Your Frequent Ferry

[CFG]

Hi Everyone,

Things are a little quiet today on the forum so I thought I would try to spark some discussion.

The question: What ferry do you end up riding the most? Not necessarily your favorite, but possibly.
Is it by choice or by chance?
As a frequent passenger of said vessel what one thing would you change to make it just that much better?

This could get interesting if some of the folks who crew on these vessels chime in about things they would change....

I'll start it off.

Coastal Celebration
I try to make it by choice, as I detest riding on the Spirits. I like the small quiet lounges on deck 5 that I can hide in for late night sailings to an from Vancouver.
What I would change is how foot passengers have to wait disembark from outside the vessel. On a cold and windy December night it can be bone chilling. You can wait inside but doing so nearly eliminates your chances of getting on a bus on the Vancouver side.

Cheers, CFG

[lmtengs]

Jan 13, 2011 19:47:43 GMT -8 CFG said:

The question: What ferry do you end up riding the most? Not necessarily your favorite, but possibly.
Is it by choice or by chance?
As a frequent passenger of said vessel what one thing would you change to make it just that much better?

The ferry I end up riding the most is the Coastal Inspiration on rte. 30.
We travel to my grandmother's place in Courtenay fairly often, so my mother insists on trying for the 'big new ship with more room'. I like the ship, but I really think they wasted valuable passenger space by putting her on rte. 30. During the QoNW's never-ending MLU, they should have raised her lower vehicle deck a bit to increase overheight capacity, if that's what makes her so inferior for route 30. Maybe install hoistable gallery decks too.

I try to make it by choice, as I detest riding on the Spirits. I like the small quiet lounges on deck 5 that I can hide in for late night sailings to an from Vancouver.

You're not alone, there! I find the Spirits too big and boxy. The outside decks feel almost limiting to me for some reason, too, and I always have that feeling of being watched since passengers look right out to the outside decks. Also, the play areas are too open to the rest of the lounge, they should glass those in like on the new ships and the refitted Q-cumber. Might this be expected with the Spirits' next major refit?

What I would change is how foot passengers have to wait disembark from outside the vessel. On a cold and windy December night it can be bone chilling.

I agree with you there, for all the Super-Cs. That, and it would be great if they could push back the solariums about a meter and a half to install a wrap-around outside deck on deck 7. Also, open up the stairwells between outside deck 7 and outside deck 5 to passengers. Maybe open up some outdoor space on deck 8 as well.

Install and actually use hoistable gallery-decks (my fix-all feature, equivalent to the power of the almighty duct tape ) as well on the Super-Cs, and get them in use on the Spirits too. I don't care if it means more sitting-time at each terminal, that's what food's for.

[Kahloke]

By virtue of my daily commute, the two ferries I ride the most are MV Tacoma and MV Wenatchee on the Seattle-Bainbridge route. Sometimes, like right now, we get the 3rd sistership, MV Puyallup, when one of the other Mark II's is out for maintenance, but most of the time it's Tacoma and Wenatchee. I can't really pin down which one I ride more. Most of the time, I end up riding on both each day - one in the morning, and the other one in the evening.

Generally speaking, I like the Jumbo Mark II's. They have large amounts of passenger seating with plenty of booths and tables, the individual seats are comfortable, more so than the benches, and the passenger layout is simple and straightforward. I also like the outside deck spaces on the Mark II's. That's one area that they improved on over the original Jumbos. There are exterior stairs at all four corners of the passenger cabin leading up to the Sun Deck, as well as 6 sets of internal stairs going up there, as well. The sun deck affords lots of viewing spots and can be walked around completely. Accessibility is definitely a favourable feature on these boats. From a purely design aesthetic, the original Spaulding Jumbos (Walla Walla and Spokane) are much more graceful than their newer counterparts, but the Mark II's definitely have greater utility (function over form, perhaps).

I don't know that I would change too much with the Mark II's. I think they need to do something with the space that was originally set up for the Express Bar. That was a feature that was pretty much never used. Perhaps they had them open when the ships were new, but it didn't last long. Maybe they could open that space up for more seating. Also, it would be nice to see all those TV monitors on board being used for something other than advertising and Homeland Security messages. How about streaming the news, or sports if one of the local teams is playing. They do that on the Steamship Authority Ferries.

[Low Light Mike]

The ferry that I've ridden the most in the last few years is the Coastal Inspiration on BC Ferries' route-30. It's my most frequent because Route-30 is what I use most for fun leisure ferry rides, including over-and-backs and combos with Route-1.

On a summer morning, the 5:15am sailing from Duke Point is the C'Inspy, and same with a Sunday afternoon trip where I'd take the 3:15pm sailing from Duke.

So it's by chance, since I'm mainly choosing the route and the convenient sailing times for those days when I need to get out onto the water.
- but I will usually lay-over at Tsaswwassen for a sailing, so that I can take the route's other ship on my return. That's for variety.

What would I change about the Coastal Inspiration on Route-30?
- being a realist, I wouldn't say "open the SeaWest Lounge" or "Open up Deck 5". I understand why this class of ship is seemingly misplaced on this route.

But I would change the access to the deck-7 sundeck. I'd have interior stairs and doors to access the sundeck on both sides of the ship, not just on one side. But I suppose there's a good reason why they designed it that way.

[Mirrlees]

The ferry that I ride on most often is the Spirit of Vancouver Island. Being based in Sidney, she is sometimes my only alternative to make an early enough connection to be somewhere on the mainland. That being said, I do enjoy being aboard the Spirits and at the end of my trip I usually wind up riding SOVI back home from Tsawwassen; although, I might skip a sailing if it is really crowded.

I wouldn't make many changes I think things are quite alright the way they are. One thing I would like to see; when the ship has a big load of footies, if the crew finds the SeaWest Lounge under-utilized, that they invite people to come sit in there free of charge. Maybe this might infuriate the ones who paid $12 to sit there, although they could be refunded. This might spread out the crowding on Sunday nights.

[CFG]

These are excellent comments, just what I was hoping for. Keep them coming.

[Koastal Karl]

Well lately the ferries I have travelled on the most would be the SOVI and the Coastal Celebration. By the way CFG you dont have to wait outside to disembark the vessel you can wait inside it's just if people want to be off first they wait outside. At least it's sheltered on that deck. I wouldent really change anything about the Celebration. It's my favorite coastal which is maybe because my g/f and I had our first date on the Celebration. I have actually taking a liking to the Spirit's now as they seem to be the older ship on route 1 now besides the New West. One thing I dont like about the Sipirt's is they dont have a sheltered outside deck. I love that on the Coastals cause you can go out there anytime. Also they should inclose the Kids Play Area on the Spirits. That is about it I think.

When the Coastal Celebration came into service I would always take it by choice or the New West after she was put on the route but I tend to take the Celebration and the SOVI or SOBC by choice if it's a busy time cause I prefer the bigger ships on a busy route like route 1.

[Queen of Vancouver]

Latley I have been stuck taking the Spirit of BC i guess i donnt really mind it but if I had a (for rt.1) choise i would like to take the Queen of New West or the C Cel

[lmtengs]

Jan 13, 2011 21:28:02 GMT -8 Low Light Mike said:

But I would change the access to the deck-7 sundeck. I'd have interior stairs and doors to access the sundeck on both sides of the ship, not just on one side. But I suppose there's a good reason why they designed it that way.

I've noticed something funny about the outside decks on those Super-dupers. The side of the ship with the stairwells are ALWAYS the most crowded. Last summer, I was riding the C'Inspy to Duke Point, and when I went outside to the sun deck, I was surprised by how busy it was. There must have been 50+ people out there. I walked around the ship to the other side, and at one time during the voyage, I counted only 6 people out there. I guess most people just aren't adventurous enough to venture to the far side.

[Mike]

My frequent ferry is my favourite C-Class the Queen of Surrey. Not really by choice or chance as it's the only vessel assigned to Route 3 (unless she breaks down or it's a long weekend)

I'd like them to re-install the large boxes on the sun deck that were for the storage of life-jackets. They were nice to sit on.

[WettCoast]

Route 1 is the one that I travel on most frequently (3 or 4 rounders per year) and the vessels that I end up on are usually one or the other of the Spirits. I understand that many here on the forum don't have a lot of use for these vessels, but to me they remain the best and most comfortable vessels in the fleet (except, of course, for the NorAd which has the most 'creature comforts').

Of the Spirits my fav would b the SoVI as it is based on the island side, and named for that part of the world that I still think of as home. Yes they do get crowded at times but the same is true when you load 1600 bodies on a Coastal class vessel.

As many will know, I much prefer boats with clearly defined bows and sterns over those that have lateral symmetry. Translated that means I am not all that partial to double enders.

Things I would change...

1 - For the Spirits and the rest of the fleet too - repaint them in a 'classic & retro' BCF Dogwood scheme. The current 'proper company' ;D slug scheme is still butt ugly.

2 - Specific to the Spirits - it is time for a major 'mid-life' upgrade. By this I mean taking out each one in successive years to improve their power and drive trains to allow them to be able to (when required) operate a little better speed, and thereby keep to their schedule. With such they would also be able to restore the use of the main car deck hoistable ramps thereby improving each vessel's flexibility. Such upgrades ought to be able to improve each vessel's fuel econamy also. The availability of a Coastal class vessel to sub for a Spirit during the off season should make such upgrades fairly easy to accomplish, though BCFS's financial situation is very likely an issue.

[mrdot]

:)like my brother, I guess most of our trips have been over to Victoria on route I and usually a spirit is over and back, but now I have reached the gold card age I better do more crossings to our remaining family. Since my retirement our most frequent crossings, for several years was the Kootenay lake ferry, as we went every year to a summer place at Crawford Bay and criss crossed over to Nelson every day, on the best half hour free ferry cruise anywhere on this plannet. and you know the new Osyrey, which arrived at the same time as the infamous fastcats, has never got the credit it has deserved under the cloud of our recent coastal ferry disasters! So now my ferry costs have hopefully a little while under this new seniors perk, I better use it before I loose it! :)mrdot.

[Dane]

When I actually need to go somewhere it is usually route two, and the Queen of Oak Bay. It has lost its luster lol.

[FerryDude2012]

Routes 1 and 30 are the routes I travel on most frequently.
The ships I travel/travelled on frequently are:
1) Queen of Vancouver (56 trips)
2) Queen of New Westminster (48 trips-plus watching safety drills at Tsawwassen at 10pm)
2a) Spirit of British Columbia (48 trips)

What I would change about these ships:
1) Queen of Vancouver: bring her back to BC Ferries as a truck ferry
2) Queen of New Westminster:
- change the layout of the Coastal Cafe, although two lineups may spread out the passengers, it means less seating in there. My suggestion is to make the layout like the Queen of Vancouver, where there is a lineup down the middle, with an express line for beverages and snacks beside it. This means more seating, especially by the windows, which is one thing I miss about the 'Vancouver.
- Make changes to the exit door of the Coastal Cafe, so people can't just enter and reserve seats (unless if people with disabilities, wheelchairs and strollers) enter.
- The Seawest Lounge in my opinion isn't in a great location, and it's a fair size when only about 10 people use it. I would slighty reduce the size of the Lounge, or even remove it, and replace it with a "Pacific Buffet Express", with basically a salad/fruit cart, main course cart and desert cart, and add more Snack Bar style seating around that area for eating.

Spirit of British Columbia:
- KidZone somehow enclosed, so that everybody else doesn't get distracted by the sound of kids screaming and watching their programs.
- put some sort of divider between the Coastal Cafe lineups and everybody else, so that people don't have to navigate through hungry people while walking from one part of the ship to another.

[lmtengs]

It seems many people (including myself) share the sentiment of closing in the Children's play areas on the Spirits!
Let's hope some BC Ferries refit personnel read this thread and notice that before the Spirits' next refit

[Nick]

My frequent ferry is the Spirit of Vancouver Island. Because most of my ferry travel is on route 1, and because I'm originating from the Island, it seems to work out that I end up on the SWB No. 1 ship.

As many of you know, I'm a fan of the Spirits. I find them comfortable, efficient and reliable. (The buffet is nice too) The passenger decks are laid out very well, and it is incredibly easy to navigate. The amenities are easy for people to find, the cafeteria is big enough to seat everybody reasonably well, and there is ample lounge seating for a full load. I agree that the midship lounge on deck 6 can get loud at times with the Kidz Zone, but as long as you stick to the back half of it it's not that bad.

My favourite place is at the bow, just under the bridge. I'm pretty sure next time I go I might see a reserved sign on the bulkhead at that little nook that acts as a wind shelter, since I tend to spend a lot of time there, especially at night. One thing that I think a lot of people forget, is that the Spirits can take an extra 500 passengers over a Coastal, which is why sometimes it feels more crowded. I can say that I have been on both vessels at-capacity, and I prefer the Spirit.

I like the Coastal Class for what they are, however I do not enjoy being on them as much as the Spirits. For this reason, I do make a marginal effort to aim for a Spirit sailing rather than the Celebration. I avoid the QoNW like the plague, since she simply cannot handle the crowds of route 1.

[mrdot]

:)my fear of ferry managment adopting anything we might put forward, would be there establishing more pay-per-use lounges! I better bite my tonge, or I'll loose this senior's perk for sure! :)mrdot.

[DENelson83]

The ferry I end up riding the most... Let me see...

Oh, darn! It's N/A! I hardly ever get the chance to take a ferry. In fact, a week from now, it will be 2 years since my last ferry trip.

[lmtengs]

Jan 18, 2011 18:15:47 GMT -8 DENelson83 said:

The ferry I end up riding the most... Let me see...

Oh, darn! It's N/A! I hardly ever get the chance to take a ferry. In fact, a week from now, it will be 2 years since my last ferry trip.

The location given by your coordinates show you as pretty close to a ferry, so why don't you just take a ride for the sake of it to take that horrible label off your name?

[DENelson83]

I'd rather drive onto a ferry. I've already taken enough sailings as a footie, and I prefer being a vehicle passenger instead.

[Curtis]

My Frequent Ferry putting my location into account is the Queen of Burnaby. The NIP is a close 2nd in this category, however most of my trips on Route 18 are mostly Non-Formal round trips taken for fun. Trips on the Burnaby however are more formal as I often travel with my parents on a day or multi-day trip, she has been my Frequent Ferry since about the time she returned to BC Ferries 10 years ago and was placed on Route 17. Before this, my frequent was the tandem of the Tsawwassen & Chilliwack on Route 7 plus the Surrey on Route 3. Most of the time we would be visiting relatives in the Lower Mainland. They moved around the same time the Burnaby came back. Since we didn't have much reason for going to Vancouver at the time, day trips to Courtenay or Nanaimo were the way to get out of town and Hence the Burnaby became my Frequent Ferry.

In the last few years, the Burnaby's luster has slowly depleted in my eyes. It could be a number of things... Length of Voyage, Her Somewhat-Coastalized Interior, photographing the ship plenty of times before, I could go on. So what would I change?

-One thing they could do is bring back the arcade machines since she lost them after her 2007 upgrade to make way for the kids area. Could waste a few minutes looking at them and sitting in the chair for the racing arcade game.

-More food options would be nice, I wish we could have the White Spot Menu up here or perhaps they could have a Sitka Coffee Bar Style operation in the Forward Lounge

-Wi-Fi, or a TV Lounge would be a great addition, why not? These features would be great time killers

-And, I don't know, PAINT Her.


Now that I think about it, most of these answers would apply if my Frequent Ferry was the Island Sky.

[Neil]

Jan 18, 2011 22:14:37 GMT -8 DENelson83 said:

I'd rather drive onto a ferry. I've already taken enough sailings as a footie, and I prefer being a vehicle passenger instead.

Maybe I'm a bit thick, but I'm not clear on how being a passenger in a car enhances the experience of going for a ferry ride. Could you expand on that a bit?

[DENelson83]

Because that's the way I first went on a ferry, and being a vehicle passenger technically means you stay on the highway.

[lmtengs]

Jan 19, 2011 20:20:25 GMT -8 DENelson83 said:

...being a vehicle passenger technically means you stay on the highway.

It makes positively NO sense to me how that would mean that you're staying on the highway by having your car with you. Do you mean you'd be staying in your car for the entirety of the ferry trip to 'stay on the highway', since walking up to the lounges would essentially be 'going to a rest-stop'? ;D
I would think staying on the highway wouldn't matter to a ferry fan. If I hadn't ridden a ferry in two years, I'd drag my butt out to the terminal and ride one, with car or without...