Ferries from Seattle

Colman Dock is the only Washington State Ferries terminal in a downtown, and the two routes leaving it go to the same peninsula by very different means: 35 minutes to Bainbridge or 60 to Bremerton. Which one is right depends on where you are going after, not on the clock.

Where the ferries go

• Bainbridge Island — about 35 minutes, 38 sailings.
• Bremerton — about 60 minutes, 15 sailings.

106 active sailings, operated by Washington State Ferries.

⚠ Bainbridge is faster; Bremerton may still be quicker

Bainbridge lands you on an island connected to the Kitsap Peninsula by the Agate Pass bridge — fine for the northern peninsula, a long drive for the south. Bremerton lands you in the middle of it.

For Port Orchard, Belfair or the Hood Canal, the slower boat wins on total journey time. For Poulsbo or Port Townsend, take the fast one.

The terminal itself

Colman Dock was rebuilt over several years and reopened with a new passenger building, a raised walkway carrying pedestrians over Alaskan Way, and a reconfigured vehicle approach. Even so, WSF's own assessment places it among the terminals falling short of the agency's vehicle holding standard.

For walk-on passengers that is irrelevant — this is the easiest ferry in the system to reach on foot, minutes from Pioneer Square and the light rail.

Walking on is the point here

Both routes carry very large numbers of foot passengers, and both land in walkable centres. Taking a car across Puget Sound from downtown Seattle is usually the slowest and most expensive way to do it.

Timing

Sharply commuter-shaped in both directions on weekdays. The Bremerton run thins considerably outside peaks, and 15 sailings across a day means checking the timetable rather than turning up.