early weekday commuter sailings, and it carries riders to Coronado Ferry Landing in about 15 minutes.

The ride is short and easy to love. A one-way ticket is $9 for anyone 4 and older. The boats have seating inside and out on deck, bicycles ride at no extra charge when there's room, and the interior main deck is wheelchair accessible, while the exterior top deck is not. People commuting to jobs on the island and visitors heading over for lunch at the landing ride the same boats.

Weekday mornings have a rhythm of their own here. The operator runs a separate commuter window from 4:50 to 8:30 AM, with holidays excluded, and Broadway Pier is the only dock where the City of Coronado's free weekday commuter program applies (No. 8 has the details). If your day starts early, or your shift on the island does, this is the boat.

Tickets stay valid on the route you bought, but boarding depends on how full the boat is, so get to the pier at least 10 minutes early and earlier on busy days. Broadway Plaza and Port Pavilion sit right beside the pier on the Embarcadero, so even a short wait comes with a place to stand by the water (No. 11 has ideas). Departures run roughly once an hour, and hours can shift with the seasons, so check the live timetable the day you go.

It leads this guide for its reach, from the predawn commuter boats to the late-evening sailings, and for its Embarcadero start. Heading out from the south end of Downtown instead? Fifth Avenue Landing runs its own Coronado boat from the Convention Center side, and it's every bit as good a crossing.

If Broadway Pier is the early riser, Fifth Avenue Landing is the one that keeps the boats coming. The Fifth Avenue Landing–Coronado Ferry Landing route leaves from the Convention Center side of Downtown and runs about every 30 minutes through the day, more often than the Broadway Pier boat. For a leisure trip to Coronado, that frequency is a gift. Miss one sailing and the next one is close behind.

Location is the other reason to pick it. The dock sits in the south Downtown walking zone around the Convention Center, the Gaslamp Quarter, Petco Park and the Rady Shell, so a conference session, a Padres game or dinner in the Gaslamp can end with a boat ride to the island. As of September 2026, service starts around 9:10 AM and runs into the late evening, and a few Rady Shell concert dates get a special late sailing (No. 12 covers it).

The same address boards the Chula Vista ferry too, and that shared dock is where people get turned around. Before joining a line at 600 Convention Way, check that it's the Coronado queue and that your ticket says Coronado. The crossing itself matches the Broadway Pier route: about 15 minutes, $9 one way for riders 4 and older, a wheelchair-accessible main deck, seating inside and out, and free bike boarding when space allows.

Coming from the Embarcadero, or need a boat before 9 AM? Broadway Pier is the other Downtown dock for the same island, with the early commuter sailings this route doesn't carry.

The longest ride in the system points south. The Fifth Avenue Landing–Chula Vista route leaves from the Convention Center side of Downtown and takes 45 minutes to reach Safe Harbor South Bay, a marina on the Chula Vista bayfront. It's a newer service, and it gives the developing South Bay waterfront a direct, scheduled link by water to downtown San Diego.

Think of it as an excursion with its own rules. The boat carries a maximum of 32 passengers, a one-way ticket is $15 for ages 4 and up, and each ticket is good only for the date and departure you choose, a different setup from the flexible Coronado tickets. Sailings run roughly once an hour, and as of September 2026 the day's departures fall between about 8 AM and 7 PM.

The boat is different too. There's no wheelchair access and no restroom on board, and bicycles ride only at the captain's discretion. None of that makes the crossing any less of an outing, but it does put the plan first. Use the restroom on shore, choose your return sailing when you buy the outbound one, and bring a bike only if the day works without it.

Once you're across, Gaylord Pacific Resort is a short walk from the landing, and the bayfront is the natural place to spend the hours between boats. This is the only ferry to Chula Vista, and it sits third here for planning reasons alone: since each ticket is tied to one sailing, missing yours means sorting out a new one rather than just catching the next boat.

Broadway Pier is where Downtown meets the bay on the Embarcadero, and it's the first of the city's two ferry docks. The address is 990 N Harbor Dr, near Santa Fe Depot, along the stretch of waterfront where the Port of San Diego has gathered parks, hotels, restaurants and ship tours. Every ferry from this pier goes to one place: Coronado Ferry Landing.

Right beside the pier sit Broadway Plaza and Port Pavilion, a public gathering space that doubles as the cruise terminal, so ferry riders and cruise passengers set out from the same stretch of the Embarcadero. Broadway Pier is also the only landing that runs the City of Coronado's free weekday morning commuter program, and its route starts hours earlier than any other on the bay.

The most common mix-up in the whole system starts here. Downtown has two ferry landings, and Broadway Pier is the northern one; Fifth Avenue Landing is farther south, by the Convention Center. Match the pier name on your ticket to the dock before you set out, then look for the Broadway–Coronado queue once you arrive.

Parking around the downtown waterfront is paid, so leave time to find a spot or come on foot. Either way, give yourself margin. Boarding depends on space, and 10 minutes early is the minimum on a normal day. Once you're aboard, Coronado Ferry Landing is about 15 minutes away.

Two very different boats leave from the same address at Fifth Avenue Landing. From 600 Convention Way, on the Convention Center side of Downtown, ferries run to Coronado Ferry Landing about every 30 minutes in the daytime, while the 32-passenger Chula Vista boat heads south to Safe Harbor South Bay on its own schedule, with departures about two hours apart.

That shared dock is the single most common point of confusion in the ferry system, and it's easy to sidestep. Keep the destination on your ticket in view, find the matching queue, and ask the crew before you settle in if the lines aren't obvious. The two routes differ in nearly everything that matters, from trip length (15 minutes versus 45) to ticket rules and wheelchair access, so finding the right line is worth the extra minute.

The location is the draw. This is south Downtown's dock, and the Gaslamp Quarter, Petco Park and the Rady Shell are all within walking distance. That makes it the natural landing for a Padres game, a Gaslamp dinner or a concert, with Coronado a short ride away afterward.

It also means crowds arrive in waves. When a conference or event lets out at the Convention Center, demand and lines at the landing can climb fast, so build in extra time on those days. For a Coronado trip without the two-destination shuffle, Broadway Pier on the Embarcadero is the alternative.

Coronado Ferry Landing is where both Coronado routes end, and it's a small waterfront village of its own at 1201 1st St. The choices start right at the dock: Peohe's for seafood, Cocina 35 for Mexican breakfast, Il Fornaio for Italian, plus dessert and coffee shops for anyone who wants something sweet before the ride back.

The shops lean toward a beach day, with men's and women's resort wear, sandals, sunglasses and souvenirs. Weekends bring music as well, since the landing hosts a free concert series every Saturday and Sunday. Centennial Park sits right next to the landing, and bike, kayak and paddleboard rentals on site make the dock a jumping-off point for the rest of the island.

Keep the geography in mind before you wander. The village and the beach aren't next to the dock, so settle on a way to get there, whether that's a bike, the seasonal shuttle or a longer walk, and confirm your return sailing first. Lunch and a weekend concert at the landing make a complete outing on their own.

At the southern end of the system, the Chula Vista ferry ties up at Safe Harbor South Bay, a marina at 600 Marina Pkwy on the Chula Vista bayfront. It's the only Chula Vista landing, and it gives passenger-ferry access to a stretch of bayfront the city is redeveloping.

The closest big landmark is Gaylord Pacific Resort, which the operator describes as within walking distance of the dock. That keeps the simplest version of the day close to the water: the marina, the resort, and the boat home.

Plan any onward trip with care. The landing sits on the bayfront, apart from central Chula Vista, Third Avenue and the trolley, so a trip inland needs its own ride, arranged ahead of time. And because each ticket is tied to one date and departure, a missed boat means arranging a new ticket rather than just catching the next one. Pick your return sailing before you leave Downtown and head back with a comfortable cushion.

On weekday mornings, the ferry to Coronado can cost nothing at all. The City of Coronado pays for a commuter program on the Broadway Pier–Coronado route, and eligible morning riders board for free. It's a transportation subsidy from the city, separate from any fare deal by the ferry operator.

The best part is the ride home. Morning commuters get a voucher for a free return trip the same day, which makes the program useful for both halves of a workday. Keep that voucher somewhere safe until you head back.

The rules are specific, so read them before you plan around it. The program covers weekday morning commute hours only, runs only on the Broadway Pier route, and skips listed holidays. The City sets the terms and the departure times and can change them, so check the City of Coronado's current page the week you plan to ride. Outside the commuter window, the regular $9 fare applies, and the boats keep running all day.

A bicycle changes what a Coronado ferry day can be. Roll it onto either Coronado boat, at no extra charge when there's space, and Coronado Ferry Landing becomes the start of a wider loop around the island instead of the end of the line, no car required.

Space decides everything. Bikes board only when there's room, so arrive at least 10 minutes early, as the operator recommends, and keep a later return sailing in your back pocket in case the first boat can't take the bike. Event traffic can make the trip less comfortable and less predictable, so plan around big events when you can.

The boats have seating inside and outside, and there's no restroom on board, so make a stop on shore before you roll on. No bike of your own? Coronado Ferry Landing rents them right at the dock, so you can cross on foot and start pedaling from the landing. This version works year-round, which gives it an edge over the summer-only shuttle in the next entry.

The ferry drops you on the bay side of Coronado, and the village and Central Beach sit farther off, more than a short stroll from the dock. In summer, the City of Coronado closes that gap with Route 904, a free shuttle that runs between Coronado Ferry Landing, the village and the Central Beach area.

For 2026, the City set Route 904 to run from June 7 through September 7, daily from 9 AM to 8 PM, with a shuttle every 20 minutes. That's a generous summer window, and it makes a ferry-to-beach day possible with no car and no bike. The shuttle is a City of Coronado service, separate from the ferry, so its schedule and the boat schedule are two different things to check.

Outside that window, plan another way across the island before you leave Downtown. A bike on the ferry (No. 9) works year-round when there's space, and rentals are available at the landing. The 2026 dates ended September 7, so for any trip after that, check whether the City has announced its next season before counting on the shuttle.

A short wait at Broadway Pier comes with a good consolation prize: the Embarcadero, the downtown waterfront, starts right at the dock. Broadway Plaza sits directly beside the pier, and next to it is Port Pavilion, which the Port of San Diego describes as a public gathering space, a cruise terminal and a viewpoint over the bay. For a quick look at the water before boarding, that pair is the easy choice.

The wider Embarcadero is big. The Port counts seven hotels, more than 30 restaurants and nine public parks along it, plus vintage-ship and aircraft-carrier deck tours and water recreation like paddleboarding and sportfishing. Santa Fe Depot and Waterfront Park are in the same corridor.

Save the big attractions for their own day. The USS Midway Museum and other major interiors take hours and deserve an outing of their own, well beyond a gap between boats. Keep a ferry-wait walk to the plaza and the waterfront nearby, check any attraction's hours directly if you're building a longer day, and head back to the pier with time to find the Coronado queue.

Fifth Avenue Landing puts the ferry within walking distance of Downtown's big evening plans. The Gaslamp Quarter, Petco Park, the Convention Center and the Rady Shell at Jacobs Park all share the landing's south Downtown walking zone, so a night at any of them can start or end with a boat to Coronado.

Some concert nights come with a bonus. For specified 2026 Rady Shell concert dates, the operator added an extended 10:25 PM sailing from the Convention Center landing to Coronado. It's an event extension for those named dates only, and it doesn't run after every show, so find your exact performance on the operator's current special-service list before you plan the night around it.

Plan the rest around the crowd. Event queues can fill quickly, so leave time to walk from the venue to the dock, and if your date isn't on the list, arrange another ride home before the first song. Padres games and Gaslamp dinners follow the same logic: look up your return sailing before you sit down, and the evening takes care of itself.

The Chula Vista bayfront is a waterfront in the making, and the ferry belongs to that story. When the City of Chula Vista announced the new daily service, it framed the boat as part of the bayfront's redevelopment. Flagship, the ferry operator, keeps the live timetable.

The ticket rule should shape the whole day. Decide which boat you're taking home before you leave Downtown, since tickets on this route are tied to a date and departure. It's also 45 minutes on the water each way, so a round trip adds up to an hour and a half of boat time to enjoy. Then build the visit around the landing itself, with the Safe Harbor South Bay marina and Gaylord Pacific Resort, which the operator describes as a walk from the dock.

Head back to the landing with a comfortable margin. A missed departure means arranging a new ticket, not simply catching the next boat, so the date-and-departure rule works best as the frame for the outing from the very start.

The last entry is the checklist to run before buying any ferry ticket, because the boats on San Diego Bay follow different rules. The Coronado ferries have wheelchair-accessible interior main decks, and their exterior top decks are not accessible. The Chula Vista ferry has no wheelchair or ADA access at all, so for anyone who uses a wheelchair, the two Coronado routes are the ones that work.

Some rules hold everywhere. None of the three routes has an onboard restroom, so a stop on shore comes first, especially before the 45-minute Chula Vista trip. Service animals and strollers are welcome on all the boats.

Tickets and capacity differ by side. A Coronado ticket works on any scheduled departure of its route, as long as the boat has room. A Chula Vista ticket is good only for the date and time you bought, on a boat that carries up to 32 passengers. On every route the operator's advice is the same: arrive at least 10 minutes early, and earlier in busy periods, because departures may fill quickly.

Weather, tides and vessel substitutions can still change the boarding experience on a given day. When access matters, confirm the exact boat with the operator before you buy.