By Boat & Ferry in Seattle

Passenger-only speedboats depart from Seattle's Pier 50 weekdays on runs to Vashon Island. It's $7.40 from Seattle; the return trip is free. A $1 surcharge is collected in both directions on the Bremerton route. Late spring through fall, the Elliott Bay Water Taxi makes a quick, eight-minute journey from Pier 54 to Seacrest Park in West Seattle for $2 each way. Clipper Navigation operates the passenger-only Victoria Clipper jet catamaran service between Seattle, the San Juan Islands, and Victoria. The Washington State Ferry system—with vessels that take walk-on passengers only and those that take walk-ons as well as cars—serves the Puget Sound and San Juan Islands area.

Seattle is also a major cruise ship transit point for journeys north to Alaska, south to California, and west through the Pacific. Close to 200 vessels a year intermittently dock at the Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal and Terminal 30 to the south, up from just six sailings in 1999. Companies that make Seattle their transit point include Celebrity Cruise Line, Holland America Line, Norwegian Cruises, and Princess Cruises. Note that in between long-distance voyages, many ships schedule one- to three-night sailings from Seattle, giving you the option to sample the cruise life for less money and time.

Contacts

Bell Street Pier Cruise Terminal (Pier 66, 2225 Alaskan Way. 206/615-3900) Clipper Navigation (250/382-8100 in Victoria; 206/448-5000 in Seattle; 800/888-2535 in U.S. www.victoriaclipper.com). Elliott Bay Water Taxi (Pier 54, Downtown. 206/553-3000). Terminal 30 (2431 E. Marginal Way S. 206/615-3900) Washington State Ferries (Colman Dock, Pier 52, Downtown. 206/464-6400; 888/808-7977; 800/843-3779 automated line in WA and BC. www.wsdot.wa.gov/ferries).