Plymouth to Provincetown Express Ferry, Massachusetts, United States

5YullieYullie 5:00 PM Aug 18, 2011

Ferry to Provincetown great experience!
My husband and I took the ferry from Plymouth to PTown 8-13-2011 and it was wonderful. Arrived at dock at 9:15am we left promptly at 10:05am, five minutes late due to all the last minute stragglers who have no concept of time and don't arrive to things in a timely fashion!( My only complaint by the way)The trip over was a bit cool - always bring a sweater, etc. the water was very calm. The crew was great, very friendly. The seating upstairs on the top deck is very uncomfortable so we had beach towels with us and sat on those it helped tremendously, but people remember it is just a small ferry do not expect luxury! There is also inside seating with A/C downstairs, but we wanted to be outside enjoying the views. Some reviews I read before I went were scathingly bad, saying crew was inept, ferry times were wrong, etc. remember it's a boat, time is going to differ depending on weather conditions. Pick a nice day and you'll really enjoy it - it is a really good time. When we arrived at Ptown we immediately jumped onto the shuttle bus out to Herring Cove Beach the shuttle bus is $2.00 per person absolutely worth it, you get to the beach in 10 minutes - we had packed a lunch but there is a snack bar with hot dogs, etc. if you don't want to bring food. There is also a bath house at Herring Cove Beach to change your clothes. We spent approx. two hours at the beach, jumped back onto the shuttle bus (runs every half hour) spent the rest of the afternoon walking around Commercial St. shops .Lots of interesting shops and lots of places to eat. Returned to ferry, at 4:15pm and left at 4:30, we returned to Plymouth just about 6:30pm, walked over to Woods Fish market had a seafood platter for two for dinner. Perfect end to a very enjoyable day.

4Barnaby508 5:00 PM Aug 16, 2014

Fun Trip (See Hints Enclosed)
The Plymouth to Provincetown ferry is a fun way to spend a few hours over in P-town without having to make the drive. The employees were professional and polite. The vessel seemed recently renovated and in pretty good shape. The bar was clean, fully stocked, with prices you’d expect on a boat. Here are some hints to get the most out of the trip: (HINT 1) Get their early to get your choice of seats. (HINT 2) Consider sitting inside. Sitting outside can be fun, but you’re in the sun and wind (and rain if present) for at least 90 minutes each way. (HINT 3) If you want to sit outside to enjoy the ocean scene but avoid being cooked by the sun, consider sitting on the starboard (right) side on the way to P-town and sit on the port (left) side when returning to Plymouth. You won’t be entirely shaded, but you will get significant shelter from the sun from the ship’s superstructure because of the northerly declination of the sun this time of year. (HINT 4) Foam earplugs make the trip more comfortable if you’re sitting in the after half of the vessel because of the engine noise. (HINT 5) Don’t make plans that rely on the boat making their scheduled times. The departures were pretty timely but the arrivals were later than expected. Speaking of timing, the boat is not a “fast ferry,” at least not like NY or Boston fast ferries, as it only seems to go about 15 knots. Just don’t make reservations for “exactly” the arrival time because the boat runs a little behind (we walked ashore in P-town at 11:50). Also, don’t plan on anything immediately after the boat arrives in Plymouth. We didn’t get off the boat until 6:25pm, about 25 mins behind schedule, mostly because the captain diverted for a while to show off some dolphins swimming in Cape Cod Bay. It was a pleasant diversion, but just don’t plan anything that requires you to be back at exactly the published return time of 6:00pm.