Wheelchair Accessibility Aboard the Victoria Clipper

Wheelchair accessibility on the Victoria Clipper.

Located on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, the only way to Victoria from Seattle is by boat or plane. There’s no reason to have a car in Victoria; it’s a very accessible and walkable city with cabs on every corner if you decide you need a lift. The Victoria Clipper is a comfortable passenger-only ferry that launches from Pier 69 on the Seattle waterfront and arrives about 3 hours later in Victoria, within an easy walk or cab ride to most hotels. Note, the Clipper dock in Victoria is at the bottom of a short hill, if that might be an issue for you, or if you have a lot of baggage, you might consider having a cab pick you up.

wheelchair seating on the Victoria Clipper — Wheelchair seating at a table on the Victoria Clipper.

Wheelchair accessible seating aboard the Victoria Clipper

General seating is located on two levels, some at tables, some along windows, some down the center of the ferry. The wheelchair accessible seats are located conveniently at tables on the lower level of the Clipper, but a seat needs to be removed prior to boarding to make space for a wheelchair, so be sure to tell the ticketing agent at check in so that they have time to make the appropriate accommodations.

wheelchair accomodations on the Victoria Clipper — Another view of wheelchair seating on the Victoria Clipper.

Boarding the Victoria Clipper with a wheelchair

The Victoria Clipper boards wheelchair passengers first, then families with young kids, then general boarding. The ramp can be pretty steep depending on how low the tide is, but a representative from the Victoria Clipper helped us down and up the ramp. The wheelchair seating is located at the first set of tables upon boarding the ferry. On the way to Victoria, we wanted to sit in the front of the boat for the best view. The aisle here is too narrow for a wheelchair, I collapsed my daughter’s chair and carried her up to these seats so that we could enjoy the view.

Bring books, games and snacks

Unlike flying, there are no restrictions to bringing liquids onboard. Yay! We made a Starbucks stop on the way and enjoyed our coffee and a breakfast picnic that I brought for the trip. There is onboard meal service, here’s a link to the menu. Honestly, the coffee wasn’t great and the menu seemed uninspired and kind of pricey, so we were happy that we brought our own food.

First on, first off

Just like when you boarded the ferry, families with a passenger in a wheelchair are first to disembark, which is great, except checked bags have probably not yet been unloaded when you reach customs. In the rush of getting off and being the first to approach the customs agents, we didn’t see any bags and thought we were to pick them up in the next room. WRONG! We had to wait for the entire ferry to unload and pass through customs, then they let us go back and claim our bags – which had to be inspected. I know YOU won’t make that mistake.

The Victoria Clipper is our preferred way to get to Victoria; it’s centrally located in Seattle, has comfortable, wheelchair-accessible seating, and is within easy walking distance to most hotels. Two thumbs up!