East By West Ferries, Meridian Building, Queens Wharf, PO Box, Wellington (2024)

04/08/2024

We're proud to be sponsoring The Christmas Shoebox for our fourth year.
Head over to their website to see how you can get involved!

Get involved in this year's Christmas Shoebox Project with the Catalytic Foundation. Help spread joy this Christmas to families and communities all over New Zealand.

29/07/2024

Some of you may spot Ika Rere out of the water at Seaview Marina for the next week while it's going through midterm survey inspection.
We'll still be running our full timetable during this time with our two diesel ferries.

26/07/2024

Good news! Travel to and from the All Blacks game at Sky Stadium will be free for match ticket holders on Saturday 10th August.
Present your match ticket onboard when travelling from Days Bay to the City on any of our public sailings.
We will be putting on a late sailing after the game to get you home. This is also free but you need to book tickets in advance. Follow the link below to book.

Catch the ferry back to Days Bay after the All Blacks v Argentina match

10/06/2024

We're putting on a late night sailing after the Hurricanes v Chiefs semi final this Saturday 15th June. Head along and support the team!
Book here:

Catch the ferry back to Days Bay after the Hurricanes vs Chiefs match

14/05/2024

A quick video from one of our Wellington Harbour Explorer cruises last week.
Join us onboard for our 90 minute commentated harbour tour, departing Queens Wharf at 10:15am on Monday and Thursdays through winter, starting this Thursday 16 May.

06/05/2024

We're putting on a late night sailing after the Wellington Phoenix FC semi final next Saturday 18th May. Head along and support the team, or use this as an opportunity for dinner in the city and use this service to get home. Please note we do need 15 passengers to book for this service to go ahead.
Book here:

Catch the ferry back to Days Bay after the Phoenix vs. Melbourne Victory match

01/05/2024

Behind the scenes of an exciting wee shoot we did onboard Ika Rere with The Today Show on this breezy Wellington afternoon.
Thanks to the team at WellingtonNZ and Tourism New Zealand for organising.

16/04/2024

🚨New product alert 🚨

Join us on the Southern Hemisphere's first and only fully-electric passenger ferry; Ika Rere - for a zero emissions tour of Wellington Harbour.

Learn about the history of Te Whanganui-a-Tara/Wellington as the capital city, our local maritime history and natural environment as we take you on a 90 minute cruise around the harbour.

We have two tours coming up:
Thursday 18th April, 10:15am
Thursday 2nd May, 10:15am

Departs Berth C, Queens Wharf, Wellington.
For more information and to book, click the below link or pop into our office on Queens Wharf.

https://eastbywestferries3.rezdy.com/635568/commentated-harbour-tour

15/04/2024

Due to the governments decision to withdraw funding for the aged based concessions, our fares will return to the standard fare structure from 1 May 2024. There will be no expiry on tickets purchased prior to 1st May (i.e. we will be honouring all 10-trip tickets until they have been finished).
See below link for fare information.

19/03/2024

Looking for something to do this weekend? Check out Neat Places guide to Eastbourne and Days Bay, featuring some pretty awesome businesses.

And remember, fares are still free for Under 13s and discounted for Under 25s.

https://neatplaces.co.nz/stories/insiders-guide-to-eastbourne-days-bay

📷 Nick George Creative

25/01/2024

East by West will not be operating services to Mātiu/Somes Island from 19th February 2024 for 6 – 8 months while the wharf is rebuilt.
This means our weekday and weekend timetables will change from the 19th February as we will not be stopping at the island. We have not received a date for the island reopening but we will communicate this to everyone as soon as we’re able to.
Services will still be running as usual right through to the 18th February so there’s still time to head out to the island over the next few weeks!
More information: https://eastbywest.co.nz/matiusomes-island-closure

07/01/2024

Kia ora commuters,

As most of you know, when half-price fares expired on 1 September, we chose to not put our Adult 10-trip fares back up to full price, and swallowed half of the increase ourselves. We felt that it was an unreasonable increase to pass on in one hit, and we’ve retained this for as long as we’ve been able to manage ourselves. Sadly, we are unable to keep this up any longer, and so the $72 10-trip will go back to $96 as of tomorrow morning.

We’ve only been able to provide very limited notice of this change – as we don’t receive a reimbursement for this discount (it has been provided out of our own business expenses), we need to avoid the pre-buying of cheaper 10-trips that was seen prior to the change in fares on 1 September.

As we make this change, we’ll also create an opening for a limited number of annual passes that will be available on a first-in basis. At $2,999.00, this is equivalent to 31 full-priced 10-trips over the course of a year, and provides some insulation from any general fares increase during this time. If this is of interest, please drop us a note to [email protected].

We're back to our full weekday timetable as of tomorrow, Monday 8 Jan, so look forward to seeing you onboard soon.

21/12/2023

Merry Christmas from the team at East by West Ferries!
We will be running the following over the next couple of weeks:
Sat 23 and Sun 24 December: reduced weekend timetable
Christmas Day: no services running
Tues 26 - Sun 7 January 2024: Holiday timetable
From Mon 8 Jan: Full weekday timetable resumes

You can find these timetables on our website:
www.eastbywest.co.nz

Fares are still discounted for those under 25 years old, including free for under 13s, so make the most of these fares over the holiday period ⛴

19/12/2023

It was a pleasure to have Titoki and his whānau onboard with us. Looks like you had a great day 🤩
Thanks for organising Dream Days by Lifetime

06/12/2023

⚓️ Cruise into evening bliss with East by West Ferries! ⚓️

Escape the ordinary bar catch up and join us for an early evening cruise instead! Enjoy a 1-hour round trip on one of our timetabled harbour crossings, as the sun begins to set.

As you soak in the scenery, savour the moment with a pizza to share with your mate 🍕 and raise a toast to the evening with a refreshing drink each! 🥂

Cruise Details:

✅ 1-hour round trip on a scheduled harbour crossing

✅ Stunning views of Wellington from the water

✅Ticket includes 2 x return trips (please select two people when booking)

✅One pizza of your choice for sharing

✅ One drink per person included

Don't miss out on this perfect blend of relaxation and indulgence!

📅 Dates: Thursday 7th and Friday 8th December 2023
🕔 Departure Times: 5:20pm, 5:50pm, 6:30pm, 7:30pm
📍 Departure Point: Queens Wharf, Wellington

🎟️ Book your tickets now! Visit our website https://book.bookit.co.nz/east-by-west-ferries/tours/144444/105049
Limited slots available, so grab your tickets now for a magical evening on the water! ✨

You haven’t experienced Wellington until you’ve been on our unique Harbour Ferry Service. We offer the following services: - Public transport trips to Queens Wharf, Days Bay and Mātiu/Somes Island - Special sailing trips for groups of over 40 people - Catered functions - Boat hire - Bundled exp...

06/12/2023

Seazing the day and taking the ferry across the harbour? ⚓

We wish it was always Welly on a good day... but when the waves get choppy, it doesn't make for the smoothest ride.

While the ferry is in motion, please remain seated and avoid changing decks so you don't add a trip to your journey.

Stay Metlink Safe, whānau ⛴️

30/11/2023

Summer's officially here, even if Wellington's playing hard to get with those sunshine vibes! ☁️
WellingtonNZ has put together a guide on exploring what our city has to offer this summer, check it out below.
And remember, fares are still free for Under 13s and discounted for Under 25s.

17/11/2023

We are proud to be partnering with the Catalytic Foundation again to assist with collections for their annual Shoebox appeal. These gift boxes help create special memories for well deserving children in need all over Aotearoa who may otherwise miss out on Christmas festivities.
A couple of ways you can get involved:
🎄Next Friday morning (24th Nov), you can donate an item in exchange for a free ferry trip on sailings between 6am and 9:30am.
🎄Or simply donate items from the below list to our ticket office on Queens Wharf or onboard our ferries any time before the end of November.

No secondhand items please.

30/10/2023

13/10/2023

Apologies for the short notice, but we will be moving to our new weekday timetable from Monday 16th October. Timetable can be found on our website or see below image. This change does not affect sailings to / from Mātiu/Somes Island.

Please note the weekday timetable on the Metlink website will not be correct until the 13th November (but we will still use Metlink to post service alerts).

The shuttle will meet the 7:10am, 7:40am and 8:10am departures and pick up from the ferries arriving at Days Bay at 4:40pm, 5:20pm and 5:50pm. See below for full shuttle information.
https://eastbywest.co.nz/commuter-shuttle-trial
On that note, remember next week is the final week of our shuttle trial. Thanks to the Wildfinder team for working with us on this trial!

05/10/2023

Kia ora koutou.
We’ve seen a few changes and service trials recently, and we’re working through a review of how things are working. A few unexpected items have arrived into the mix that we’re having to figure our way through – a harsher change over to Spring weather, a few upcoming boat maintenance outages, some impacts from the fares changes that came in on 1 Sept, and some unexpected changes to our staffing plan.
Although we don’t like to undertake change too frequently, we’ve needed to review and take a half-step back on some items so that we can keep the overall service reliable as opposed to chopping and changing over the next several weeks. It’s not ideal, but will at least see us keeping up with our traditional service level in terms of sailings. Here are some short-term changes.
- Our weekday timetable will continue on as it has been this week through to 11 November (so no more 7.50am or 9am from Days Bay, and no 5.10pm from Queens Wharf). From 12 November, we’ll adjust some of the morning and evening sailing times to even-up the gaps between sailings.
- The shuttle trial will come to a close on Fri 20 October as planned. If you've been using the free shuttle service, please take a couple of minutes to fill out the below feedback form.
https://forms.office.com/r/YNsSytxn80
- Not a change. The reduced adult 10-trip price of $72 will continue (so keeps the ferry priced the same as a single fare on the bus).
We still have our eye on a 20-minute service for commuters, but we’re going to look to come back to this in Feb/Mar next year when it can hopefully happen in an environment with fewer interruptions.

29/09/2023

Thanks Eastbourne Community!
We received 52 grocery items donated last Friday. East by West then matched that number and we dropped off 104 donated items this morning to The Wellington City Mission.

27/09/2023

Cabin fever from the weather so far these school holidays?
Looks like we're finally in for a calm morning tomorrow so make the most of the break in weather with a trip on the ferry ⛴
Fares are now free for under 13 year olds (and discounted for Under 25 year olds).

Queens Wharf is a vibrant area full of interesting things to do and see, including waterfront cafes & restaurants, the Museum of Wellington, (a must-see for visitors!), Fergs Rock & Kayak...

21/09/2023

Looking forward to our collection tomorrow morning for The Wellington City Mission.

Ditch the car for world car free day AND get behind this worthwhile cause, all while commuting free of charge!

World Car Free day is coming up on Friday 22nd September. To celebrate we’re going to do something a little different on the ferry that morning…
For all sailings between 6am and 9:45am on the 22nd, you will be able to catch the ferry in exchange for a grocery item that will be donated to The Wellington City Missions Social Supermarket.

The Social Supermarket, started in March 2021, is a great initiative which allows users to go and choose their own grocery items in a normal supermarket environment. You can find out more about what Wellington City Mission does here: https://wellingtoncitymission.org.nz/

One of our staff went and visited the Social Supermarket team last week and was told they are especially in need of:
- Premixed baking sets (e.g. muffin mix)
- Men’s personal hygiene products
- Babies nappies
- Cereals
- Spices and condiments
But you can find a full list of items they’re after here: https://wellingtoncitymission.org.nz/want-to-help/donate/food-goods/

All you’ll need to do is show up to the ferry on Friday 22nd and donate your item into the buckets provided and no fare will be charged (you are more than welcome to donate multiple items). Please make sure only unopened items that aren’t expired are donated.

If you’re not travelling with us on Friday but would still like to get behind this worthwhile cause, please feel free to drop items to the ferry anytime over the next week, or pop into our ticket office on Queens Wharf to drop off goods.

20/09/2023

East by West is excited to welcome World of WearableArt (WOW) back to Wellington!

We're offering $20 return tickets to Days Bay/Eastbourne for WOW ticket holders from now until the 8th October.

Cruise on over and make the most of these other amazing deals from local businesses in Eastbourne.

Goldiehomestore Tartines - French Cafe Artisan Co-Op Store Wildfinder

Don't forget to share your experience across socials to be in to win tickets to World of WearableArt 2024 + $2000 spending money. T's and C's apply

17/09/2023

World Car Free day is coming up on Friday 22nd September. To celebrate we’re going to do something a little different on the ferry that morning…
For all sailings between 6am and 9:45am on the 22nd, you will be able to catch the ferry in exchange for a grocery item that will be donated to The Wellington City Missions Social Supermarket.

The Social Supermarket, started in March 2021, is a great initiative which allows users to go and choose their own grocery items in a normal supermarket environment. You can find out more about what Wellington City Mission does here: https://wellingtoncitymission.org.nz/

One of our staff went and visited the Social Supermarket team last week and was told they are especially in need of:
- Premixed baking sets (e.g. muffin mix)
- Men’s personal hygiene products
- Babies nappies
- Cereals
- Spices and condiments
But you can find a full list of items they’re after here: https://wellingtoncitymission.org.nz/want-to-help/donate/food-goods/

All you’ll need to do is show up to the ferry on Friday 22nd and donate your item into the buckets provided and no fare will be charged (you are more than welcome to donate multiple items). Please make sure only unopened items that aren’t expired are donated.

If you’re not travelling with us on Friday but would still like to get behind this worthwhile cause, please feel free to drop items to the ferry anytime over the next week, or pop into our ticket office on Queens Wharf to drop off goods.

29/08/2023

Having a clear out of our office and came across this blast from the past! How many familiar businesses can you spot 🧐

25/08/2023

Congratulations to Spain for winning the Fifa Women’s World Cup in Australia last week 🇪🇸

We loved being part of such an incredible event; carrying 1798 spectators and event staff to and from Wellington City and as well as taking 60 people on a cruise to watch the fireworks from the water.

We even had the pleasure of hosting the South African team onboard our electric ferry while they were here.

14/08/2023

Upcoming changes to fares.

On 1 September, we'll see some changes to our fares as a result of Budget 2023. New fare groups & age boundaries, free travel for under 13's, and a return to full-price for adults.

For our regular commuters - we acknowledge that the increase of your 10-trip from $48 to $96 is a fairly sizeable adjustment to make - so East By West has chosen to absorb half of this increase ourselves, and the Adult 10-trip will instead go to $72 for a trial period (which makes your travel on ferry about the same price as a single trip on bus).

More information about these changes is now on our website

Looking for timetables? Click here to see the timetables for our Queens Wharf - Days Bay service. Click here to see the timetables for our Mātiu/Somes Island service from Queens Wharf. Click here to see the timetables for our Mātiu/Somes Island service from Days Bay. Fares Our fares are currently ...