SeaBus
49°19′ N 123°05′ WFerry12 min
The SeaBus is TransLink's passenger ferry between Lonsdale Quay in North Vancouver and Waterfront Station in downtown Vancouver, and it is the car-free way onto Vancouver's North Shore for anyone heading to the Quay or to the buses up to Grouse Mountain and Capilano. The crossing takes 12 minutes with a boat every 10 to 15 minutes for most of the day. Before 6:30 pm on a weekday it counts as a 2-zone fare.
Photo by Francis Nie on Unsplash and others, credited in the gallery
Services
| Service | Time | How often | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| SeaBus from Lonsdale Quay to Waterfront StationTransLink | 12 min | Weekdays every 10 minutes from 7:00 to 9:30 am and from 3:00 to 6:30 pm, every 15 minutes at other times until 9:02 pm, then every 30 minutes. Saturdays every 15 minutes from 7:02 am to 9:02 pm. Sundays and holidays every 15 minutes from 8:02 am to 9:02 pm, then every 30 minutes.Weekdays 5:47 am to 1:00 am; Saturdays 6:02 am to 1:00 am; Sundays and holidays 8:02 am to 11:00 pm. | Each boat seats up to 395 passengers. Before 6:30 pm on a weekday the crossing takes a 2-zone fare, and after 6:30 pm, at weekends and on statutory holidays it takes a 1-zone fare. |
| SeaBus from Waterfront Station to Lonsdale QuayTransLink | 12 min | Weekdays every 10 minutes from 7:15 to 9:45 am and from 3:15 to 6:45 pm, every 15 minutes at other times until 9:16 pm, then every 30 minutes. Saturdays every 15 minutes from 7:16 am to 9:16 pm. Sundays and holidays every 15 minutes from 8:16 am to 9:16 pm, then every 30 minutes.Weekdays 6:01 am to 1:22 am; Saturdays 6:16 am to 1:22 am; Sundays and holidays 8:16 am to 11:22 pm. | The SkyWalk doors at Waterfront Station open 10 minutes before the first sailing and close two minutes before the last one. |
Each SeaBus seats up to 395 people and crosses Burrard Inlet in 12 minutes. In weekday rush hours a boat leaves Lonsdale Quay every 10 minutes, from 7:00 to 9:30 am and again from 3:00 to 6:30 pm. Through the middle of a weekday, and on weekend days until 9 pm, the boats run every 15 minutes. After about 9 pm the gap opens to half an hour, so a late dinner in Gastown needs one eye on the clock.
The last boat out of Waterfront leaves at 1:22 am from Monday to Saturday. Sundays and statutory holidays finish earlier, at 11:22 pm from Waterfront and 11:00 pm from the Quay, and they start later too, with the first Sunday sailing from Lonsdale Quay at 8:02 am. TransLink opens the SkyWalk doors at Waterfront Station 10 minutes before the first departure and shuts them two minutes before the last.
Vancouver sits in fare zone 1 and North Vancouver in zone 2, so a weekday crossing before 6:30 pm costs a 2-zone fare. After 6:30 pm, and all day at weekends and on statutory holidays, every TransLink trip drops to one zone. Tap your contactless card or phone at the gate in Waterfront and tap again leaving the Quay, and the system charges the right amount. The fare lasts 90 minutes across buses, so the 236 up to Capilano and Grouse rides on the same tap. Current prices live on the Compass fares page.
Children 12 and under ride free and need no ticket. At the gates they find an attendant or pick up the courtesy phone, and TransLink lets them through. Bikes and e-bikes ride the boat too when there is space, so you can wheel a bike off at the Quay and pick up the Spirit Trail without touching a car.
Worth knowing
- Pay for the bus leg from Lonsdale Quay by tap or Compass Card. A cash fare paid on a North Vancouver bus gives you a paper transfer that is valid on buses only, so you would have to pay again for the SeaBus home.
- Plan Sunday evenings around the 11:22 pm last sailing from Waterfront, two hours earlier than on Saturday night.
- If you tap in and change your mind, tap out at the same terminal within 21 minutes and TransLink reverses the charge.
- Take the card out of your wallet before you tap, because the reader can charge whichever card it finds first.
Quick answers about SeaBus
How long does the SeaBus take?
The SeaBus takes 12 minutes to cross Burrard Inlet between Lonsdale Quay and Waterfront Station. For most of the day a boat leaves every 15 minutes, and in weekday rush hours every 10 minutes.
What time is the last SeaBus?
The last SeaBus leaves Waterfront Station at 1:22 am from Monday to Saturday and at 11:22 pm on Sundays and holidays. From Lonsdale Quay the last sailing is at 1:00 am, or 11:00 pm on Sundays and holidays.
Is the SeaBus a 1-zone or a 2-zone fare?
The SeaBus is a 2-zone fare on weekdays before 6:30 pm, because it links Vancouver in zone 1 with North Vancouver in zone 2. After 6:30 pm on weekdays, and all day at weekends and on statutory holidays, it is a 1-zone fare.
Can you take a bike on the SeaBus?
Yes. TransLink allows bikes and e-bikes on the SeaBus whenever there is room on the sailing.
Do kids ride the SeaBus for free?
Yes. Children 12 and under ride the SeaBus free with no ticket, and an attendant or the courtesy phone at the gate lets them through.
Do you need to book SeaBus ahead?
SeaBus: Walk on and tap. There is nothing to reserve.
Within 12 km
Places to stay nearby
Within 12 km
Places to eat and drink nearby
In the journal
Read more about SeaBus
Feature · 8 min read
How does Vancouver's North Shore fit together between the mountains and the inlet?
Every neighbourhood on Vancouver's North Shore sits on the same narrow shelf between Burrard Inlet and the mountains, and the rivers coming down off the slopes divide it into valleys. You cross it along the water and climb it up each valley.
Feature · 8 min read
Should you ski Whistler Blackcomb from North Vancouver as a day trip or stay the night?
A weekday day trip from Lonsdale Quay gives you about 11 hours in Whistler, starting with the 5:47 am SeaBus. One night in the Village turns that into two mountains, an evening and a second morning.
Feature · 6 min read
What can you do on Vancouver's North Shore mountains after dark?
All three local hills switch on their lights once the snow comes, and two of them give non-skiers a reason to ride up at night as well. Your ride home decides which one suits the evening.
Feature · 7 min read
What was the Burrard Dry Dock at the foot of Lonsdale, and what stands on the Shipyards now?
For most of the 20th century the foot of Lonsdale built ships. The City of North Vancouver kept the yard's frames, piers and one crane and built a public waterfront around them.