The Staten Island Ferry Is Free: How to Ride It From Lower Manhattan

It's free, and there's no ticket

There's nothing to buy and nothing to scan. You walk into Whitehall Terminal at the southern tip of Manhattan, wait in the hall, and board when they open the doors. The city runs it as public transport, not as a sightseeing cruise, which is exactly why it's the best free hour in New York.

Hours and how often it runs

The ferry runs 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Most of the day that's a boat every 30 minutes. During the weekday rush, roughly 6am to 9am, it's every 15 or 20 minutes. The crossing is about 25 minutes in each direction, so with the turnaround at St. George, budget about an hour and a half from our lobby and back if you're walking both ways.

Where to stand

On the way out to Staten Island, the Statue of Liberty is on your right. Get to the right-hand rail on an outer deck before the boat pulls away, because that side fills up first and nobody moves once the harbour opens up. Coming back, the same side gives you the Lower Manhattan skyline arriving all at once, which is the better of the two views and the one most people miss because they've gone inside to sit down.

Early morning and just after sunset are the quiet runs. Midday on a summer weekend is the crowded one.

Getting to Whitehall Terminal from us

We're on John Street, about 15 minutes on foot from the terminal: walk south and you'll end up at the water. On the subway, take the 4 or 5 from Fulton Street to Bowling Green, or the R or W to Whitehall Street, and the terminal is right there.

It pairs well with a Governors Island morning, since the Governors Island boats leave from the Battery Maritime Building next door at 10 South Street.

Worth knowing before you go

The ferry is transport for commuters, so at 8am on a Tuesday you'll be sharing it with people going to work rather than tourists taking photos. There's no charge either way, so if the weather turns you've lost nothing by coming straight back. And since you've got a kitchen in your suite with us, this is a cheap outing to do with a coffee you made yourself.