Timetable valid 1 Apr 2026 - 31 Mar 2027; Mon, Tue, Thu and Fri shown, Wed, Sat and Sun switch automatically
Map – Gabriola Ferry (Nanaimo Harbour)
| Fare type | Price |
|---|---|
| Adult passenger (12+), return | $11.60 |
| Child (5-11), return | $5.80 |
| Child under 5 | Free |
| Senior resident of BC (65+), Mon-Thu except BC Ferries' listed holidays | Free |
| Car or other standard vehicle, max 20 ft (6.1 m), return (occupants pay separately) | $27.55 |
| Extra vehicle length over 20 ft, per foot | $3.20 |
| Motorcycle, return (rider extra) | $13.80 |
| Stowage (canoe, kayak and similar), no fuel surcharge | $2.00 |
| Bicycle | Free |
Figures from the Nanaimo (Nanaimo Harbour) - Gabriola Island page of BC Ferries' fare guide, version 26-05, in effect since 16 June 2026. All are return prices and BC Ferries says taxes are included. When you pay, BC Ferries adds 5% for fuel on top of every listed price except stowage, so the till total ends up a little higher than the list. A car fare pays for the car alone; whoever is in it buys a passenger ticket as well. Bikes cost nothing. Seniors living in BC (65+) pay no passenger fare from Monday to Thursday unless it is one of the holidays BC Ferries lists (New Year's Day, BC Family Day, Victoria Day, Canada Day, BC Day, Labour Day, National Truth and Reconciliation Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day). An Experience Card knocks $4.65 off the adult fare, $2.30 off a child, $9.60 off a car up to 20 ft and $4.80 off a motorcycle. The booth selling tickets is on the Nanaimo side ('check-in and ticket sales', says the Nanaimo Harbour page); BC Ferries' Descanso Bay page talks about check-in only. Accepted at terminals: cash, debit, Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Experience Card. All fares in Canadian dollars (CAD).
The Gabriola ferry does not leave from Departure Bay or Duke Point, the terminals for the big mainland ferries. It uses BC Ferries' small Nanaimo Harbour terminal at 160 Front Street, in downtown Nanaimo, and crosses to Descanso Bay on the northwest side of Gabriola Island. BC Ferries times the trip at 25 minutes; the charted ferry line is about 5.5 km. On 29 September 2026 the Current Conditions board showed two vessels sharing the daytime sailings, Island sarlequun and Island xwsaĺux̌ul, with a single boat running the evening.
BC Ferries lists Nanaimo Harbour - Gabriola among the routes where school-age BC students ride without paying to get to class. On a regular weekday there are 24 departures from Descanso Bay and 23 from Nanaimo Harbour, with the first boat leaving the island at 5:15 am and the last one leaving the city at 11:30 pm. Three days break the pattern. On Wednesdays one sailing each way is kept for hazardous cargo and the late round trip is dropped. Saturdays start about an hour later, and Sundays have a lone early departure from Gabriola before regular service picks up. No separate winter timetable exists for this crossing; the same pattern runs from April 2026 to March 2027, apart from the two holiday Fridays at the turn of the year, 25 December and 1 January, which lose roughly half their sailings.
Nothing can be booked ahead: loading is strictly first come, first served. The Nanaimo Harbour booth stops selling three minutes before each departure, and cars line up along Front Street from the south. Descanso Bay stops checking in ten minutes before. Owners of RVs, low trailers or hitch-mounted bike racks should check the tide, because BC Ferries warns that at very low or very high water vehicles can scrape on the Nanaimo Harbour ramp. Descanso Bay has 12 free parking spaces with a 24-hour limit and about 40 paid spaces nearby; downtown Nanaimo has only limited pay parking near the terminal. On the island, BC Ferries lists the GERTIE bus and a local taxi as onward options.
Tickets are priced as a round trip, and a 5% fuel charge goes on at the till. Bikes ride free, and BC seniors pay nothing Monday to Thursday outside the holidays BC Ferries lists (New Year's Day, BC Family Day, Victoria Day, Canada Day, BC Day, Labour Day, National Truth and Reconciliation Day, Thanksgiving and Christmas Day).
- Arrive at the terminal before the posted departure; vehicle lanes and ticket booths close earlier than the foot-passenger gate.
- Check the operator's current conditions or service notices on the day — wind, ice, vessel refits and dangerous-cargo sailings change the schedule.
- Find out how you can pay before you queue: some crossings are free, some sell tickets only at one end, and some take cards only.