Rottnest Fast Ferries Schedules 2026

Rottnest Fast Ferries is the northern way to Rottnest Island, sailing from Hillarys Boat Harbour rather than Fremantle — which matters if you are staying north of Perth, because it removes the drive south entirely. Ferries run seven days a week, and parking at Hillarys is free.

The island without a car

Rottnest has no private vehicles, so the company sells what you need once ashore: bike hire, snorkel hire, day tour packages, overnight packages and the Quokka Hopper island bus. Whale watching runs in season, and there are Perth tours for visitors combining the two.

Who it is set up for

The site is published in English, Chinese, Japanese and Korean, which tells you where a good share of the visitor traffic comes from. Alongside leisure travel there are commuter and worker accounts for people crossing regularly, group and educational travel, weddings and corporate charters. Accessibility arrangements and luggage and freight handling are documented separately.

Choosing between the two operators

The practical difference is the mainland end: Rottnest Express sails from Fremantle and central Perth, this company from Hillarys in the northern suburbs. Crossing times and island facilities are broadly comparable — pick by where you are staying and where you can park.

Forty-five minutes from Hillarys, every day of the year

The crossing to Rottnest Island takes about 45 minutes and departs from Hillarys Boat Harbour, roughly 30 minutes north of the Perth CBD. The operator runs it seven days a week, all year round, with multiple departures a day and free parking at the harbour.

Our data holds no sailings for this operator

Stated plainly so you do not read an absence as a gap in the service: this database currently contains no departure times for Rottnest Fast Ferries. The figures above come from the operator’s own published information. For exact times, and particularly for the difference between the Hillarys departures and the Fremantle-based alternatives, go to the operator rather than relying on this page.