How much is the car ferry to St. John?

$65 one way and $80 round trip for a car, SUV or small truck on the rates pages of Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries as of October 2026, everyone in the car included. The Virgin Islands Port Authority's schedule still lists $50 and $65; add $5 a car at the Red Hook dock, which covers the round trip.

How do you take the car ferry from St. Thomas to St. John?

Book with one operator, drive to the car ferry ramp at Red Hook on the east end of St. Thomas, pay the ramp fee, and check in at least 30 minutes before the sailing. Port Authority staff stage the cars and the crew loads them. The barge lands about 25 minutes later at Enighed Pond, on the south side of Cruz Bay.

What is the St. John car ferry schedule?

Between the three operators a barge leaves Red Hook about every half hour from 6 am to 7 pm, and Enighed Pond from 5:30 am to 6:15 pm, as of October 2026. The earliest sailings skip weekends or Sundays, depending on the company.

Where does the Red Hook car ferry leave from?

From the Noel "Breeze" Boynes Car Ferry Dock at Red Hook, the Virgin Islands Port Authority's name for the car ramp on the east end of St. Thomas. All three companies use it, so confirm with the dock staff which line is yours.

St. John · Getting there

Car ferry from St. Thomas to St. John

The car ferry from St. Thomas to St. John is a barge from Red Hook to the Theovald Moorehead Dock and Terminal at Enighed Pond in Cruz Bay, about 25 minutes across, at $65 a car one way on the operators' own pages as of October 2026, passengers included. Below: three operators' first and last sailings, where the fares disagree, how to book and check in, rental cars, and whether it beats crossing on foot.

Written by Virgin Islands Villas · Facts checked Oct 2026

How to get to St. John from St. Thomas

The usual way: a taxi to the Red Hook ferry terminal (36 min), then the ferry to Cruz Bay (20 min, $8.15 a person). About 56 minutes from Cyril E. King airport to St. John, more on cruise-ship days. Six other ways across are below, with times and fares.

From Charlotte Amalie waterfront

FerryThe Charlotte Amalie ferry
The boat if you are stepping off a cruise ship or staying downtown: it leaves from the waterfront terminal, twice a day each way.
1. Ferry, Charlotte Amalie to Cruz Bay45 min
Plus $4 a bag; $3.50 child; $6 for residents 60 and over with the elderly IDTwo a day each way: 8:45 and 11:15 am from Cruz Bay, 10 am and 12:30 pm from Charlotte Amalie (Transportation Services of St. John)Varlack Ventures lists its own Charlotte Amalie run as suspended for the off-season, as of October 2026; check its page before you plan on that boatNo reservationTimes (Transportation Services of St. John and Varlack Ventures)
45 min$13 a person$12 resident

From Cyril E. King airport

FerryTaxi to Crown Bay, then the Inter Island boat
The closest boat to the airport and the fastest door to dock, but two sailings a day, four Friday to Sunday. It lands at Cruz Bay Creek, not the main ferry dock.
1. Taxi to Crown Bay Marina8 min
3. Boat to Cruz Bay Creek35 min
Boat only; $15 senior, $10 child 3 to 11. The taxi to Crown Bay is $8 for one rider, $6 each for two or more.3:30 and 5:30 pm daily; 9:45 am and 2:15 pm Friday to SundayCheck in 30 minutes before departureTimes (Inter Island Boat Services)
43 min$20 a person
FerryTaxi to Red Hook, then the ferry
The route most guests take. The taxi is the long part; allow extra on cruise-ship days and at school-run time.
1. Taxi to the Red Hook ferry terminal36 min
3. Ferry to Cruz Bay20 min
Ferry only, plus $4 a bag. The taxi to Red Hook is $23 for one rider, $17 each for two or more.Ferry hourly, 5:30 am to 10 pmNo reservationTimes (VITRAN, run by Transportation Services and Varlack Ventures)
56 min$8.15 a person$6 resident
FerryTaxi to Charlotte Amalie, then the ferry
Rarely the best choice from the airport: the terminal is closer than Red Hook, but the crossing is twice as long and only two boats a day leave Charlotte Amalie.
1. Taxi to the Charlotte Amalie ferry terminal12 min
3. Ferry to Cruz Bay45 min
Ferry only, plus $4 a bag. The taxi to the terminal is $11 for one rider, $9 each for two or more.Two a day from Charlotte Amalie, 10 am and 12:30 pm (Transportation Services of St. John)Varlack Ventures' Charlotte Amalie run was suspended for the off-season in October 2026; it usually sails again from about November, so check its page firstTimes (Transportation Services of St. John and Varlack Ventures)
57 min$13 a person$12 resident
Water taxiTaxi to Crown Bay, then a private water taxi
Your own boat on your own schedule, any hour with notice. Priced by the boat, from $695, so it makes sense for a full house arriving together. The operator does not publish the crossing time, so no total is shown.
1. Taxi to Crown Bay Marina8 min
3. Water taxi to Cruz Bay
The boat, not the seat; the operator quotes from $695 from Crown Bay and from $495 from Compass Point Marina. The land taxi to Crown Bay is $8 for one rider, $6 each for two or more.By reservation; 24-hour service with notice
from $695 a boat

From Red Hook, St. Thomas

FerryThe Red Hook ferry
The default way over: hourly until 10 pm, no booking, and it lands at the main dock in the middle of Cruz Bay.
1. Ferry, Red Hook to Cruz Bay20 min
Plus $4 a bag. Varlack adds a fuel surcharge from June 12, 2026.Hourly, 5:30 am to 10 pm from Red Hook, 6 am to 10 pm from Cruz Bay; an off-season timetable runs from late July, usually to the end of October, so check the operator's current scheduleNo reservation; buy at the windowTimes (VITRAN, run by Transportation Services and Varlack Ventures)
20 min$8.15 a person$6 resident
Car bargeThe car barge
Only with your own car, or a rental whose company allows the crossing: National and Discount Car Rental say theirs may go (their own pages, 2026-10-09), so ask yours first. Most people rent on St. John. The crossing time is not published, so no total is shown.
1. Car barge to the Theovald Moorehead terminal at Enighed Pond
Times (Big Red Barge, Love City Car Ferries and Global Marine)
$65 a car one way, $80 round trip, on the Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries rates pages (checked 2026-10-09). Each company sells its own tickets.

Fares change; the operator's page has today's. Road legs measured on island roads. Taxi fares are the Virgin Islands Taxicab Commission's tariff, in force since October 2022: per person, less each for two or more traveling together, plus $3 a bag. Checked 2026-10-09.

Which companies run the car barge to St. John?

Three, from the same ramp at Red Hook to the same ramp at Enighed Pond: Big Red Barge, Love City Car Ferries and Global Marine, all listed on the Virgin Islands Port Authority's ferry and cargo schedule. Between them a barge leaves one side or the other about every half hour. Tickets are not interchangeable, per the Port Authority, so a return sails only with the company that sold it.

Operator	From Red Hook	From Enighed Pond	Fare, a car
Big Red Barge	6 am to 6:30 pm	5:30 am to 5:30 pm	$65 one way, $80 round trip
Love City Car Ferries	7 am to 7 pm, 7:30 pm in season	6:15 am to 6:15 pm, 6:30 pm in season	$65 one way, $80 round trip
Global Marine	6:15 am to 6 pm	5:30 am to 5 pm	$50 one way, $65 round trip

Checked October 9, 2026: Big Red Barge and Love City from their own pages, Global Marine from the Port Authority's, the only published source we found for it. Love City's sailings before 8 am skip weekends and holidays; Big Red Barge's first three each way skip Sundays; Global Marine's 5:30 am from Enighed Pond does not run on weekends or holidays, per the Port Authority.

Car barge fares: the operators against the Port Authority

$65 a car one way and $80 round trip on the rates pages of Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries as of October 2026, for a car, SUV or small truck. The Port Authority's schedule still lists $50 and $65 for all three operators. When the two disagree, plan on the operator's price.

The car's fare covers everyone in it and their bags, per Love City. The round trip is the saving: two one-way tickets are $130, the return $80, and on both operators' pages a return never expires. The Port Authority adds its own $5 a car for the Red Hook ramp, effective April 6, 2026, which covers the round trip and is paid to the ramp attendant before boarding.

St. John car ferry schedule: the last barge

The last barge from Red Hook is Love City's 7 pm, year-round per its schedule page as of October 2026, with a 7:30 pm in season; from Enighed Pond it is Love City's 6:15 pm. The tradeoff: the passenger ferry runs later, so plan around 10 pm; Transportation Services of St. John lists 11:30 pm on its off-season timetable, which most years ends with October, so check its current one. The drive from Cyril E. King Airport to Red Hook is 36 minutes as we measured it, and Love City asks for 30 minutes at the dock, so a rental has to leave the airport lot by about 5:50 pm to make the 7 pm barge. A later flight means the car crosses in the morning. On Thanksgiving, Christmas Day and New Year's Day, Love City runs 8 am to 7 pm only.

How to take the car ferry from St. Thomas

Love City takes reservations only for its sailings on the hour, per its schedule page, and at least a day ahead, per its FAQ; Big Red Barge books online and checks you in on arrival. The Port Authority's schedule says boarding goes in order of arrival at the ramp, reservation or not, so a ticket bought online is no promise of the barge you picked.

Arrive 30 minutes before the sailing, 45 in peak seasons and on holidays, per Love City's FAQ; the Port Authority says 30 to 60. Port Authority staff stage the cars, the crew loads them, and they come off in reverse order, so the first on is the last off. Enighed Pond is a separate landing south of the passenger dock, a 9-minute walk, which matters to anyone meeting the barge on foot.

Can a St. Thomas rental car go on the barge?

The rental agreement decides it; the barge companies do not. National's branch at Cyril E. King Airport says on its own location page, as of October 2026, that vehicle ferry crossings between St. Thomas and St. John are permitted. Discount Car Rental's own site says, as of October 2026, that any of its four-wheel-drive or all-wheel-drive cars may be taken to St. John. Other companies set their own rule, so ask yours before you buy a barge ticket and keep the answer in writing; Love City's FAQ gives the same advice.

Barge the car, or cross on foot and rent on St. John?

For a week spent on St. John, crossing on foot is simpler; the barge pays when the car is already yours. The fares are close: four adults on the passenger ferry from Red Hook pay $65.20 for the round trip at $8.15 each way, per Transportation Services of St. John as of October 2026, against $80 for a car's round trip plus the $5 ramp fee, which covers both directions. The difference is the clock: a passenger boat about hourly into the night, a last barge at 7 pm.

The barge earns its place when the week is split between the two islands. For a stay all on St. John, take the passenger ferry, covered on our St. John ferry page, and pick the car up on the island; Coral Bay is 28 minutes by car from the Cruz Bay ferry either way.

Questions people ask

How much is the car ferry to St. John?: $65 one way and $80 round trip for a car, SUV or small truck on the rates pages of Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries as of October 2026, everyone in the car included. The Virgin Islands Port Authority's schedule still lists $50 and $65; add $5 a car at the Red Hook dock, which covers the round trip.
How do you take the car ferry from St. Thomas to St. John?: Book with one operator, drive to the car ferry ramp at Red Hook on the east end of St. Thomas, pay the ramp fee, and check in at least 30 minutes before the sailing. Port Authority staff stage the cars and the crew loads them. The barge lands about 25 minutes later at Enighed Pond, on the south side of Cruz Bay.
What is the St. John car ferry schedule?: Between the three operators a barge leaves Red Hook about every half hour from 6 am to 7 pm, and Enighed Pond from 5:30 am to 6:15 pm, as of October 2026. The earliest sailings skip weekends or Sundays, depending on the company.
Where does the Red Hook car ferry leave from?: From the Noel "Breeze" Boynes Car Ferry Dock at Red Hook, the Virgin Islands Port Authority's name for the car ramp on the east end of St. Thomas. All three companies use it, so confirm with the dock staff which line is yours.

At a glance · checked Oct 2026

Route: Red Hook to Enighed Pond, Cruz Bay; The Virgin Islands Port Authority names the docks the Noel "Breeze" Boynes Car Ferry Dock at Red Hook and the Theovald Moorehead Dock and Terminal at Enighed Pond, a 9-minute walk south of the passenger dock as we measured it.
Operators: Big Red Barge, Love City Car Ferries, Global Marine; Tickets are not interchangeable between them (Virgin Islands Port Authority, checked 2026-10-09).
Fare, a car: $65 one way, $80 round trip; Big Red Barge and Love City Car Ferries rates pages, checked 2026-10-09. The Port Authority's schedule lists $50 and $65 for all three operators.
Dock fee: $5 a car, round trip, at Red Hook; Virgin Islands Port Authority tariff, effective April 6, 2026: based on a round trip, paid to the ramp attendant before boarding.
Last from Red Hook: 7 pm; Love City Car Ferries, year-round, with a 7:30 pm in season (checked 2026-10-09). Big Red Barge's last is 6:30 pm, Global Marine's 6 pm.
Last from Enighed Pond: 6:15 pm; Love City Car Ferries, with a 6:30 pm in season (checked 2026-10-09).
Crossing: About 25 minutes; Love City Car Ferries' schedule page; its FAQ says 25 to 35 depending on the weather.
Check in: 30 minutes before, 45 at peak times; Love City Car Ferries' FAQ, for peak seasons and holidays; the Port Authority says 30 to 60 minutes. Boarding is first come, first loaded.