Can I know in advance if I need to reserve a spot on BC Ferries?
I recently travelled on BC Ferries (in British Columbia, Canada) and I made an online reservation for my car and me, which is billed 15 dollars per trip. When arriving near the ferry terminal through one of the main highways, there were traffic screens giving real-time filling of the ferries. All of the indicated ferries were rarely more full than 50%, some were less than 10% full a few hours before departure. This means few people reserve their ferry spot beforehand. I supposed that showing up early was enough to have a spot, at this time of the year at least (end of June).
Since 15 dollars per trip is a bit expensive (the whole trip is less than 100 dollars), I would like to know if there is a way to predict when the reservation is useful, i.e. when showing up 30 minutes early is not enough to have a spot on the ferry (and not wait for the next), if it happens at all that ferries are full? I am mostly interested in the ferries between the continent and Vancouver Island, but ideally it may apply to all BC Ferries.
Best Answer
It depends on how willing you are to wait. Over the weekend, particularly a Friday night outbound and a Sunday return journey you will likely miss a ferry or two. On a long weekend during the summer, you could be waiting a long time.
My two cents worth, 15 bucks is worth the piece of mind.
Pictures about "Can I know in advance if I need to reserve a spot on BC Ferries?"
How far in advance can you make a BC Ferries reservation?
You can reserve approximately 2 months in advance. Note however, that although most BC ferries take reservations some of the smaller routes with smaller vessels don't.How do BC ferry reservations work?
Vehicle reservations cost between $10 and $21, depending how far in advance the reservation is made, in addition to the cost of a ticket. Reservations close two-and-a-half hours before a vessel departs and are only redeemable between 60 and 30 minutes before the sailing time.Are reservations necessary for BC Ferries?
Booking in advance secures a spot for your vehicle on board your preferred sailing. Without a booking, vehicles are loaded in order of arrival at the terminal on the next available sailing. This may result in wait times at the departure terminal, especially during popular sailing times.Does it cost more to reserve BC Ferries?
You will pay a non-refundable $17 reservation fee at the time of booking, and then pay the remaining vehicle and passenger fares at the terminal when you redeem your booking. You can change your sailing by paying a $5 change fee. This fare will always be available as long as there is bookable space on the ferry.I WENT ON A 15 HOUR FERRY RIDE | BC Ferries Port Hardy to Prince Rupert
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Nico Becker, E M, Charl Durand, Antony Trivet