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A wooden motorboat cutting a wake across a harbor, the moorings and a stone breakwater beyond. From Rhode Island the crossing takes an hour or two, with no Cape traffic on the way.
Providence and Rhode Island to Martha's Vineyard without crossing Cape Cod: the Seastreak from New Bedford (50 minutes, $84 round trip, 30 minutes from Providence) and the Vineyard Fast Ferry from Quonset Point (95 to 105 minutes, from $115, dogs ride free), both with $15 parking at the dock, plus Amtrak's connecting bus for a car-free trip. Which boat, when, and what it costs.
From Providence, Newport or anywhere in Rhode Island, Martha’s Vineyard is closer than the Cape Cod traffic makes it feel, because you do not have to cross the Cape at all. Two passenger boats leave from your side of the bridges: the Seastreak from New Bedford, half an hour down I-195 from Providence, which crosses Buzzards Bay in 50 minutes for $84 round trip, and the Vineyard Fast Ferry from Quonset Point in North Kingstown, twenty minutes south of the city, which takes about an hour and three-quarters straight across Rhode Island Sound for $115 and up. Both land in Oak Bluffs in summer (Seastreak uses Vineyard Haven in spring and fall), both park at the dock, and neither needs a car reservation made in February. Add Amtrak’s connecting bus from Providence station to the New Bedford terminal and the trip works without a car of your own. Below are the two boats side by side, the drive to each, and our pick for different trips.
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New Bedford. Thirty minutes down I-195, a 50-minute crossing, $84 round trip, and up to eight boats a day in peak summer. Cheaper and faster than the Rhode Island boat on almost every count; the cheapest-way guide says the same.
Quonset Point, if the longer crossing does not bother you. It is on the way for anyone coming up Route 1 or across the Newport bridges, the lot is at the dock, the dog rides free, and on the summer timetable the first boat leaves Quonset at 8:30 in the morning and the last boat home leaves Oak Bluffs at 7:30 PM, back at Quonset by 9:15.
New Bedford’s $55 same-day round trip: the 8:20 boat out on a summer weekday (7:50 on Fridays and Saturdays, with a $5 surcharge) and the 5:00 or 7:45 back give nearly eight hours on the island. Our day-trip guide has a plan for the hours.
The Vineyard Fast Ferry carries leashed or caged pets at no charge. Seastreak’s New Bedford boat takes leashed dogs (not on the seats), the Island Queen takes leashed or crated pets free, and the Steamship carries them free.
Seastreak starts April 16 and finishes October 12; the Rhode Island boat runs May to October. In spring Seastreak docks at Vineyard Haven until mid-May and at Oak Bluffs after, and in 2026 it moved back to Vineyard Haven from September 20 for the rest of the season; the after-Labor-Day guide covers the autumn switch.
The Oak Bluffs harbor docks in summer. Both Rhode Island-side boats tie up in this harbor, and Circuit Avenue, the carousel and the bus are a few minutes on foot.
Seastreak’s New Bedford terminal is at 49 State Pier on the waterfront, with the parking lots signed from the highway. In peak summer, June 26 to September 6 in 2026, there were six departures Monday to Thursday, seven on Fridays and Saturdays and eight on Sundays, the earliest at 7:50 AM on the weekend days and 8:20 midweek, the last at 6:30 PM, with extra sailings on holiday weekends; in the shoulder months, two round trips at 8:45 AM and 2:00 PM. Adults pay $49 one way and $84 round trip, the same-day round trip is $55, a ten-trip pass is $370, and the Friday and Saturday morning boats carry a $5 surcharge in summer. The crossing runs through the more sheltered water of Buzzards Bay. Our Seastreak guide has the full timetable and both of the company’s routes.
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The Vineyard Fast Ferry leaves from Quonset Point in North Kingstown, twenty minutes south of Providence off Route 4, with the ticket office, the dock and the $15 lot in one place; arrive 45 minutes before departure at Quonset and 30 before the boat home from Oak Bluffs. The crossing is about 95 minutes by the company’s reckoning and closer to 105 on some days, across open water in Rhode Island Sound, which is longer and livelier than the Buzzards Bay run. The timetable runs four sailings a day in May and October and six from June to September; in June the first boat leaves Quonset at 8:30 AM and the last boat home leaves Oak Bluffs at 7:30 PM, back at Quonset at 9:15. Advance online reservations get the best rates and walk-ups pay a $5 fee; tickets are non-refundable unless you add the ticket assurance. It lands at 10 Circuit Avenue Extension, at the foot of the Oak Bluffs harbor.
The Oak Bluffs harbor in August, moorings and slips packed.
Both boats put you in Oak Bluffs, the island’s summer harbor town, with the Flying Horses carousel, Circuit Avenue, the Campground and the Inkwell beach on foot and the fare-free VTA bus to every other town from the Steamship terminal a few minutes’ walk away. Bike shops sit beside the harbor with island-wide delivery. For a night or more, our where to stay guide covers Oak Bluffs and the other five towns, and the without-a-car guide covers a trip that arrived on foot.
The Rhode Island Fast Ferry sign on the Oak Bluffs waterfront. The company runs the Vineyard Fast Ferry from Quonset Point, and this is where it lets you off.
Step 1 · WhenMonth PickerTwelve months compared on NOAA numbers, crowds, prices and what is open. 
Step 2 · DaysDay-by-Day Trip PlannerMorning, afternoon and evening sketched for every day, events dropped in, emailed to you. 
Step 3 · CostTrip Cost CalculatorFerry, beds with the rooms tax, meals, getting around and activities in one price range. Our own footage from the boats.
Drive 30 minutes to New Bedford and take the Seastreak (50 minutes, $84 round trip, April 16 to October 12), or drive 20 minutes to Quonset Point in North Kingstown for the Vineyard Fast Ferry (about 95 to 105 minutes, $115 round trip off peak, May to October). Without a car, take Amtrak’s connecting bus from Providence station to the New Bedford terminal.
Yes. The Vineyard Fast Ferry sails from Quonset Point, 1347 Roger Williams Way in North Kingstown, to Oak Bluffs from May to October, four to six times a day, with a $15 dockside lot. Adults pay from $75 one way and $115 round trip, children 3 to 11 $58 and $89, and leashed pets ride free.
New Bedford: $84 round trip and $55 same-day against $115 and up from Quonset Point, and a 50-minute crossing against 95 to 105 minutes. From Providence it is also the shorter drive. The Rhode Island boat wins from South County, Newport and Connecticut.
Not on either of these boats; both are passenger-only. The only car ferry is the Steamship Authority from Woods Hole on Cape Cod, which needs a reservation made in February for summer. Leave the car at the dock for $15 a day and ride the free bus on the island.
Valet at the State Pier is $30 a day ($40 on holidays); the Whale’s Tooth lot is about $15 a day plus a $5 shuttle; a third lot at 180 MacArthur Drive has a free shuttle. The Quonset Point lot is $15 a calendar day at the dock.
Vineyard Fast Ferry addresses, fares, timetable pattern, parking and pet policy are from the company’s own 2026 pages, read September 2026; Seastreak fares, season and sailings are from its published 2026 schedule; the Amtrak connecting bus is from Amtrak’s service announcement; the Steamship comparison uses the Authority’s published 2026 fares. Drive times are approximate and assume no traffic. Confirm the day’s sailings before you drive to either dock; both boats are weather-dependent.
Island tip of the day Shopping No. 31 of 86 New tip at midnight, island time
The Chappy Ferry costs $5/person round-trip and $17 for a car with driver. Cards work at the Edgartown-side kiosk; bring cash for the boat itself.
Martha's Vineyard in December 2026: First Friday on December 4, Light Up Oak Bluffs on December 5, Christmas in Edgartown December 10 to 13, 4:15 sunsets, one ferry into Vineyard Haven, and what stays open through Christmas.
All six town libraries on Martha's Vineyard, checked October 2026: hours and addresses, how visitors get a library card, free Wi-Fi, the concerts, art shows and programs, the Libraries of Things with beach chairs and stargazing kits, museum and beach parking passes, and a short history of each building.
Cell service on Martha's Vineyard town by town: towers down-island, no tower in Chilmark or Aquinnah and the named dead spots, what each carrier reports to the FCC, free Wi-Fi at all six libraries and on the ferry, the $10 xfinitywifi pass, prepaid plans and 911 when you have no bars.
The twelve things that catch first-timers on Martha's Vineyard, from car reservations and the two ferry terminals to resident-only beaches, the last bus from Aquinnah and cash for the Chappy Ferry, each with an easy fix, plus the fall and winter dates.
EV charging on Martha's Vineyard: about 34 public stations, nearly all Level 2, listed town by town with ports and prices (the Edgartown Park and Ride, town halls, libraries, the airport, the Aquinnah cliffs), two fast-charging ports at the VTA, the Chilmark plans, no Supercharger, the ferry's EV rules, and how to run an electric week on a 20-mile island.
Parking for the Woods Hole ferry: there is none at the terminal, so here are the three Steamship Authority lots (Palmer Avenue, Thomas B. Landers, Cataumet), the 2026 rates ($25 a day April to October, $20 otherwise), the free shuttle timed to every sailing, when to arrive, the annual and off-season permits, the drop-off rule and the cheaper Island Queen lot in Falmouth Harbor.
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