Victoria bound? There's a nine sailing wait for this BC Ferries route today

It’s cooled off in Vancouver — but BC Ferries is still feeling the heat.

For people wanting to travel between Metro Vancouver and Vancouver Island, options are few and far between. Intercoastal travel is especially rough waters for those hoping to get from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay (Victoria) on Tuesday.

As of 9 am, there was a nine sailing wait and the earliest boat would be in the evening.

Those without a reservation are gambling big time — with only about 50 spots for standby free per sailing. So if you’re sitting in row 7 without a reservation and you are at the back of the line, you might as well start counting cars — or entertaining yourself with our guide to long ferry lineups.

The maxed-out ferries come after a headache-filled weekend of traffic and delays from Canadians flocking to Seattle for Taylor Swift and the Toronto Blue Jays. BC Ferries had announced that it would be busier than normal and issued a travel advisory for July 21 to 24.

However, there was no advisory for Tuesday until it was too late for passengers to make other plans.

Bookings are also filling up because the Coastal Celebration had to be pulled from service due to a hydraulic oil leak.

“This results in a reduction of eight sailings per day and 2,480 fewer vehicles and 12,832 passenger spaces between Tsawwassen and Swartz Bay,” BC Ferries said on Monday.

It’s déjà vu for the vessel — remember Victoria Day?

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Fast forward to Tuesday, and all those people stuck the day before are cramming into the few available spots left.

Twitter users have taken to the social media platform to express their frustrations with the sold-out bookings and how it’s impacting their plans.

Thanks, brutal. Neither ferry will get me there in time for my concert tonight. Why is your sailing service so abysmal these days? We need a bridge so we’re not held captive all day long in your mind-deadening lineups. Gah!

— clcm (@QuatreVanCat) July 24, 2023

BC Ferries is recommending passengers consider walking on instead of travelling by vehicle to avoid waiting — even going so far as to put commercials on the radio to remind people of that option.

When asked about the ongoing travel chaos, BC Ferries thanked passengers for their time and patience.

Skip the line and swim is what ive always done!

— xbrainheadxtheworstx 🐀 (@brainheadworst) July 24, 2023

The sold-out ferry tickets come on the horizon of another busy weekend.

The BC Day weekend is fast approaching, and tickets for ferries are expected to sell out quickly. BC Ferries released a tweet giving its top tips for ensuring travellers manage to board successfully.

#BCDayWeekend
We’re preparing to welcome over 580k passengers and 210k vehicles on board from August 3rd – 8th. Our top tips to avoid sailing waits 👇

✅ Book in advance
✅ Walk on board
✅ Travel off-peak
✅ Check #CurrentConditions

Find all our BC Day #TravelTips below. ^km pic.twitter.com/4SXFlBK5hP

— BC Ferries (@BCFerries) July 24, 2023

What do you think of the message from BC Ferries today? Let us know in the comments below.