Seen from the water, the choice between the Cranberry Isles boats looks like a matter of which side of Mount Desert Island you are staying on. Beal & Bunker leaves from Northeast Harbor and runs all year; the Cranberry Cove Ferry, operated by the Bar Harbor windjammer company Downeast Windjammer Cruise Lines, leaves from Southwest Harbor and Manset and runs only from Memorial Day weekend to October 1. In summer the two compete for the same day-trippers to Islesford and Great Cranberry. In October the comparison collapses, because only one of them is still sailing. Monhegan goes through the same change: once the summer boats from New Harbor and Boothbay Harbor stop, the Port Clyde mailboat sails alone for the rest of the year.
There is a third boat that most visitors never notice. The Town of Cranberry Isles, the island municipality in Hancock County that includes both villages, contracts a weekday commuter run so that workers and students can reach Mount Desert early and get home in the evening. It costs $9.00 a ride and is aimed at residents rather than sightseers.
This page leads with Beal & Bunker because it is the service you can actually board between now and late May. Its fall loop runs until Sunday, October 11, and the leaner winter loop takes over the next day.
Beal & Bunker's fall loop and the shorter winter one
Fall table, Labor Day through Sunday, October 11
| From Northeast Harbor | From Islesford (Little Cranberry Island) |
|---|---|
| 07:30 | 08:15 |
| 11:00 | 11:45 |
| 14:30 | 15:15 |
| 16:30 | 17:15 |
Winter table from October 12, every day except Sunday
| From Northeast Harbor | From Islesford (Little Cranberry Island) |
|---|---|
| 07:30 | 08:10 |
| 11:00 | 11:40 |
| 15:30 | 16:10 |
Winter table from October 12, Sundays
| From Northeast Harbor | From Islesford (Little Cranberry Island) |
|---|---|
| 07:30 | 08:10 |
| 15:30 | 16:10 |
Beal & Bunker fall table until Sunday, October 11, 2026, then the winter table from Monday, October 12, 2026 to Monday, May 10, 2027; read from the operator on October 7, 2026 Beal & Bunker — Ferry Schedule · 2026-10-07
What each boat charges, and why the comparison waits until spring
Comparing the two lines on price only makes sense for next summer, because between October and late May there is no choice: the Northeast Harbor boat is the one carrying visitors. Its ticket is cheaper per leg than the Southwest Harbor alternative, and a round trip costs exactly two one-way fares.
The ten-trip Commuter Pass is the interesting line in the Beal & Bunker list. It costs $130.00 most of the year but $90.00 while the winter timetable is in force, and it can be split as twenty child one-ways. It is not valid for freight or charters.
| Adult (12 and older), one way | $ 17 |
| Child 3–11, one way | $ 8.50 |
| Adult, round trip | $ 34 |
| Child 3–11, round trip | $ 17 |
| Child under 3 | Free |
| Commuter Pass, 10 trips | $ 130 |
| Commuter Pass, 10 trips, winter schedule | $ 90 |
| Adult, round trip | $ 42 |
| Child under 11, round trip | $ 32 |
| Adult, one way | $ 32 |
| Child 0–11, one way | $ 28 |
| Bicycle (no e-bikes) | $ 12 |
| One way, per passenger | $ 9 |
| Ten-trip ticket | $ 90 |
Beal & Bunker prices as posted on October 7, 2026; Cranberry Cove fares for its 2026 season, which ended October 1; town commuter fare as listed by the Town of Cranberry Isles Beal & Bunker — Ferry Prices · 2026-10-07
Harbor Drive, Clark Point Road and the island landings
From Northeast Harbor the year-round boat calls at Great Cranberry before Islesford and calls there again on its return, which gives Great Cranberry passengers a shorter ride than the timetable's last column suggests. The seasonal Cranberry Cove boat worked the other side of the bay, from 126 Clark Point Road in Southwest Harbor and from 102 Shore Road in Manset, with day-only parking at both; its own contact page still lists 182 Clark Point Road, so check the address when it reopens. The same company runs the summer crossing from Bar Harbor to Winter Harbor on the far side of Frenchman Bay.
Northeast Harbor
This is where the year-round boat and the town commuter both start, on the Town of Mount Desert waterfront along Harbor Drive. Beal & Bunker names the village rather than a particular float, so the pin marks the harbormaster's office at 40 Harbor Drive, which is the town's own published address on that stretch of shore.
Parking here is managed by the Town of Mount Desert, with paid kiosk spaces for visitors and a separate permit scheme for which the Town of Cranberry Isles publishes an annual application. If you are leaving a car for the day, read the kiosk signs before you walk down to the boat.
Islesford (Little Cranberry Island)
Islesford is the village on Little Cranberry Island and the farther of the two main stops from Northeast Harbor; on the Beal & Bunker table the boat reaches it after Great Cranberry and then turns back. The pin is the federal place-name point for the village, a short walk from the landing.
The Town of Cranberry Isles uses Islesford for its mailing address, P.O. Box 56, which is a useful reminder that this is a municipality with its own select board rather than an outpost of Mount Desert.
From the Mount Desert shore to Great Cranberry and Islesford
The Cranberry Isles lie off the southern face of Mount Desert Island, between the mouths of Northeast Harbor and Southwest Harbor. Great Cranberry is the western island and the nearer one to Southwest Harbor; Little Cranberry, home to the village of Islesford, sits east of it; Sutton and Bear islands lie closer to the Mount Desert shore. That geography is why there are two mainland departure points at all: each harbor faces a different side of the group.
Getting the Cranberry Isles right in the off-season
- October 12 is the switch
Beal & Bunker's winter table starts on the second Monday of October: October 12 this year. From then on there are three round trips except on Sundays, when there are two.
- Changes go on Facebook first
Beal & Bunker points riders to its Facebook page, @BealandBunker, for weather cancellations and timetable news. The website timetables are images and do not carry an update date.
- Two stops, one loop
Every Northeast Harbor trip calls at Great Cranberry, then Islesford, then Great Cranberry again. If you are bound for Great Cranberry, stay on deck when the boat first stops.
- The commuter boat is a separate service
The Town of Cranberry Isles contracts an early weekday boat to Downeast Windjammers. It is meant for island workers and students, and the town consulted residents on changes to its timetable in late 2025.
- Bikes on the Southwest Harbor boat
Cranberry Cove charged $12 for a bicycle in 2026 and did not accept electric bikes. Beal & Bunker does not list a bicycle fare on its price page.
A family boat line from 1950 and a windjammer company
Beal & Bunker's boats have linked Northeast Harbor with the Cranberries since 1950. The business was taken over in 2018 by two brothers who grew up on the islands, Joe Flores and Paul Hewes; one started as a deckhand at 14 and the other volunteered on board at 11. Their two boats are both older than the current owners: the Sea Queen, a 44-foot wooden Bunker and Ellis from 1972, and the Double B, a 38-foot Riches from 1983. Both have heated cabins for the winter months.
Downeast Windjammer Cruise Lines came at the islands from the tourist side. It is a Bar Harbor company with schooners, fishing trips and two other ferries, and its Cranberry Cove boat is built around the summer visitor. Its Southwest Harbor boats load at 126 Clark Point Road. Contrast it with Isle au Haut's boat out of Stonington, where a single operator covers both the year-round and the summer trade.
The boats
Cranberry Isles boat questions from both sides of Mount Desert
Has the Southwest Harbor boat to Islesford stopped for the year?
No. The Cranberry Cove Ferry's 2026 season ran from Memorial Day weekend to October 1. Until it returns, the scheduled public option is Beal & Bunker from Northeast Harbor, a short drive around Somes Sound.
When does Beal & Bunker change to its winter timetable in 2026?
On Monday, October 12. The fall table, with Northeast Harbor departures at 07:30, 11:00, 14:30 and 16:30, ends on Sunday, October 11. From the 12th the departures are 07:30, 11:00 and 15:30, and on Sundays only 07:30 and 15:30.
Northeast Harbor to the Cranberries and back: what does it cost?
On Beal & Bunker, $34.00 per adult and $17.00 per child between 3 and 11. Children under 3 travel free, and a one-way ticket is exactly half.
Can I visit both Great Cranberry and Islesford on the same day?
Yes, with care. The Northeast Harbor boat calls at Great Cranberry, then Islesford, then Great Cranberry again on each loop, so you can get off at one island, catch a later loop, and change. In winter there are only three loops on weekdays and two on Sundays, so the gaps are long.
What is the early boat the town runs, and can visitors use it?
It is the Town of Cranberry Isles commuter ferry, operated by Downeast Windjammers on weekdays. From October 15 through April 30 the town lists a 05:45 departure from Northeast Harbor and a 17:00 evening run, at $9.00 per ride, payable on board. Nothing on the town page restricts it to residents, but it is timed for commuters.
Which boat is cheaper in summer?
On 2026 prices Beal & Bunker was: $17.00 each way and $34.00 return per adult, against $32 and $42 at Cranberry Cove.
Why do two times on the Beal & Bunker table look wrong?
Because they are typos in the operator's own image. The fall table shows 12:05 a.m. and the winter table 11:55 p.m. in the Great Cranberry return column; both sit in the late-morning row, so they mean 12:05 and 11:55 around midday.