Somewhere between Seattle and the Canadian border, a traveler with a loaded car and a plan to reach Juneau without crossing into Canada by road realizes there is another way north: the ferry from Bellingham. The Alaska Marine Highway leaves from this small city on Bellingham Bay and carries passengers and vehicles up the coast to Southeast Alaska. It is a multi-day sea journey, more a way of traveling than a quick transfer.
How do you get from Bellingham to Alaska by ferry?
You board an Alaska Marine Highway ferry at Bellingham, the southern terminus of the system, and ride a mainline vessel north through the Inside Passage to Southeast Alaska. The ferry is operated by the state of Alaska, with headquarters in Ketchikan, and the Bellingham sailing is the one that links the contiguous United States to the Alaska coast by water.
The mainline route from Bellingham runs to Ketchikan, Wrangell, Petersburg, Juneau, Haines, Skagway and Sitka. Use the Sailing Search tool to enter a port and travel date and find an available sailing. Another mainline route starts in Ketchikan and serves Wrangell, Petersburg, Sitka, Juneau, Haines and Skagway, which is useful if you want to travel only within Alaska.
Why people choose the boat
The ferry is one of the only ways to move a vehicle between Alaska and the lower 48 without going through international customs and immigration. For anyone relocating, hauling a camper or simply wanting to arrive by sea, that is the draw. Juneau, the state capital, cannot be reached by road even though it sits on the mainland, so the boat or a plane is the way in.
This is not a cruise ship. Cabins cost extra, and most food is served cafeteria-style. All mainline vessels have solariums, showers and lounges where passengers can sleep, and the larger vessels also have staterooms. Travelers who like to watch the coast slide past from a deck chair tend to be happiest aboard.
How long the trip takes
The sample running time from Bellingham to Ketchikan is 38 hours, which gives a sense of the scale. Continuing to Skagway takes just under three days. Coming back down the coast or hopping between Alaska towns is shorter: the ferry from Sitka to Juneau takes 18 hours.
Because you cannot sail all the way from Bellingham to Dutch Harbor on a single boat, the system is divided into three parts. Riders reach their final stop through regional hubs, in Ketchikan, Juneau, Whittier or Homer, sometimes changing vessels along the way.
Checking in and reading the schedule
Before that, the Alaska Marine Highway offers a Sailing Calendar that shows schedules in a monthly format, and you can sort entries by month, port or vessel. Clicking an entry opens the full schedule in a pop-up window.
If the calendar does not answer your question, the Sailing Search tool lets you enter a port and a travel date. The Colored Schedule Grids show a region or vessel by month with the whole sailing route, each vessel in its own color. In both the calendar and the grids, arrivals appear in plain text and departures in bold.
Which ports does the ferry call at?
In all, the system includes 32 terminals across Alaska, British Columbia and Washington, and its routes cover 3,500 miles of coastline.
The mainline stops
Ketchikan is the first Alaska stop on the route and also the system’s headquarters. From there the ferry works through Wrangell and Petersburg, then reaches Juneau, which is the ferry hub of Southeast Alaska, with all lines calling there. Haines and Skagway sit at the head of the route, and Sitka is also on the Bellingham line.
Most communities in Southeast Alaska receive year-round ferry service. Mainline vessels serve the larger towns, while day boats provide regularly scheduled service to the smaller ones. That is why a map of the system looks like a tree, with the mainline as the trunk and short runs branching off from Juneau.
Short runs from Juneau and Gustavus
Scheduled routes in Southeast Alaska include Juneau to Angoon, Juneau to Haines, Juneau to Kake, Juneau to Pelican, Juneau to Tenakee and Juneau to Skagway, as well as Gustavus to Hoonah. These are the connections that carry you from the mainline into smaller communities once you have arrived in the region.
Prince Rupert and the Kennicott
Prince Rupert, in British Columbia, is not a dependable stop. The summer 2024 schedule had no vessel equipped to serve it, because of international service regulations and crewing shortages. The proposed winter 2026/27 schedule also does not travel to Prince Rupert.
The MV Kennicott travels from Bellingham via Prince Rupert, Ketchikan and Juneau up to Yakutat and on to South Central Alaska, but only in the summer. Whittier and Homer, the hubs on the Gulf of Alaska side, belong to that other part of the system, which is why a single boat cannot take you from Washington to the Aleutians.
What should you know before you book?
Before booking, check the Sailing Calendar and Sailing Search tool for your port and travel date, then confirm current vehicle, cabin and reservation requirements with the Alaska Marine Highway. Look at the Sailing Calendar for your month, then confirm your departure and arrival ports with the Sailing Search tool.
Check-in, bags and pets
Passengers without vehicles check in 2 hours before departure at Bellingham and Juneau, and 1 hour before departure at all other ports. Walk-on passengers may bring up to 100 pounds of hand-carried baggage, which is generous enough for a long trip with layers of clothing and a few books.
Animals are restricted to the car deck and must be properly contained in an approved carrier or transported in a vehicle accompanied by an adult passenger. That shapes the trip for anyone traveling with a pet, since the animal does not stay with you in the lounge or cabin.
Kayaks, canoes and small boats
Kayaks and canoes may be carried aboard. Small inflatable boats are allowed if they weigh less than 300 pounds and do not exceed 18 feet in length and 3 feet in width. For paddlers heading to Southeast Alaska’s islands and inlets, that makes the ferry a natural way to arrive with your own gear.
Paying and tipping onboard
The ferry accepts only U.S. currency for goods or services, though credit cards drawn on foreign banks are accepted. Crewmembers are State of Alaska employees and are prohibited by state law from accepting tips. Any tip money left behind goes to the State General Fund, so there is no need to carry small bills for the crew.
Getting to Bellingham
Bellingham lies 21 miles south of the Canada–United States border, with Vancouver, British Columbia, 52 miles to the northwest and Seattle 90 miles to the south. Mount Baker, more than 10,000 feet high, is visible from many parts of town, and Whatcom Falls Park, with four sets of waterfalls and several miles of walking trails, is a pleasant way to spend time before boarding.
In summer the town has plenty to fill an evening: Downtown Sounds, a family-friendly concert series with food booths and a beer garden, takes over Bay Street on Wednesday nights, and from May to September the Commercial Street Night Market runs downtown.
Good to know before you go
Plan the ferry as part of the trip rather than a transfer, with the Sailing Calendar and Colored Schedule Grids as your guide to what runs when. Many Southeast Alaska communities have year-round service, but Prince Rupert and the Kennicott follow their own limits, so check the schedule for your month before committing to a route. Keep U.S. dollars or a credit card handy for onboard purchases.
Sources
- Alaska Department of Transportation, Alaska Marine Highway System, Route guide (https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/route.shtml), checked October 11, 2026
- Alaska Department of Transportation, Alaska Marine Highway System, Alaska Marine Highway System (https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/index.shtml), checked October 11, 2026
- Alaska Department of Transportation, Alaska Marine Highway System, Schedules (https://dot.alaska.gov/amhs/schedules.shtml), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikipedia, Bellingham, Washington (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bellingham,_Washington), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikipedia, Alaska Marine Highway (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Marine_Highway), checked October 11, 2026
- Wikivoyage, Alaska Marine Highway (https://en.wikivoyage.org/wiki/Alaska_Marine_Highway), checked October 11, 2026