Anacortes ↔ Orcas Island

Driving with a reservation, arrive at Anacortes 45 to 60 minutes before departure. The reservation is useful only if you reach the booth before its check-in cutoff. Use the same discipline at Orcas for the return. Walk-ons and bicycles should allow about 20 minutes.

Fares are collected westbound at Anacortes. The reservation is still separate from the ticket, and the booking fee rules aren't the ferry fare. No passenger or vehicle fare is collected for the eastbound return from Orcas to Anacortes.

Parking is limited: WSF lists 36 spaces and another 16 angled spaces near the upper tollbooth. On other days, treat a space as a possibility, not a transport plan. Parking isn't allowed on summer weekends or along the county road leading to the terminal.

Yes. Remember that the island rises quickly away from the landing; ferry access is easy, but the ride beyond it's not flat. Bikes may bypass the vehicle line, and WSF asks riders to arrive about 20 minutes early. The Orcas terminal has racks for 16 bicycles.

Yes. Walk-ons and bicycles don't reserve, and inter-island vehicle trips are first come, first served. Anacortes to Orcas and Orcas to Anacortes are separate one-way reservations. Booking one direction does nothing for the other.

Many sailings take roughly 55 to 70 minutes, but the exact time depends on island stops. A direct sailing and a milk run share a route name, not a timetable. Check the arrival time for your departure instead of planning around a single average.

Yes. Walking on removes the car-deck constraint, but it creates a different job: arrange a shuttle, taxi, rental, bike, or pickup on Orcas before assuming the rest of the island is close to the landing. Vehicle reservations don't apply to walk-on passengers or bicycles.

No. Read the notes for the exact trip before joining the line. Vehicle reservations cover Orcas–Anacortes, not travel between the islands. Inter-island vehicles load first come, first served, and some sailings limit which vehicle destinations they accept.