Against the train, the F7 wins on the clock and loses on the timetable. It gets from Circular Quay to Double Bay Wharf in about a quarter of an hour, well ahead of the train-and-walk alternative, but at midday it only sails once an hour and on most weeknights it has finished by nine.
Transport for NSW F7 timetable valid from 2 March 2026 (PDF created 20 September 2026), transcribed on 25 September 2026 and checked against the Trip Planner for 26, 27 and 29 September and 2 October 2026 Transport for NSW – F7 Double Bay timetable (PDF) · 2026-09-25
Compared with the train, the F7 is the faster way to Double Bay and the less frequent one. On a Tuesday mid-morning the Transport for NSW planner put the 10:57 ferry at Double Bay Wharf at 11:13; its best land alternative, walking to Martin Place, taking the T4 to Edgecliff and walking down to the water, left at 10:59 and arrived at 11:37. The catch is that from mid-morning to late afternoon the ferry sails only hourly, while the train runs far more often.
The route itself is short and simple. Route F7, run by Sydney Ferries for Transport for NSW, has only three stops: Circular Quay, Darling Point and Double Bay. On weekdays it leaves the Quay half-hourly from 06:27 to 08:57, hourly until 16:57, half-hourly again to 18:57 and then hourly, finishing at 20:57, or 22:57 on a Friday. Saturday is hourly from 08:57 to 22:57, Sunday hourly from 08:57 to 20:57.
The trip takes 15 or 16 minutes when the boat goes straight across, and 17 or 18 when it calls at Darling Point first. Which of the two you get depends on the time of day, because the F7 reverses its loop in the early afternoon.
About 4.5 kilometres of water puts Double Bay in the lower of the two Sydney ferry fare bands, the same one as the F9 out towards Watsons Bay; the Opal caps are set out in full on our Circular Quay to Manly page, where the dearer 9+ km band comes into play. Here the question is not how Opal works but whether the boat is worth the premium over the train.
| Adult | $ 7.35 |
| Child or Youth | $ 3.67 |
| Concession | $ 3.67 |
| Gold Senior or Pensioner (the whole day) | $ 2.50 |
| Adult, T4 Martin Place to Edgecliff, off-peak | $ 3.03 |
Opal fares published by Transport for NSW, read on 25 September 2026 and matched against the fares its Trip Planner returned for F7 sailings Transport for NSW – Opal ferry fares · 2026-09-25
The F7 leaves Sydney Cove, passes Garden Island and runs south-east into Double Bay, a little over 4.4 kilometres on the planner's direct track. In the afternoon it pulls in first at Darling Point, on the headland just west of the bay, which adds about 100 metres and two minutes. The F9 to Rose Bay and Watsons Bay does not call here. Everything else we cover in the state sits on our New South Wales index.
The F7 does not keep to one berth. On the dates we checked, the daytime boats from 09:57 to 16:57 all left from Wharf 2, Side B, the evening ones from Wharf 4, and the peak-hour sailings switched between the two. Returning boats mostly tie up at Wharf 5. Treat that as a pattern, not a promise: the authority reshuffles Quay berths at short notice, and the indicator board is always more current than we are.
At the harbour end of Bay Street. The authority's listing gives it the same Independent Access rating as the lower north shore wharves, which covers ramp assistance, tactile edges and a hearing loop, and it lists an accessible parking space, bike racks, a help point and a next-service display. What it leaves out is an Opal machine, so arrive with a card or phone that can already tap.
From 08:57 to 16:57 on weekdays the F7 leaves the Quay at 57 past the hour and Double Bay at 20 past. Miss one and the next is an hour away, which is where the train starts to look better.
On a Tuesday mid-morning the planner's best alternative was a walk to Martin Place, the T4 to Edgecliff and a 19-minute walk down to the wharf: 38 minutes door to wharf, against 16 on the 10:57 ferry.
Monday to Thursday and on Sundays the last F7 back from Double Bay is 21:20. On Friday and Saturday there are rounds at 22:20 and 23:20 as well.
Transport for NSW's listing for Double Bay Wharf has no ticket or top-up machine, unlike Mosman Bay or Neutral Bay. A contactless card or phone taps on like an Opal card.
In the morning Darling Point is served only by boats heading for the Quay; in the afternoon only by boats heading for Double Bay. Check the direction before you wait there.
Set it against the other harbour boats on this side of the city and the F7 is the plain one. The F9 heading for Watsons Bay serves Rose Bay and the far end of the peninsula but passes Double Bay by, so for this wharf the F7 is the only ferry there is. Its timetable also treats Friday as a day of its own, separate from Monday to Thursday, with two late rounds that turn a Friday dinner in Double Bay into a ferry trip both ways.
Against the car, the ferry avoids New South Head Road altogether, and against the bus the planner offered a combination of bus 333, the T4 and bus 325 that reached the wharf at 11:45, later than the train. For a trip timed around the boat, the F7 is hard to beat; for a trip that has to leave now, it depends entirely on how far away 57 minutes past the hour is.
When the timing works, yes. On a Tuesday the 10:57 F7 reached Double Bay at 11:13, while the planner's train option, walking to Martin Place, the T4 to Edgecliff and walking down, took from 10:59 to 11:37. The train runs far more often, though.
No, only hourly. On weekdays the F7 leaves Circular Quay at 57 past each hour from 08:57 to 16:57 and leaves Double Bay at 20 past from 09:20 to 16:20. The peaks are half-hourly.
21:20, on Sundays and public holidays as well as from Monday to Thursday. Friday and Saturday nights add later ones at 22:20 and 23:20, arriving at Circular Quay 15 minutes later.
No. Morning boats go direct from the Quay to Double Bay and call at Darling Point on the way back. From early afternoon it reverses: Darling Point on the way out, direct on the way back.
No. The F9 serves Rose Bay and Watsons Bay only. Double Bay Wharf is served by one ferry route, the F7.
Yes. The adult price, $7.35, is what every Sydney Ferries trip under 9 kilometres costs. Concession, child and youth cards are charged $3.67; seniors and pensioners on a Gold card hit their $2.50 daily limit on the first tap.
Transport for NSW does not list an Opal machine there. Tapping on is the only way in, with Opal or with a contactless Visa, Mastercard, Amex or linked phone.