San Juan Islands ferry reservations: holiday tips

WA Ferry Tracker › Guides

Holiday weekends like Thanksgiving, Christmas/New Year, and Presidents' Day are among the hardest times to get a car onto the Anacortes–San Juan Islands ferry. This guide covers how WSF vehicle reservations work, when space opens up, and what to do if you have no reservation.

1. How WSF vehicle reservations work

• Only two routes take reservations: Anacortes/San Juan Islands and Port Townsend/Coupeville. Every other WSF route is first-come, first-served.
• A reservation is not a ticket. You still buy your fare online or at the terminal.
• It's one-way. Book the trip out and the trip home.
• Vehicles only. Walk-on passengers and bicycles don't need a reservation.
• It's free to reserve, but there's a no-show fee if you don't turn up. Since March 1, 2026, a no-show fee paid by card carries an extra 3% fee.
• Arrive 45–60 minutes early for Anacortes/San Juan Islands sailings (30–45 minutes for Port Townsend/Coupeville).
• If service is disrupted, new reservations may not be available, and people who already have a reservation get priority.

2. When space opens: the three release tiers

On the Anacortes/San Juan Islands route, WSF releases standard-vehicle space in three tiers:

Seasons are refreshed four times a year (fall, winter, spring, summer). The fall 2026 season runs Sept. 20 – Dec. 26. Winter-season reservations opened Tuesday, Oct. 27 at 10 a.m. WSF says some February and March 2027 dates won't be reservable for Orcas and Lopez because of construction on the vehicle transfer span at those terminals.

Eastbound note: vehicles leaving Shaw Island or Lopez Island for Anacortes can't reserve. They load first-come, first-served.

3. Holiday tips

1. Book the season release if you can. The first 30% goes fast for holiday weekends, so be in the waiting room before 10 a.m.
2. If it's "full," don't give up. Two more tiers of 30% each open later. People also cancel, so space often reappears on the days before a sailing.
3. Get an alert instead of refreshing. WA Ferry Tracker watches reservation space on the Anacortes ⇄ Orcas, Friday Harbor, Lopez, and Shaw sailings, and can send you a WhatsApp message when a slot opens. It only reads public availability. You still book on the official WSF site, as the reservation policy requires.
4. Travel off-peak. WSDOT's best-times-to-travel guides show which sailings are usually busiest. Holiday-eve afternoons westbound and the final day eastbound are usually the worst.
5. Consider walking on. Walk-ons and bikes almost always fit, with no reservation needed.
6. Book both directions. The return trip on the Sunday after Thanksgiving is often harder to get than the trip out.

4. Drive-up and stand-by tips

• About 10% of standard space on each sailing is kept for stand-by. More opens up when people don't show.
• Arrive well ahead of the sailing you want. Stand-by space is very limited, and you may have to wait for a later boat.
• Check WSDOT's terminal cameras and real-time ferry map before you leave home.
• Bring food, water, and a full tank. Holiday waits in the Anacortes holding lanes can last hours.
• Sign up for WSF travel alerts so you hear about cancellations and vessel swaps.

See also: San Juan Islands ferry routes, terminal by terminal.

Sources

• WSF Vehicle Reservations (Save A Spot), "What to know" and "Reservation Release Dates", wsdot.wa.gov (checked Nov 3, 2026)
• Best times to travel on ferries, WSDOT
• Ferries & terminals: real-time map, alerts, and loading cameras, WSDOT
• Ferry reservation policy (acceptable use), WSDOT

This is an independent guide. It isn't affiliated with Washington State Ferries. Rules change every season, so check the WSF reservations page before you travel.