I am so glad I found this app. Everything I need in one place. Not only does it have the ferry schedules in there and up to date without all the confusing seasonal changes and fares that are far complicated to make sense of for folks that do t use the ferries on the regular, but it has alerts, a place to keep your tickets and even better - it shows you how many tickets you have left on a multi use ticket. The other app doesn’t even offer that. You can star your favorite Ferris so it places it on top and it automatically determines which direction you are traveling. The ferry booths should be advertising this app for people not the terrible one that the state has made. I love this app and highly recommend it. Great job to the brilliant person that developed it. You made my commuting SO MUCH EASIER!!
I’ve lived in WA for 2.5 years, and this app actually changed my life for the better. I love how the app even redirects you to the ferry reservation website for ones like the coupeville port townsend one. When i regularly / daily commuted another ferry, it was great having my reusable ticket scannable from my phone if i ever forgot my wallet and card. I love the arrival times much less mental math that’s hard on my dyscalculic brain. I love saving my favorite routes and quickly swapping between directions, and the cameras being avaliable is the best. The map overview is amazing gosh I cannot list all the incredible features. I would be so lost without this tool. I’ve ended up riding most of the ferry routes with help from this app. I wish I could donate. Thanks for everything you all have accomplished.
This app features all you need to navigate the Washington State Ferry system including the basics you’d expect (schedules), reservations, dock cams, ferry locations, notifications and ticket scan. Accurate, quick, and now essential for any regular commuter or visitor. Love the reservation feature that provides up to the minute information about available space and reservations, and also provides notifications indicating when additional reservations are released. New feature that provides up to the minute information about how the system is performing against scheduled departure times is really useful. If your ferry is going to be late...you’ll know it by simply checking the APP. And it’s all at the bargain price of...free!
This app became and instant daily driver and quickly moved to the front page. Clearly deserving of 5 stars, especially as a free app. It tells you when ferries are running late! This feature has stopped me from speeding and rushing numerous times. A manager for my tickets that actually works?? Easily scan in and check the remaining value of your tickets without fear of the app crashing. WSF could be taking notes from these guys. There are reservations, spot availability indicators, holiday schedules, real time ferry locations , etc. and it knows which side of the water you’re on. I went to Friday Harbor the other day and used the reservation system through FF. It auto filled the whole form! So easy. The UI is very attractive and thoughtfully designed. You can instantly see which ferry is next, owing to the color changes, very nifty for those last minute ferry dashes we all know about. Clearly designed by a frequenter of the ferries. Fast and bug free, and the developer responds to reviews! I tell everyone I know about this app. There is no way this is going to stay free.
I NEVER write app reviews but felt compelled to for Ferry Friend. This app is a game changer!! While the WSDOT ferry website is full of useful information (schedules, alerts, webcams), it is presented in a disparate, confusing, and outdated manner. This app takes all of the good stuff from it and parcels it in an incredibly easy to use format. Oh and there’s more! The ferry delay tracker and the live map are two features that even WSDOT does not have. I travel quite frequently on the ferry system and I am kicking myself for not having heard of this sooner. To the dev- thank you SO MUCH for all of your hard work on this gem of an app.
What is the point of using this app when nothing is updated? We have been sitting at the ferry landing in Anacortes for over three hours and the app says we are supposed to be arriving at Lopez right now on the Yakima. The Yakima, meanwhile, is parked at the landing with its lights off, probably out of commission. Again. No one has updated us on the situation. No ferry workers are to be found anywhere. I had to gather info piecemeal from other passengers who are also stuck here, and the latest rumor is that we will have to wait two and a half more hours. But of course, the app doesn’t have any updates. This is unacceptable. The worst part is, I’ve been told from people who live on the islands that this happens all the time. I don’t plan on ever returning to the San Juans, solely due to the incompetence of those running the ferry system.
I’ve been regularly using the ferry for years and often misread the state-provided ferry schedule both in print and online looking at the wrong departure locations. A friend showed me the FerryFriend app and I haven’t misread the schedule once since then. In addition to simply selecting the ferry run you want and the direction you want to see, the app can also use your location to determine which direction to show first. And there are several other features of the app that make life much easier. I highly recommend it.
I grew up on Vashon Island and based my life off a ferry schedule for years! Now that I don’t live there, I don’t use them as much. But when I need to I go straight to this app. I love you can favorite certain routes and your next boats are usually right in front of your face the minute you open the app! Only con I’ve found is sometimes I notice ferries going into the next day I.e. 12:35 am, they don’t always show up under my favorited route. At first I thought the last boat was at 11 something! Other than that this app is awesome.
Unlike all the WADOT apps I have found this to be extremely reliable and up today with all the crazy cancellations that we see due to crew shortages. And I like all the functionality built into it. Selecting favorite routes and it automatically knowing which direction I am going. Being easy to see the reverse route for my return trip. And easily being able to connect to the DOT cameras. This is a well thought out and built app. A definite have if you travel to and from Vashon Island often.
I’m surprised overall at how easy to use, intuitive, and just overall pleasing this app is to help with finding the next ferry to and from home. My favorite part is how I can add my ferry pass to the app so that I can scan that instead of keeping track of the paper itself and it will count down how many busses I have left! Supper is helpful since I use a pass from work that I need to pay for. Also love the little loading animation they have, very cute!
Like the title says, best app for ferry times and other info. Not sure why I was constantly using the mobile site like a dingus, but not anymore. Love that you can save routes and the ease of being able to change route directions with a swipe. Also the car spot availability with the times is super convenient especially when running late. Thank you for this app!! I use it every time I miss a fast ferry and need to know my options quick, so usually once a week or so if I’m being honest.
As a traveling businessman I take the ferry quit often and through the years I’ve had the privilege of riding each vessel. The ability to see, check and cross cheek different vessels, times and or any delays or cancellations. I rely on this app weekly and through all my times using this to insure I make my appointments I’ve never been let down or found the app not up to speed or date. If you ride any of the WA ferries this app should be on your phone
For so long I had heard about this app, and never thought it was necessary to download it because the WSDOT app seemed to have everything I needed. Boy was I wrong. This app takes it to another level. The graphic interface, the ease of changing the ‘reverse’ direction of the boat with a single click, the ability to swipe through the cameras, the access to your pre-purchased tickets, I mean, this is fantastic! Everything is here and accessed with fewer clicks and swipes. Brilliant.
This app has become our “go-to” combined source of truths! The effective and efficient design of navigation and screen flow make it a quick reference and an invaluable tool for island life transit! We may not always like the news of delays or cancellations it provides, but this app understands how important getting all of the information is to those of us that rely on accurate ferry schedules, changes and alerts! Anchors up and wind on our back! Bravo
Years ago there was an app I used for schedules that included a scanner to check ticket balances. It lost support and died so I have been using the state DOT app, but which is just OK. My friend led me to Ferry Friend and I’m super happy with it! Not only is the scanner back, but the added ability to save the ticket and scan from the app is genius! The layout of the schedules including if the boat is on time is so intuitive. Thank you to the developers! Best app I’ve gotten in a while.
Cursed to a life in paradise, Ferry Friend is our saving grace
What a delight this app is. It's regularly updated with new features; it blows the doors off the crummy old WSDOT app; and it's built (I'm told) by some fellow islanders. Now as we all know, the Island folk are notoriously into strawberry farming and vintage tractors, and are NOT well-known for their technical orientation. Kudos to you, wonderful Island People! Overcoming your geographical limitations and freeing the rest of us from the monotony of the WSDOT app is truly an Islandic Miracle. Please! Take my money!
Kudos to the developers at FerryFriend! All the info you need to plan and adapt your trip to changing ferry conditions. Lots of thoughtful features, like saving your multi-ride tickets, and updating how many rides remain. All the cameras for a given site in an easy-to-view carousel. Real-time predictions of how late the next boat will be. And more! They even change the theme color with the seasons, just like the paper schedules used to do.
Seriously love love love this app. I live on Vashon and this is just SO easy to use and has been super accurate. Best part though? The cameras are so easy to get to! So you can actually see what the line looks like. Before, I was using the WSDOT site, but it’s horrible on your phone - not mobile friendly at all. A friend told me about this and I never looked back. Totally game changer. Highly recommend! I can’t imagine not having it now.
I live on Vashon and my life is ruled by the ferry. While I appreciate all of WSF’s little tools, they are a complete pain to navigate. Ferry Friend pulls it all together in an intuitive app - I can see the schedule, I can see the car line up on the dock cams, I can see the real time ferry map, and I can even store my ferry pass with easy access to remaining rides! I love this thing and I want the app developer to know that I would be willing to pay for this.
The format of Ferry Friend is right on point and deliver the exact and all information I’m looking for immediately. It is intuitive and user friendly for all of us “incidental” users. Living on Vashon Island, like I do, or anywhere else adjacent to Puget Sound, the present status of the ferry routes the Ferry Friend presents (delayed or on time) facilitates a new way of effectively adapt to their daily vagaries. Keep it simple, keep it reliable, it already is an invaluable daily service for us Puget Sounders!
Plusses- This app does an outstanding job of dividing up the ferry routes based upon departure terminal in order to avoid the problems of apps trying to guess where you want to leave from. It also listed the boat expected on the run. One thing I wish it had was the real time Vessel Watch map that the DOT ferry app has. However, I’ll take the improved schedule layout over the map.
In the dark ages I used to rely on paper schedules that failed to update on their own. I would have to get a new schedule every “season” and hope it was accurate on that day. NOW this good samaritan has provided a window into the vagaries and vicissitudes of ferry travel, and eliminated soooooo much stress. I still accidentally to look at the “vashon to…” instead of “fauntleroy to...” but that’s more of a UX thing.
First rate interface is easy to understand and use. Includes features that are a either a big improvement or missing from the official app. Data seem to mimic the official app. This really shows what can be done to make travel easier and rather relegates the official app to the trash. How to get Washington State Ferry system to adopt this. Highly recommended!!
I tell everyone from Vashon to download this app. It’s always reliable and accurate. I love that it gives you the amount of cars that are in line so you know whether you will make it or not. Also, the map of where the boats are make it so helpful when there’s one running late (always) to see where it’s at. Best, most dependable ferry app there is! Thank you!
I love this app. I use it every time I frequent the ferries. The schedules, the cameras, the maps of the vessels. It’s user friendly platform is easy to navigate. No extra non sense or ads. Amazing and a recommended must have. I love that I can just open the cameras of which ferry I am headed to and know what to expect with traffic when I arrive. Thank you to the creators/developers of this app.
This app has everything that I’ve been wishing for as a 30+ year ferry rider living on Whidbey Island. The features that are “buried” in multiple and obscure clicks on the WA ferry site, are so accessible in this app. My favorites are the easy navigation of real time schedule now and future days, the dock photos and the real time map of where the ferries are. Wow! And it’s free! A must have app for ferry riders! Mahalo 🌺
The app gives great information and does a wonderful job with the user interface. I love seeing the entire day’s schedule with the next boat highlighted. Also great at the abilities to “favorite” a route and the information on late sailings. Nice to have feature is its default to the right direction of the schedule based on where you are. Great job! I recommend it.
The app is extremely fast and easy to use with just the right amount of information displayed at the right time. If I could ask for one more thing it would be for a Home Screen widget. I would happily pay $5 extra for this functionality if it were added as a in-app purchase.
Indispensable tool for rider of Washington State Ferries
If you use the Washington State Ferry system this app is simply the best way to know what time the next boat is scheduled to depart, if it’s on time, how many cars are already in line, current location of vessels on the route, etc. best of all it’s free to use, though if you do use it regularly please consider supporting the volunteer development of this app.
The updates continue to make this app even better. The interface is much more logical than the WSDOT app. I love being able to show my ticket right on my phone. The number of drive up spots available really help. Thanks for making Saturday and Sunday aligned like a standard calendar. Thanks for making this app - Jordan & Tyler!
FerryFriend saved my sausage a month ago. I was at Costco in Burlington doing epic shopping & decided to take a little break in my car. I checked your site & there were only 80 spots left at 4:40 pm for the 8:25 pm ferry. I kicked it a notch & did my last bit of perishables shopping & got in line hours early. Your site is a saving Grace during these unpredictable times.
Great tool to monitor ferry sailings around Puget Sound
Our ferry system has been significantly taxed of late due to Covid -related staffing issues, mechanical problems and the like. Ferry Friend has become a great tool to monitor the situation, plan my travels and stay informed. In some cases, the info provided is more up to date than what the WSDOT website provides!. Would highly recommend.
For 24 long years, I tried to figure out when to catch the ferry. Everything - from paper schedules to the WSF website to the WSF app, had some element of confusion and there was always the chance to “look at it wrong.” Not so with Ferry Friend! I love it. Everyone should use it. Be like me and use Ferry Friend, you life will be just that tiniest bit less stressful!
This app has it all. Times. Drive up spaces. The two best features are 1) you can choose to have it pull up the schedule based on your location so you never look up the wrong side of a schedule. 2) You can upload your ferry tickets and there is no problem scanning them from the phone.
As a person who lives on one of the islands in the sound, this app is absolutely necessary for managing taking the ferries to get back to the mainland. With the live updates, accurate boat times, and even vessel names, this app has easily saved me hours of time over the year or so I’ve been using it. THANK YOU FOR MAKING THIS!!
Such a great app! It is way better than the state run app (WSDOT) the only thing I wish this app included was the vessel capacities! Would really help with planning ahead for ferry’s that don’t allow reservations ie, when to leave to get in line, if it’s better to wait for a later ferry due to larger capacity. Otherwise this app is amazing! Definitely worth the download
This app does all the things in one place updates, boat names, schedules, reservations, vessel watch. No longer do I need to cross reference all the wsf emails, schedules, and then use their crappy app. This is a game changer for those who use the ferry system often. Thank you for making it easier and for streamlining the whole fiasco.
So nice to have mobile access to ferry info — it actually has more and is easier to use than the website. It’s especially useful when trying to make last minute reservations, see how full a sailing is, or check on delays. Highly recommended!
We rely on Ferry Friend to help us keep up to speed on a complicate Vashon ferry situation. The schedule, status, links to vessel tracking and camera access in a convenient app experience saves the day. We share it with friends and family that plan on visiting as the best place to go for current info on ferry schedules.
So much better than trying to use WSF VesselWatch map on phone. Posted schedule not error-prone, since it shows only the current day and direction. Time estimates when boats running late (which is often) are sorely missed though. Better in-dock status, or even just a note about how long it has been docked, would be helpful.
The official Washington State Ferries app has improved considerably, so I’m not going to knock them for their efforts. But this one is on a whole different level. Never experienced any crashes, glitches or issues whatsoever. Very smooth, accurate and aesthetically pleasing. It’s what the WSDOT app should have been like right out of the gate.
Love this app!! Thank you for making a tough time to be an island commuter bearable. This year has been a challenging time but the ease-of-use, awesome features, and the adorable graphics make me look forward to the commute…at least until I get to the terminal line :(
This app is the best! It’s easy to use and intuitive to navigate. It is far and above the rest of those in the field. I especially like the scheduled arrival display. Give it a try. Much better than the WSDOT app with regards to the ferry. Edit: The estimated arrival time is tables stakes feature. Way to push the bar. (as is the departure highlight).
So good. Just found this and love it. I love being able to keep my favorite ferry at the top, the swipe option is super convenient and it seems to be fairly well updated in delays. Very much wish there was a non-iPhone version for my family members that don’t have Mac products.
i find it easier to use than the wa dot. even after 30+ years on the island, I still occasionally find I screw up the dates and times. Ferry Friend makes this easier: just pick the date. And all the vessel watch and camera features are still there.
This app is beyond helpful and WAY more user friendly than WSDOT’s actual site. All the info needed is in one spot. I appreciate the drive up spaces being right next to all the runs, the boats being labeled on each run, and alerts labeled under each run as appropriate. Thank you so much for this app!
Ferry Friend is a fabulous resource, especially during the summer period of heavy tourism and terminal construction. The regular ferry app doesn’t give you any information about delays or other problems in the system but Ferry Friend always does! We are huge fans, and recommend it to everyone who relies on the ferry system.
This is much more convenient than carrying around a paper schedule and trying to remember to make sure I have the current one. Even better, it tracks the actual sailing times when the ferry system is switching short-term schedules around, as it frequently does for Vashon (e.g., 2-boat vs. 3-boat), apparently at random.
This is a wonderful app to get the WSF Schedule. It’s much more efficient than the official WSF Schedule. Today I took the boat and the official schedule did not have the correct time my boat was leaving. Ferry Friend had the correct time. Ferry Friend also lined up, on the app, the next 4 times a boat will arrive after the one you hope to catch. I’m very satisfied with this app!!!
I rely on FerryFriend frequently. I use it for the Southworth to Vashon and back and Southworth to Fauntleroy and back and also the Kingston to Edmonds and back. It is accurate and extremely helpful. I am so glad I have that app on my phone. I highly recommend it and have told many people about it.
FerryFriend is the ultimate tool for riders of the Washington State Ferries. Features: • Get real-time schedule predictions. Know when sailings will likely be delayed or on time. • FerryFriend uses a cached schedule so it's always available even when the WSF servers are down. • Dark mode for nighttime use. • Easy to ready schedule that shows departing/arriving times, vessel information, and drive-up/reservation spaces if available. • For routes that require reservations, see reservation availability in line with the schedule. Quickly make reservations from the app, and easily set reservation reminders for when spaces will be available. • Star your frequently used routes for quick access to the schedule and next sailing times. • Schedule changes color to reflect the current schedule season. • Ferry line cameras are shown on a map so you can easily see how long the line is before you arrive. • Live vessel position map that lets you see where your ferry is in real-time. • Round trip and one-way fare schedule for passengers, vehicles, etc. • See WSF alerts and optionally get push notifications for alerts. • Scan your ferry tickets to check on remaining uses. Save your tickets in FerryFriend to use at the tollbooth, or to easily share with friends. Includes information for these departing terminals: Anacortes Bainbridge Island Bremerton Clinton Coupeville Edmonds Fauntleroy Friday Harbor Kingston Lopez Island Mukilteo Orcas Island Point Defiance Port Townsend Seattle Shaw Island Sidney B.C. Southworth Tahlequah Vashon Island
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