Long-suspended seasonal ferry service from Hammocks Beach State Park to Bear Island will begin next week.
Ferry service will begin May 14, according to the N.C. Department of Natural and Cultural Resources’ Division of Parks and Recreation, after being suspended since April 2024 as a result of a major water and sewer construction project at Bear Island.
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Reservations at the island’s primitive tent and group campsites are also opening on May 14.
Service will run on an hourly basis May 14-18 and again May 21-22. There will be no service May 19-20.
The ferry will run every 30 minutes beginning May 23 through Memorial Day. Then, beginning May 27, hourly service will be offered on Mondays, Tuesdays, and Wednesdays and every 30 minutes Thursdays-Sundays and holidays, until Labor Day.
Service will start at 9:30 a.m. daily and end at 6 p.m. from Memorial Day weekend through Labor Day weekend and 5 p.m. all other dates.
Round-trip tickets are $10 for adults ages 13-61, $5 for children ages 3-12, and seniors 62 and older. Tickets for children 2 and under are free.
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A 2025 N.C. State Parks Annual Pass and a 2025 N.C. State Parks Annual Pass with four-wheel-drive beach access cover up to four ferry tickets daily.
Camping is $20 per night, including a $3 nonrefundable reservation fee, for tent sites and $50 for group camping. Campers must pay for one set of roundtrip tickets to use the ferry.
Campers who stay multiple nights have have purchased one set of roundtrip tickets are allowed one free ferry roundtrip ride per day during their stay.
Pets are prohibited on the ferry and collapsible-only carts or wagons are allowed.
The full ferry schedule is available at ncparks.gov/habe/ferry.
