Every time we visited Seattle, we talked about taking the ferry to Bainbridge Island. And every time, it got pushed aside for some other fabulous Seattle activity. But on our last trip, we finally decided enough was enough and we took a day trip to Bainbridge Island.
The ferry runs from downtown Seattle’s Colman Dock every hour or so during the day. Thankfully, walk-on passengers don’t require a reservation. Since we’re last-minute planners, we were very happy to walk to the terminal from our Airbnb, buy a round-trip ticket for $10.25 each, and wait for the next ferry.
We went on a Thursday in September at midday, and the terminal and ferry were quiet. We waited in a nice, clean seating area for the ferry announcement. Once the ferry arrived, boarding was quick and easy.
The ferry left promptly and had plenty of seating areas. The view from Elliott Bay and Puget Sound was so beautiful that I forgot to take a picture of the inside of the ferry!
The ride was smooth and quick, around half an hour. The Husband gets seasick, and he was fine without Dramamine.
We love to walk, so we got off the ferry and started the short walk into town. Like we do in most new areas, we headed toward the bookstore, knowing we would find something either fun or delicious on the way.
Our first chance encounter was the Fletch Bay Winery tasting room. We sampled a few delicious wines (and maybe had a glass or two). Since it was an off-time, the only people in there were the bartender and a couple on their honeymoon. We had the best time chatting about wine and travel.
Knowing that we needed to soak up the wine, we headed to Proper Fish. It’s a casual, British-style fish & chips restaurant that has won Seattle’s Best Fish & Chips multiple times. I’ve spent many months in England and Ireland, eating my way through some of the best fish and chip shops. Their fish and chips were right up there with some of the best I’ve ever had. It was so good that even my picky, non-seafood-eating Husband ate it.
Our last stop before meandering our way back to the ferry was Eagle Harbor Book Co. It was one of the most perfect bookstores I’ve been to. It was bright and inviting, with a great selection across genres. And the local author section—one of my favorite sections in a bookstore when we’re traveling- had the most incredible catalogs, including Susan Wiggs, David Guterson, and Kristin Hannah.
After purchasing a book (my favorite souvenir!), we strolled back to the ferry. The town was so charming, and we learned some facts along the way.
My only regret is that we didn’t go sooner. I think we would have stayed on Bainbridge Island instead of Seattle on one of our trips. But now we know how easy it is to get there and how accessible everything is, and we’ll definitely be back someday.