San Diego/Coronado Ferry

Went to Coronado to bike around the island with my family ! Watched the sunset and took plenty of nice pictures! Took the ferry back to Broadway pier, I was surprised at how cheap it was ! Very beautiful trip ! ¹⁰⁄₁₀ !

There are a couple of ways for a visitor to approach the ferry.
The rational approach would be to grab your bike, go on down to the Broadway Pier, and ferry across the bay for a day of bike riding on Coronado Island. A popular strategy, as evidenced by the large bike rack that dominates the ground floor of the ferry.
The less rational approach, our approach, would be to drive across the scenic bridge to Coronado, enjoy no hassle free parking at the Coronado Island ferry stop, and take the kids on a round trip ferry ride to San Diego and back. Then drive home across the bridge. It makes perfect sense if you are a kid.
$ 38 round trip for the four of us and a great experience for our normally land locked little ones. The ferry ride itself, one way, only takes about ten minutes.

Even though I have lived in San Diego for about 13 years, I never get tired of this tourist attraction!
You can board the ferry at Broadway Pier or at the Coronado Ferry Landing. I think roundtrip ferry tickets are near $ 11.00. Stow your bike down below and then go upstairs to take in the panoramic views of the city.
My favorite times to take the ferry are usually after an afternoon of doing the Bayshore Bike Path up through Coronado. It’s great for out-​of-​towners too.

Didn’t have any plans on this glorious Sunday so randomly decided to go downtown specifically to take the ferry! Lol I think it’s so cute. Just a chill thing to do to take in the gorgeous SD skyline on the big bay. So you normally buy the tickets at the flagship booth but it closed with no like instructions on what to do lol but one of those pedicab drivers told us that we could buy tickets on the boat so that’s what we did yay!
So everyone knows that San Diego is beautiful, but there really is no better view of the city than from the water. There’s nothing like it. That goes for the beaches too I love taking my kayak out from La Jolla shores to the cove, you get a special glimpse of the city that you have to work for to look at. Of course going on the ferry is super easy! Just pay for your $ 9.50 round trip ticket and you’re on your way! I’d much rather do this than spend more money on a movie ticket or anywhere else indoors.
There’s two levels on the boat. But of course the top is the place to be! There’s actually a little enclosed space on the top which has enough room for maybe like idk 6 ppl to sit in? It’s right underneath the captain’s quarters bahhahaa. But yeah the rest of the top level is all out in the open. It’s quite nice actually. Even tonite going home at 9:30 pm, it wasn’t too cold bc the front of the boat cuts all the wind away so i feel like its quite temperate. But yeah you HAVE to be at the top to enjoy the gorgeous view. You can see everything. the Midway, the Fish Market, Seaport Village, the Headquarters, Manchester Grand Hyatt, the Embarcadero, Convention Center, the Central Library, the Coronado Bridge and everything behind them! Glorious! I kind of wish the ride was a bit longer than 10 minutes or how ever long it is bc to be in the middle between downtown San Diego and Coronado is just amazing.
The captain and the security guard that I think are the only people on deck were pretty friendly. We actually left a little bit later 7:00 which was scheduled because these really two loud ladies were like trying to get on. but I mean whatever it’s all for leisure anyway, I don’t think anyone really takes this like they would a taxi. Going to Coronado at 7:00 pm on a Sunday, there was hardly anyone on the boat maybe like idk no more than 15 ppl. it was perfect too bc parking was easy and the parking meter’s free after 8:00 with a max of 3 hours so i wouldn’t get there any earlier than 5:00 pm otherwise you’ll have to park at a lot if that makes sense. But yeah riding the ferry is something I suggest to all out of town guests and sometimes Hiro S. and I do it when we wana spend some good quality time in the city.

Whether by bridge or by ferry I love cruising over to coronado if I’m in SD. Taking the ferry is an easy option if you don’t want to hassle with parking and it’s a beautiful ride across the water. Great opportunity to kick back and enjoy the views. Very reasonably priced.

Bought our round trip tickets at the kiosk for the Convention center ferry. Cost was $ 25.50 for three of us.
The ferry is two levels and you can bring bikes. The convention center ferry runs every half hour. It was right on time. Employees were friendly and it’s a pretty efficient operation.
Takes about 5 minutes to get to Coronado and the scenery is amazing.

Well organized ferry ride and always right on time. So that means don’t run late!
You purchase tickets at the kiosk right in front of the gate and it’s quite simple.
Can’t beat the $ 7 round trip ride. Way cheaper than any taxi and you won’t have to deal with parking once you get on the island.
Plus the ferrys are clean which is always a plus.

Broadway ferry usually runs tight as a drum but when taking the convention center ferry (commuter?), just assume it will be about 10 to 15 minutes late even though they usually shut the gate right on time. Used to be pretty dependable but it seems like they’ve taken it upon themselves to spend an inordinate amount of time trying to educate tourists about how to clog up the mean streets of coronado.
As a pleasure trip for Arizona folks with no schedule or time-​sensitive obligations it’s fairly convenient but don’t expect to stick to the timetables. Summertime is usually better as they have the larger boat, not the water taxi.

There is zero chance we’re going to take this ferry without our dog. We go to Seaport and/​or Coronado 3 times a week and would love to take the ferry but we always take our furry family member. So many things in that area are dog friendly; this ferry not being one of them is poor business.

My wife and I enjoyed the ferry ride over to Coronado Ferry Landing, where we strolled around and browsed the various shopping and dining establishments.
Margaret was a big fan of the cupcakes at Coronado Cupcakery.
This is a low-​cost and scenic way to see San Diego Harbor and get a great view of the San Diego Cityscape.
Coronado Island is a great place to escape the hustle and bustle of San Diego, enjoy an old fashioned small town vibe and walk white sand beaches.

I like the ferry. I come often with my kids because it’s cheap (free under 4 and $ 4.50 for adults one way) and short (about 11 minutes). It’s clean, you get a great views and you get to shop, eat and spend some time on the tiny beach where the kids can play in the send.

Not their fault that the San Diego waterfront is being torn up, but they do not do a good job of letting one know (with good signage) where to park now, how to get from the parking to the boats, etc.
They were on time, and they trip was smooth. Loved the time I had when I got to Coronado. Fun place to hang out and a great view of the city skyline.
Worth going, but call ahead and get all the details on how to figure things out.

My Mom and I planned a whole day during our stay, dedicating it to the harbor and Coronado Island. We planned to walk around, look at some shops at Seaport Village, find the ferry, hop on and continue on Coronado.
Well, that is not how our day went. We tried to find it near Broadway but there was so much construction going on starting at the USS Midway and spanning into the city that it was very confusing. The ferry was NOT clearly marked — and even though we stopped and got directions THREE TIMES, we only found the 5^th street ferry purely by luck and guess work. The only signage? A small sandwich board sign right at the entrance. Seriously ridiculous. We walked several miles and wasted a few hours between the USS Midway, the old Police Station shops and Seaport Village trying to figure this out.
All of that, only to be out on the water for five minutes, land, and find the very same, touristy shops were on the other side. We were seriously unimpressed by the lack of signage, advice at information booths and lack of effort put into this for visitors. It is listed on all of the touristy maps and everything else has incremental, or giant signs pointing you were to go. Not this. Never again.
The only reason I am giving two stars is because of the skyline pictures I got and because one of the crew members waited for us at the last minute while we bought our tickets before the ferry left — he held it for us which was awesome.

Not knowing anything, I boarded this ferry.
I was SO excited to be on this ferry to realize that it was just a 5 minute ride to Coronado. lol
Wish it was a little longer since it’s such a nice view and atmosphere…

When I visited San Diego by cruise ship, I decided to take the ferry to and from Coronado. The ferry rides were nice and the price was okay.
That one time I was there, there were some long lines, and when I wanted to purchase a ticket for the ferry, they told me that I was in the wrong line and had to go to the other side. You couldn’t just sell me one there, especially when you were right next to that window?
Aside from that, a very good experience and recommended for those tourists who want to see another part of CA.

This is really a fun way to go from downtown to Coronado. It isn’t expensive and you almost get a tour out of it for free!
I took BB on a wild goose chase to Coronado because I am just that type of girl and figured it would be nice to take the ferry over so that we could get some much needed walking in.
The ferry runs on the hour from the marina and every half hour on the way back. You might find yourself doing a wee bit of waiting which is fine because you can use that time to review it here on Unilocal… or make a new friend… but probably Unilocal

I’M ON A BOAT!!!
(Sorry for quoting Lonely Island, I’ve just lived in central TX too long.)
Great way to get from SD to Coronado and so close to many hotels!

Awesome way to get to Coronado from the Broadway pier.
I like to run along the San Diego Marina and then take the ferry to Coronado, then continue to run from one side of Coronado to the Hotel Del and back. Its a really pleasant run, and the ferry ride itself gets you some EXCELLENT views of the San Diego skyline. The cost of each way is 4.25 and their is a kiosk you can buy your tickets from. I would suggest sitting on the top to feel the breeze and get the best view, but you can also sit downstairs in an enclosed area. Bring your bike if you plan on touring Coronado! There’s a bike rack available for no extra charge. Overall, the cheapest and best way to get Coronado.
The ferry leaves from the Broadway Pier at the top of the hour, every hour and returns from Coronado every half hour. Hours of operation are 9am to 9pm. (on Friday and Saturday till 10:00pm).

No cars on this ferry. The reason I give this 5 stars is because they offer a free commuter ferry every Monday-​Friday. They give you a red pass and you can use it for whatever return time throughout the day.
Times it leaves San Diego For Free:
0515
0630
0720
0810
Then it leaves Coronado Ferry Landing every hour on the half hour (930, 1030 etc.)
The inside has plenty of seats and tables. Upstairs has plenty of seats too, great view of the city and the Coronado bridge.
When it was close to Christmas there were a couple mornings when a local bike store brought hot chocolate, cookies, breakfast food and put it out for all the bikers. That was very cool of them.
When it’s outside of commuter hours the price becomes 4.25 each way. This have saved me tons of money in gas because I bike to work everyday instead of drive! I love the ferry!

$ 3.50 one way or $ 7 roundtrip. They run up until 9:30PM from Coronado to San Diego.
I believe they depart from San Diego on the top of the hour and depart Coronado at 30minutes past each hour. During commute hours, I think there are more ferries.
15 minute ride, not bad. It feels like going from SF to Sausalito by ferry. It’s fun to sit on top. When I went around 5PM, there were only tourists like myself going to Coronado.
Sit on the upper deck, it’s much more fun. It can get chilly up there, so bring a sweater or jacket.