America · FERRIES & WATER TAXIS
The good ferries & water taxis tours fill up early and the best go first. Below: the 15 to book ahead, what each includes and how they differ.
Take a self-guided ferry to Liberty Island and Ellis Island, with multilingual audio guides and museum access for about $19.
“excellent,everythi ng went smoothly with no issues issues.”
Half-day trip to Muir Woods giant redwoods and Sausalito shops, with a Golden Gate photo stop, plus optional bike ride or ferry return.
“Muir Woods was closed on the day of the tour, something the company knew beforehand but we didn't. Because of this, the tour went to another place called Armstrong Redwoods that was further away. This meant that the tour would end a lot later than the advertised time. We had the option to cancel and get a refund or accept the new schedule. The problem was that this information was given moments before the tour bus was going to leave, so we had JUST A FEW SECONDS to decide what option to take. It was very unprofessional of the company to not let us know about this as soon as…”
Hop on and off Fort Lauderdale waterways all day, 10am-10pm, with live commentary and stops from Las Olas to Hollywood for $38.
“We enjoyed the tour and options for the stops. Recommend going the full route if you can. Had a great day!”
Prebook Fort Sumter admission with a round-trip ferry from Charleston, plus a narrated harbor cruise and a ranger welcome on the island.
“Good experience. Boat was older. Rangers knowledgeable. We had plenty of time at the Fort. Would recommend.”
Ferry to Fort Sumter from Charleston, enjoy ranger stories and one hour exploring the fort, plus harbor views. Entry included.
“The park rangers gave were working during the the federal shutdown. They gave us their knowledge and history about Fort Sumter.”
Ferry from Pier 33 to Alcatraz with a self-guided app audio tour. See Al Capone and Machine Gun Kelly cells, plus skyline views.
“a really great tour, needs more about the escape of the 3 men who made paper mache heads”
Guided Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island ferry tour with museum time and skyline views from Battery Park, with a guide and reserved entry.
“We were not able to complete the event because it was cold and my grandson was misbehaving due him being tired from flight layover.”
Charleston water taxi cruise with frequent dolphin sightings. Hop between Patriots Point, the Aquarium area, waterfront park, and the marina.
“Not sure if we just had a bad captain but the guy never said a word the entire trip except to the crew. Didn’t even announce what stops we were at. The girl taking tickets was friendly though. Great way to beat the heat but from a sightseeing perspective it was terrible.”
City Cruises high-speed ferry links Boston and Salem in about 50 minutes, with harbor views, snacks, and easy walks to top sights.
“You cancelled our trip to Salem after we planned this out for months! Had to find alternate transportation. Not happy! 😡”
Alcatraz by official ferry from Pier 33 plus start-to-finish audio for the Cells and beyond, with an optional night visit.
“Absolute blast! Guided audio tour was super cool and well done. I wish cafeteria and other parts were open, but still a great experience.”
Half-day San Francisco trip to Muir Woods and Sausalito, with a Golden Gate Bridge stop and optional ferry return. From $91.
“Great trip , amazing to walk among the giant redwoods, followed by Sausilito , we took the ferry back which gave us a bit more time there Our driver was excellent, Mr Chablis , very skilled driver around those hills and tight bends , he did stop off on the way for what would have been an amazing view /pic of the golden gate bridge but the heavy fog prevented that ☹️ a great trip to take !!”
Take the Hilton Head to Savannah ferry for scenic Intracoastal Waterway views, easy downtown docking, and about 4 hours in Savannah.
“Great crew, departed and returned on time, the bar on board was well stocked and prices are very reasonable”
Rent an electric bike in San Francisco with a map and optional one-way ferry to Fisherman’s Wharf, for bridge views and neighborhood rides.
“Good activity would be nice to have a map on bike like an interactive to show where to go”
Roundtrip Miami Beach to Bimini by fast ferry with hotel transfers, 6 hours on the island, and optional water-sports add-ons.
“Catastrophique, Je suis aller au point de rendez-vous à 4 h 30 j’ai patienter jusqu’à 6 h sans qu’aucun chauffeur ne vienne me chercher à l’adresse indiqué. J’ai contacté le prestataire de service sans réponse et le service client m’ont dit que je doit aller directement au ferry j’ai du prendre un uber à 60 dollars et quand je me suis présenter au terminal 21 on me dit que le ferry est fermer le samedi j’ai quand même patienter jusqu’à 9 h pour recevoir au final un mail de remboursement. C’est mon voyage de noce et sachez que vous avez tuer nos vacances je n’ai pas les mots j’espère que…”
A guided Wall Street walk to Federal Hall and the 9/11 Memorial, then a round-trip ferry to see the Statue of Liberty up close.
“Paul K. Was great and very informative. Very impressed with his knowledge about the city. Everything was explained and history was given my teenager and tween enjoyed his company too.”
Every kind of day out, and the best of each.
