Gulf Islands Ferry to expand to more stops

MANATEE COUNTY, Fla. — Eighteen months after first launching the Gulf Islands Ferry, the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau is saying it has been such a success that plans to expand are coming soon.

Passengers say avoiding beach traffic is one of the key benefits of the service.

No new stops for the Gulf Islands Ferry are expected to be added before Thanksgiving — but they are coming.

And for the locals who regularly use this as a transportation alternative, they say more stops mean more incentive to ride.

Melissa Wilson has always lived near the water. But more recently, she has been riding on it.

“I get on it by myself sometimes. I just get on and ride it,” she said.

From the open water to the animals you see, Wilson said there is a lot to enjoy.

She takes the ferry every week.

On this day, she departed from downtown Bradenton. Forty-five minutes later, she’ll arrive at Bridge Street Pier.

“Oh, I love it,” she said. “It’s great.”

She has been a ferry passenger since it first launched last January.

“On the Anna Maria City Pier, they had karaoke every Saturday night. And so I would take it, get off the boat, sing karaoke, hop on the boat and go back. I didn’t have to worry about traffic,” she said.

The overall mission of this service was to reduce traffic by giving tourists and residents a different method of transportation — and it’s working.

According to the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, in 2024 there were about 13,000 fewer cars on the road. And by the end of this year, they anticipate that number to grow by more than 50 percent, with around 20,000 fewer cars on the road.

“I’ve sat in season back in the day for an hour, hour and a half with my gas running and people cutting me off and being rude,” she said.

And while right now there are only two stops, there will be more.

The Visitors Bureau says they will be expanding its service, adding three stops to its route in the future.

Planning is underway for stops at Coquina Beach, Cortez Marina, and Palmetto near the Estuary Park.

“From the people I’ve talked to about the Cortez one, they’re super excited because they live in Cortez. It’s also easier if you live here to get to Bradenton,” she said.

And ridership on the ferry is increasing. Data from the Visitors Bureau shows 29,000 riders this year, already surpassing last year’s 28,000 passengers.

“I hope people get out and ride. It’s refreshing,” she said.

It’s a new perspective on traveling to Manatee County’s prime destinations — and with more stops in the future, Wilson knows the view can only get better from here.

The Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau says the Coquina Beach stop will be open by Thanksgiving. Stops in Palmetto and Anna Maria City Pier are expected to be ready in 2026.

The Gulf Islands Ferry currently operates Wednesdays through Sundays.