Vinalhaven and the Fox Islands
The Maine State Ferry from Rockland is the only public way on or off; almost everyone else walks, bikes or catches a ride once they land.
- Researched
- 28 September 2026
- Reviewed
- 29 September 2026
- Ways of moving
- 9, 13 sources
- Not confirmed
- 6
- Fares seen
- 2019–2026
9 ways of moving, each with its rule
We confirmed seven ways of moving to, from or around Vinalhaven: two by water, one by air, two by road and two under your own steam, from 13 sources. Two entries are not a service at all but a rule that decides whether travel happens: a permit, a closure, a border, a season or an authority's say-so. One of them runs only on demand or when the seats are full, so there is no timetable to show; the rule is written where the timetable would be. Three need a phone call or a message before you turn up.
The fares were seen in 2019 to 2026; a fare from an older year is a floor, not a price. We rate 2 of the 9 high confidence, our own judgement of the sources. The entry was checked on 28 September 2026, and ends with six things we could not confirm.
By water
Maine State Ferry Service, Rockland–Vinalhaven
Rockland Ferry Terminal, 517A Main Street, to Vinalhaven Ferry Terminal, 79 Sands Road
Rockland terminal on Route 1; buses and cars line up in the terminal lot
- When
- Six round trips a day in the schedule seen: 7:00, 8:45, 10:30, 13:00, 14:45, 16:30
- Takes
- 1h 15m (Wikivoyage says a little over 75 minutes)
- Fare 2025
- Adult round trip $15.75 off-peak (Oct–May) / $23.00 peak (Jun–Sep); vehicle round trip $41.50 off-peak / $55.00 peak, plus a separate $17.00 reservation charge in both seasons; bicycle round trip $22.75/$29.75
SeasonYear-round; winter ice and storms cause cancellations, see service_status entry. BookingWalk-on passengers just buy a ticket. Vehicle space is reserved by phone (207-596-5400, opens 9:30 AM exactly one month ahead) or in person at either terminal; summer reservations are typically gone within minutes of going on sale. Without a reservation, get a line number by calling the island terminal at 5:30 AM the day before travel and be in the assigned line 30 minutes before your sailing. Run byMaine State Ferry Service (MaineDOT).
North Haven skiff connection to Vinalhaven
Brown's Boat Yard, North Haven, across the Thorofare to Vinalhaven's north coast
Take the Rockland–North Haven ferry, walk down to Brown's Boat Yard and ask around for a ride across
- When
- No timetable; informal, ask when you arrive
- Takes
- A few minutes across the Thorofare
- Fare 2019
- About $5 for the ride, per a Wikivoyage contributor's accountSeen in 2019: a floor, not a price.
SeasonFair-weather workaround, used mainly if the last direct Vinalhaven ferry is missed. Bookingnone, ask on the dock. Run byInformal, various local boat owners.
Rules, permits and closures
Vehicle line number for leaving Vinalhaven without a reservation
Vinalhaven ferry terminal, outbound vehicle queue
Phone 207-596-5450 at 5:30 AM the day before you want to leave; press 2 for the line-number queue
- When
- Daily window, 5:30–6:00 AM only; calls before 5:30 go to voicemail, not the queue
- Takes
- Line-up starts 30 minutes before your assigned sailing
- Fare 2025
- No extra fee beyond the vehicle ticket
SeasonYear-round. Bookingcompulsory phone call the day before, 207-596-5450, same-day travel without a reservation still needs a line number. Run byMaine State Ferry Service.
Winter ice and storm cancellations on the ferry
Rockland–Vinalhaven crossing
Sign up for the Maine State Ferry Service's cancellation alerts on the terminal pages, or call the Rockland terminal, 207-596-5400
- When
- Unpredictable; decided sailing by sailing by MSFS operations in bad weather
- Takes
- n/a
- Fare 2026
- n/a
SeasonMainly winter storms and harbor ice; the exact trigger for a given cancellation is the ferry service's own call, not a fixed rule. Run byMaine State Ferry Service.
By air
Penobscot Island Air
Knox County Regional Airport (Owls Head/Rockland) to Vinalhaven's island airstrip
Book through the airline; base is at 21 Terminal Ln, Owls Head, ME
- When
- The airline's own history page says it flies 365 days a year to the Penobscot Bay islands; no Vinalhaven timetable is published on its site
- Takes
- A short hop; minutes rather than the ferry's 75
- Fare 2026
- Not published; the booking widget is script-rendered and no fare table could be fetched
SeasonYear-round; the airline is the fallback when ferries are iced in or cancelled. BookingBook Now widget on the airline's site, or call (207) 596-7500. Run byPenobscot Island Air (Waters Aero Marine).
By road
Penobscot Island Air mail and freight run
Knox County Regional Airport to the Fox Islands and other Penobscot Bay islands
Not a passenger-booking route; this is the airline's contracted mail and parcel service
- When
- Daily, contracted with USPS, FedEx and UPS
- Takes
- Same short flight as the passenger service
- Fare 2026
- Not applicable; freight is billed to the shipper, not the passenger
SeasonYear-round; this run is why the airline exists as a winter lifeline when the ferry is iced in. BookingFreight tracked through the operator's site; scheduled pickups from Rockland-area stores flown out on request. Run byPenobscot Island Air.
Concord Coachlines, Boston–Rockland
Boston South Station to Rockland, timed to meet the last Vinalhaven ferry
Buy the ticket at South Station; the bus drops passengers at the Rockland ferry terminal parking lot
- When
- Once daily on the connection Wikivoyage describes, arriving Rockland around 16:30
- Takes
- About 5 hours from Boston
- Fare 2019
- About $35Seen in 2019: a floor, not a price.
SeasonYear-round. BookingBuy on board or online; the Wikivoyage account says buy at the first stop. Run byConcord Coach Lines.
On foot, by bike, or otherwise
Tidewater Motel bike rental
Around Vinalhaven's 49 miles of paved road
Ask at the Tidewater Motel, 15 Main St
- When
- on demand, whenever the motel is open
- Takes
- however long you keep the bike
- Fare 2019
- Free for motel guests, $10/day for everyone elseSeen in 2019: a floor, not a price.
SeasonYear-round, most useful in summer. Bookingnone, arrange at the motel desk. Run byTidewater Motel.
Walking and hitching a ride, in place of public transport
Main Street and the island's paved road network
There is no bus or taxi service; the island is 5 by 7 miles, so most points are a walkable distance from the village
- When
- always available
- Takes
- varies by destination, rarely more than an hour on foot
- Fare 2026
- free
SeasonYear-round. Run bynone, informal.
What we could not find out
6 things the researcher looked for and did not find, in their own words, with where to ask instead. None of this goes into the planner; it stays here until someone confirms it.
- 01
Penobscot Island Air's Vinalhaven-specific passenger fare and daily flight frequency could not be confirmed; the airline's booking widget (sortie.co/pia) is script-rendered and returned no fare data to a plain fetch. Ask the airline directly, (207) 596-7500.
- 02
No fare or booking source could be found for hiring a lobster boat or informal water taxi around Carver's Harbor; the brief's mention of this is plausible (it is common on Maine islands) but unconfirmed here, so it is left out of the options rather than guessed.
- 03
The Concord Coachlines $35 Boston–Rockland fare and schedule come from a Wikivoyage edit of unknown date, not the operator's own site; treat it as dated. A concordcoachlines.com citation previously attached to this option carried a note about the site's software instead of a quotation from it and was removed; nothing on the operator's own site has been read for this entry.
- 04
MaineDOT's Tariff 11 lists the vehicle reservation for Rockland–Vinalhaven as a separate $17.00 charge in both seasons, not bundled into the vehicle fare as an earlier draft of this entry said. Only the Rockland–Matinicus vehicle fares are marked reservation-included.
- 05
The North Haven skiff-crossing fare (~$5) is a single Wikivoyage contributor's account of an informal, unadvertised arrangement, not a fare anyone quotes; confidence is low.
- 06
Correction to the brief: 'the North Haven crossing and whether anything links the two islands directly' – the only documented direct link is the informal skiff described above; there is no scheduled ferry or bus directly between Vinalhaven and North Haven.
What the planner can route today
The options above live on the place page, not in the departure board: a boat that comes when you phone has no time to show. What the board can do for Vinalhaven is this.
- Y
- Scheduled flightsPortland (PWM), 127 km
- Y
- Trains and coachesTransitous carries 5 timetable feeds for this country, 2 with real-time
- Y
- FerriesVinalhaven Ferry Terminal, 1 km, Maine Department of Transportation; sailings estimated
- Y
- Driving and taxiOpenStreetMap roads; cab fare from the country band
- N
- Bike and scooter shareno share feed known
- N
- Cruisesno open itinerary source anywhere
Y routable now · F found, not yet implemented · N no source known.