Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast
49°24′ N 123°31′ WCar 1 h 12 minLast home 9:35 pm
Gibsons suits gallery browsers and seawall walkers who want a slow harbour day on the Sunshine Coast after a 40-minute BC Ferries crossing from Horseshoe Bay. The trade-off is the chain of connections, because the trip from downtown Vancouver needs a bus to Horseshoe Bay before the boat and another bus or a 10-minute drive at Langdale.
Photo Bob Cotter from Gibsons, BC, Canada · Wikimedia Commons · CC BY-SA 2.0 and others, credited in the gallery
Field card · Day trip · No. 003 · checked 16 Oct 2026
The foot fare is $12.08 online against $17.27 at the booth.
Catch the last way home
The last ferry home leaves at 9:35 pm from Langdale ferry terminal, Sunshine Coast. It reaches Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal at 10:15 pm.
BC Ferries seasonal schedules from 13 October to 16 December 2026 and from 4 January to 2 February 2027; the last sailing moves to 10:30 pm from 17 December to 3 January and from 3 to 23 February 2027. Checked Oct 16, 2026 from the published timetable. Timetable
Choose how you get there
| Way | Time | Cost | With |
|---|---|---|---|
| Transit | 1 h 29 min | $22.77 per adult (2026) | TransLink, BC Ferries and BC Transit Our sum of the timetable legs: 39 minutes on the 257 to Horseshoe Bay at a weekday midday, the 40-minute crossing and about 10 minutes on BC Transit's route 1 from Langdale to Lower Gibsons. The waits for the boat and the bus come on top. |
| Ferry | 40 min | $17.27 per adult (2026) | BC Ferries BC Ferries schedules the Horseshoe Bay to Langdale crossing at 40 minutes, and Langdale sits a 10-minute drive from Gibsons by BC Ferries' own description. |
| Car | 1 h 12 min | $78.59 per group (2026) | BC Ferries Our sum of 26 minutes by the routing engine from Waterfront Station to the Horseshoe Bay terminal, the 40-minute crossing and 6 minutes from Langdale to Gibsons, before the wait at the terminal. |
Getting there
From Waterfront Station to Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast
The 257 bus runs from downtown Vancouver to the Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal, BC Ferries crosses to Langdale in 40 minutes, and BC Transit's route 1 carries on to Gibsons. Drivers take the car on the ferry and drive the 10 minutes from Langdale.
Door to door
1 h 12 min
from Waterfront Station
One way from
$22.77
adult fare
Book ahead
Advised
Day trip
Yes
Bus 257, ferry on foot and BC Transit route 1
1 h 29 min · $22.77 one way
Dunsmuir at Cambie
Bus139 min · $3.50The weekday 8:55 am reaches the terminal at 9:33 am, in time for the 9:50 am sailing.Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal
Ferry240 min · $17.27The fare paid here covers the crossing back.Langdale
Bus310 min · $2On a weekday the 10:55 am from the terminal reaches Lower Gibsons at 11:05 am after the 9:50 am sailing lands.Lower Gibsons, Marine Drive
How often · From 13 October to 16 December 2026 the ferry leaves Horseshoe Bay eight times a day from 7:30 am to 11:30 pm.
Bikes · BC Ferries carries bikes free, and the rider pays the passenger fare.
Drive onto the ferry
1 h 12 min
Waterfront Station
Car126 minThe routing engine gives 20.5 km in free-flowing traffic.Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal
Ferry240 min · $78.59This car and driver fare at the terminal includes the fuel surcharge and covers the return.Langdale
Car36 minThe routing engine gives 5 km.Gibsons
Booking. Bookings are optional outside 3 to 23 February 2027, and a prepaid foot passenger ticket costs $11.50 posted against $16.45 at the booth. During the February berth closure every sailing is bookable and BC Ferries asks drivers to book.
As a day trip. Gibsons works as a day from downtown Vancouver on the 9:50 am sailing out and the 9:35 pm sailing home. BC Transit's route 1 runs between Langdale and the harbour.
Weather. BC Ferries posts delays, full sailings and cancellations on its current conditions page and on 1-888-223-3779.
Sources: infomaps.translink.ca, bcferries.com, bcferries.com, bctransit.com, bctransit.com, routing.openstreetmap.de, routing.openstreetmap.de · checked 2026-10-16
Is it for you?
Gibsons rewards a slow harbour day across Howe Sound, and the ferry ride there is half the pleasure.
You’ll love Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast if
- You like a seawall stroll and an afternoon in small galleries.
- You want a ferry crossing up Howe Sound without committing to Vancouver Island.
Think twice if
- You want to fit it in around other plans, since the trip from downtown takes about two hours each way on transit.
Give it a day
On a weekday the 8:55 am 257 from Dunsmuir at Cambie reaches the Horseshoe Bay terminal at 9:33 am for the 9:50 am sailing to Langdale. BC Ferries takes the whole fare on this leg. With BC Ferries' 5% fuel surcharge counted, an adult pays $17.27 at the booth or $12.08 prepaid online on the fares in effect from 16 June 2026. The boat docks at 10:30 am. BC Transit's route 1 leaves the terminal at 10:55 am and drops you in Lower Gibsons at 11:05 am for a $2 fare.
Sunshine Coast Tourism says Gibsons stands on the traditional territory of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation). The town climbs a hillside at the southwest corner of Howe Sound and looks out over several small islands. The Gibsons Visitor Centre stands at the top of the stairs across from Winegarden Park, and Gibsons Landing spreads out below it. Walk the seawall from beyond Gibsons Marina along the shore, then look into the Gibsons Public Art Gallery or the Sunshine Coast Museum and Archives. Fans of the CBC show The Beachcombers will know Molly's Reach, and the stairs up Soames Hill make a short climb to a view.
The last sailing home leaves Langdale at 9:35 pm and reaches Horseshoe Bay at 10:15 pm on the schedules from 13 October to 16 December 2026 and from 4 January to 2 February 2027. From 17 December to 3 January it moves to 10:30 pm. On a weekday route 1 leaves the Marine Drive shelter in Lower Gibsons at 9:06 pm and reaches the terminal at 9:15 pm, and at weekends it leaves at 9:10 pm. Back at Horseshoe Bay, the 257 leaves for downtown at 10:20 pm and 10:50 pm on weeknights, and the last one goes at 12:20 am.
Langdale's Berth 1 closes from 3 to 23 February 2027 for life extension work, and a temporary schedule runs from Berth 2 for those three weeks with a last sailing home at 10:30 pm. Berth 2 takes single-deck vehicles only, so BC Ferries makes every sailing bookable and asks drivers to book. Langdale's pay parking filled on 16 October 2026, and BC Ferries pointed foot passengers to transit, taxis or a drop-off.
Worth knowing
- Buy a foot passenger ticket online before you go, since the prepaid adult fare is $12.08 against $17.27 at the booth, fuel surcharge included.
- Pay once for the ferry at Horseshoe Bay, because BC Ferries charges nothing on the sailing from Langdale back.
- Ride a DayPASS on BC Transit's Sunshine Coast buses for $4 if you plan more than one hop between Langdale and the harbour.
Quick answers about Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast
Can you visit Gibsons without a car?
Yes. Take the 257 bus from downtown Vancouver to Horseshoe Bay, walk on the 40-minute BC Ferries sailing to Langdale and ride BC Transit's route 1 to Lower Gibsons in about 10 minutes. On a weekday the 8:55 am bus from Dunsmuir at Cambie gets you to Lower Gibsons at 11:05 am.
What time is the last ferry from Langdale to Horseshoe Bay?
The last sailing leaves Langdale at 9:35 pm and reaches Horseshoe Bay at 10:15 pm on BC Ferries' schedules from 13 October to 16 December 2026 and from 4 January to 2 February 2027. It moves to 10:30 pm from 17 December to 3 January and from 3 to 23 February 2027.
Do you pay both ways on the Langdale ferry?
No. BC Ferries collects the fare on the Horseshoe Bay to Langdale sailing, and the trip back from Langdale costs nothing more.
How long is the ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Gibsons?
BC Ferries schedules 40 minutes from Horseshoe Bay to Langdale, and Langdale sits a 10-minute drive from Gibsons. BC Transit's route 1 makes the run from the terminal to Lower Gibsons in about 10 minutes.
What is the last way home from Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast?
The last ferry home leaves at 9:35 pm from Langdale ferry terminal, Sunshine Coast. It reaches Horseshoe Bay ferry terminal at 10:15 pm. That time comes from BC Ferries seasonal schedules from 13 October to 16 December 2026 and from 4 January to 2 February 2027; the last sailing moves to 10:30 pm from 17 December to 3 January and from 3 to 23 February 2027.
Can you do Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast without a car?
Yes. The quickest way without a car is by ferry, at about 40 minutes with BC Ferries.
Is Gibsons and the Sunshine Coast worth a day trip?
Gibsons rewards a slow harbour day across Howe Sound, and the ferry ride there is half the pleasure.