Summer changes the price of this crossing, not the timetable. Searoad Ferries keeps both of its big catamarans on the same hourly pattern through spring and summer, first boat at seven and last at six from either side, and lets the fare calendar absorb the crowds: a car and driver costs $91 one way at the window on an ordinary day and $98 over the Melbourne Cup weekend and the Christmas holidays.
Searoad Ferries live timetable checked day by day from 8 October 2026 to 5 April 2027, the furthest date on sale, and cross-checked against the timetable page on 7 October 2026 Searoad Ferries – timetable · 2026-10-07
Peak season on this ferry is a matter of dates rather than departures. From 30 October to 3 November, from 18 December to 4 January, and on several Friday-to-Monday stretches in January, Searoad's fare calendar moves to its peak prices: $98 for a car and driver one way at the window instead of $91, and $23 for an adult instead of $21. The timetable on those days is exactly the one that runs on a wet Wednesday in October.
That timetable is simple. A ferry pulls out of each terminal at 07:00, 08:00 and so on, hourly until 18:00, which the operator describes as 24 crossings a day, 365 days a year. Every date we checked, from 8 October 2026 to the end of the bookable calendar on 5 April 2027, had the same twelve departures in each direction, Christmas Day included.
The season's real effect is on everything around the boat. In summer a third, smaller ship joins the two regulars and the Sorrento car park starts charging, which makes the 40-minute check-in for vehicles worth taking literally. In winter it runs the other way: the annual dry-dock has started in mid-July in recent years, and in 2026 it meant two-hourly sailings from Tuesday to Thursday.
Searoad quotes two prices for everything: a standard fare at the ticket window and a lower online fare. On top of that sits a calendar of peak dates. In the dates on sale these are 30 October to 3 November (the Melbourne Cup weekend), 18 December to 4 January, the Friday-to-Monday stretches of 8–11 and 15–18 January, and 22 to 27 January around Australia Day. Easter 2027 was still showing ordinary prices when we looked, although Searoad's FAQ lists Easter among its peak times.
The one fare the seasons do not touch is the online return for a car: $169 on every date we checked, peak or not. At the window the same return is $169 on an ordinary day and $183 on a peak one. The driver is always inside the car price; everyone else in the car pays a passenger fare.
| One way, at the window | $ 91 |
| One way, online, from | $ 89 |
| Return, window or online | $ 169 |
| One way, at the window | $ 98 |
| One way, online | $ 91 |
| Return, at the window | $ 183 |
| Return, online | $ 169 |
| Adult | $ 21 |
| Adult, online | $ 20 |
| Adult, peak dates | $ 23 |
| Concession (Australian pension, seniors, health care or student card) | $ 19 |
| Child 4–15 | $ 16 |
| Child under 4 | Free |
| Family on foot, 2 adults and up to 3 children | $ 64 |
| Bicycle with a foot passenger | Free |
| Motorhome or large vehicle with driver, per metre (6 m minimum) | $ 19 |
| Caravan or boat behind a car, per metre (6 m minimum) | $ 18 |
| Trailer, per metre (4 m minimum) | $ 16 |
| Motorbike with rider | $ 54 |
| Bike rack on a car | $ 10 |
Searoad Ferries fare calendar for every date from 8 October 2026 to 5 April 2027, read on 7 October 2026; the operator reserves the right to change fares without notice Searoad Ferries – fares · 2026-10-07
Measured directly, the terminals are about ten kilometres apart, Sorrento on the Mornington Peninsula and Queenscliff on the Bellarine, facing each other just inside Port Phillip Heads. Searoad times the crossing at 40 minutes, or 40 to 45 in its FAQ; MV Sorrento's service speed is 11 knots. The operator calls the bay sheltered water and says its two catamarans, built for these conditions, at worst roll slightly in very rough weather. For anyone driving between the Mornington Peninsula and Geelong or the Great Ocean Road, the ferry replaces the long way round through Melbourne.
Sorrento's new terminal, completed in 2026, is an over-water building with a lounge and bar, the ONDA restaurant and a step-free gangway straight onto the ferry's lounge deck. The car park beside it is the Shire's Sorrento Jetty car park: Searoad says it is free from May to October and paid from November to April, and that, like the Queenscliff car park, it is not secure. Foot passengers who need help should note that their entrance is near the end of the pier.
The Queenscliff building, by F2 Architects, opened in April 2023 on the harbour and has a café, a first-floor lounge and bar, a surf and travel shop and the TARRA restaurant. Parking at the terminal is free with a 12-hour limit and fills on busy days, with street parking outside as the fallback. Bus route 56 to Geelong stops within about 400 metres, connecting there with trains to Melbourne and Warrnambool.
Vehicles should be at the ticket window 40 minutes before the sailing, foot passengers 20. Online sales for vehicles close two hours before most departures.
A pre-bought ticket is valid on the next available ferry if you arrive late, with no need to ring ahead, and dates can be changed as often as you like at the window. An unused ticket can be turned into an open one, valid for 12 months from purchase.
Cyclists pay the foot passenger fare and the bike costs nothing, but riders check in at the car ticket window and ride on over the vehicle ramp rather than walking through the lounge.
Searoad's view is that rental exclusions are usually for island ferries and its crossing is part of the road network, so hire cars are generally allowed; check your contract. Motorhomes and campervans of any length can travel, and the maximum height is 4.1 metres.
Bus 788 runs from Sorrento's main street along the Mornington Peninsula to Frankston station, and some of its trips connect with the ferry at the pier. At Queenscliff, route 56 to Geelong leaves from within about 400 metres of the terminal.
The service first crossed the Heads on 13 September 1987, after some 30 years of lobbying on both peninsulas, with a 35-car ferry, the Peninsula Princess. The present ships followed as traffic grew: MV Queenscliff, built in Port Lincoln, South Australia, in service from 28 December 1993, and MV Sorrento, built in Launceston and launched in April 2001. Each carries up to 700 passengers and about 80 vehicles, on a main deck and a mezzanine. The company also runs Western Port Ferries to French Island and Phillip Island.
Port Phillip Ferries, which runs the other crossings of the bay on this site, carries people only. It runs from Portarlington and Geelong up the bay to Docklands, a much longer trip and useful if your car can stay at home. The one other car ferry from the bay's shores is Spirit of Tasmania, which leaves Geelong at night for Devonport; as our Geelong to Devonport page explains, its operator points Mornington Peninsula drivers to this crossing to reach the Geelong quay without going through Melbourne.
From 30 October to 3 November 2026 the fare calendar is on peak prices: $98 one way at the window or $91 online for a standard vehicle (5.5 m or shorter) including the driver, and $183 return at the window or $169 online. Each passenger is $23 at the window.
Not on the dates on sale. The last departure from both Sorrento and Queenscliff is 18:00 every day through to 5 April 2027; the 19:00 slot is shown as no service.
Usually a little: $89 or $90 instead of $91 for a car one way on ordinary dates, $91 instead of $98 on peak ones, and $1 or $2 off each passenger. The biggest saving is on a peak-day car return, $169 online against $183 at the window.
Only your own fare: $21 one way at the window or $20 online for an adult on an ordinary day. The bike is free, and you board through the car ticket window and ride on with the vehicles.
At Queenscliff the terminal car park is free for up to 12 hours but fills in busy periods. At Sorrento the nearest is the Shire's Sorrento Jetty car park, which Searoad says is free from May to October and paid from November to April. Neither is secure.
Searoad says yes in practice: both catamarans were built for the bay, which it describes as sheltered water, and at worst you will feel a slight roll. They also have navigation equipment that keeps them running in fog.
Yes. Christmas Day 2026 gets the full hourly service, first boat at seven and last at six from either side, but it is charged at peak prices, as is every date from 18 December to 4 January.