Coronado ferry: two downtown San Diego piers, one landing on the island side

Coronado lies across San Diego Bay from downtown, directly facing the Embarcadero, and the Coronado ferry is the short water route between the two, run in California by a private company, Flagship Cruises & Events. What confuses first-time riders is the San Diego end. There are two boarding points: Broadway Pier, on North Harbor Drive at the foot of Broadway, and the Convention Center, whose Fifth Avenue Landing is about a mile farther south-east along the waterfront. On the island side there is one, Coronado Ferry Landing, and both routes finish there.

The two piers keep different hours. Broadway Pier has the long day: free commuter boats from 04:50 on weekday mornings, then an hourly boat from 09:00 until 22:00, with the last return from Coronado at 22:30. The Convention Center has no early boats, but from 09:25 it sends a ferry every 30 minutes, and its 22:55 departure is the last of the day to the island. Fares are the same on both: $9 one way, in US dollars, with no round-trip ticket.

The practical choice, then, is about where you are starting and when. From the Convention Center end of downtown, the Fifth Avenue Landing is closer and its boats more frequent; arriving by train or Trolley at Santa Fe Depot, two blocks from Broadway Pier, that pier is the obvious one, and before 9 a.m. it is the only one.

Hourly from Broadway Pier, half-hourly from the Convention Center

Flagship's current Coronado ferry tables, undated, read on October 1, 2026; commuter sailings cross-checked with the City of Coronado the same day   Flagship Cruises & Events — Ferry Routes & Schedules · 2026-10-01

Nine dollars each way, and nothing at all before 8:30 on a weekday

Flagship sells only one-way tickets, at the same $9 on both Coronado routes, for anyone aged four and over. For a round trip you buy two of them. No ticket is linked to a particular sailing: each one is good on any scheduled departure of the route you bought it for, provided there is room on the boat, which on a busy weekend or after an event at the Convention Center is not guaranteed.

The exception is the early morning. The commuter boats between Broadway Pier and Coronado are subsidized by the City of Coronado and cost nothing for pedestrians and cyclists, with a voucher for a free ride back later that day.

Flagship fares as published, undated, read on October 1, 2026   Flagship Cruises & Events — Ferry Routes & Schedules and Ferry FAQ · 2026-10-01

Broadway Pier, Fifth Avenue Landing and the Coronado dock they share

The third landing does not appear on the map. The Convention Center (Fifth Avenue Landing), 600 Convention Way, is the pier for the half-hourly boats, and the terminal Flagship pairs with concerts at the Rady Shell. It has no commuter boats; its first departure is 09:25.

Across San Diego Bay from the Embarcadero to First Street

San Diego Bay separates downtown from Coronado, and the ferry cuts straight across it: about 15 minutes from either downtown pier to the island side. Broadway Pier sits at the foot of Broadway; the Fifth Avenue Landing is farther south-east along the waterfront, at the Convention Center. From both, the boat heads for the same dock at Coronado Ferry Landing.

The map on this page draws the Broadway Pier line. The Convention Center line leaves from a point about a mile to the south-east along the waterfront and arrives at the same Coronado dock.

Choosing a pier, a boat and a ticket in San Diego

• Match the ticket to the pier

  Coronado tickets are valid on the route you bought them for. If you might come back to the other downtown pier, buy the return later rather than in advance.

• Arrive ten minutes early

  Flagship recommends ten minutes before departure, and more at weekends, on holidays, during conferences and when big events let out. Boarding is limited by vessel capacity.

• Bring the bike, it is free

  Bicycles ride at no extra charge on the Coronado boats when there is space, and strollers are allowed.

• Main deck only for wheelchairs

  The Coronado vessels and their interior main decks are wheelchair accessible; the open top decks are not.

• No restrooms, no snacks

  There are no restrooms aboard and no food or drink service, so use the facilities at the Ferry Landing or on the Embarcadero first.

• Commuter boats skip holidays

  The free early sailings do not run on eleven weekday holidays, including Columbus Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and the day after. The hourly boats from 9 a.m. are not affected.

A crossing Flagship dates to 1886, heading for battery power

Flagship dates ferry service between San Diego and Coronado to 1886, and its oldest boat keeps a link to that past. The Silvergate, built in 1940, is a 65-foot wooden ferry for 219 passengers which, by the company's account, has been working longer than any other wooden ferry in the country. The larger Cabrillo, 85 feet with room for 261, has an enclosed main deck and a sun deck above.

The next boats will be different. Flagship is building two fully electric ferries for the Coronado route, each for up to 275 passengers, with fast chargers at the docks, and says the first will enter service in 2027. The project is backed by the California Air Resources Board's SHIFT program, part of California Climate Investments. The early commuter boats are the closest thing here to the foot ferry across Sinclair Inlet at Port Orchard, a public transit route timed around shift work; in San Diego the same job is done by a private operator with a city subsidy.

A 1940 wooden ferry, an 85-footer, and electric boats on order

Questions visitors ask on the Embarcadero about the Coronado boat