Cape May Lewes Ferry: Schedule, Cost, Tickets & More

Booked right, the Cape May Lewes Ferry turns 90 minutes of driving-around-the-bay into a 90-minute cruise you’d pay for on purpose. A one-way adult ticket runs about $11, a standard car adds roughly $36 to $41 on top of that, and the crossing takes about 85 minutes across the Delaware Bay. The catch most first-timers miss: the vehicle fare stacks on top of every passenger fare, and summer sailings sell out days ahead. Reserve early, and the ferry beats the long drive. Show up on a busy Saturday without a reservation, and you might be watching boats leave without you.

This guide covers the parts the booking page glosses over: what a trip costs once the fares stack up, when the ferry sells out, how standby works, and when you’re better off driving around.

What is the Cape May-Lewes Ferry, and where does it go?

The Cape May-Lewes Ferry connects Cape May, New Jersey, with Lewes, Delaware, across a 17-mile stretch of the Delaware Bay. The Lewes Cape May Ferry (people search it both ways) has run since July 1, 1964, and it’s carried more than 50 million passengers since. The Delaware River and Bay Authority (DRBA) owns and operates it, the same agency behind the Delaware Memorial Bridge.

The crossing takes about 85 minutes. That’s the number to hold onto, because it’s the whole reason the route exists. Driving between the two points by road means looping up and around the top of the bay: north on the Garden State Parkway, across the Delaware Memorial Bridge, and back down through Delaware. Depending on traffic on I-95 and Route 1, that detour can eat two to three hours. The ferry replaces it with a flat, scenic ride where somebody else does the steering.

It runs year-round, all 365 days, weather permitting. The fleet includes three vessels, the M/V Cape Henlopen, the M/V Delaware, and the M/V New Jersey, and each one holds up to 100 vehicles and 800 passengers. In peak summer, the schedule climbs to as many as 14 sailings a day.

How much does the Cape May-Lewes Ferry cost?

People underestimate this trip because the ferry charges you three separate ways: a fare for each passenger, a fare for the driver, and a fare for the vehicle. A family of four in one car pays four human fares plus the car fare. That’s the number that surprises people at the toll booth.

New fares took effect June 1, 2026, after the DRBA approved a revised schedule (Resolution 26-18). The changes raised vehicle fares by roughly $2 to $6 depending on season, bumped shuttle fares by $2, and expanded the age range for children who ride free. Prices shift by season, day of week, and how full the sailing is, so treat the figures below as a planning guide and confirm the live total at cmlf.com before you book.

Passenger and driver fares

These are the Cape May-Lewes Ferry schedule and prices for foot passengers and drivers during the fall shoulder season (September 1 to October 31, 2026):

Kids ride free, which changes the math for families in a big way. Two adults and two kids under 13 pay for two fares, not four.

Vehicle fares

Vehicle fares are charged on top of the passenger and driver fares, and they carry a “base” price and a “max” price. Base is what you pay on a quieter sailing; max kicks in when demand is high. Fall 2026 vehicle fares:

Summer vehicle fares (June 1 to August 31) run higher than the fall numbers above, so a July car crossing costs more than an October one. RVs, trailers, boats on trailers, and anything oversized should confirm the correct length category before booking, because a foot of extra length can push you into the next price bracket.

What a real trip costs

Run the numbers for a common case. Two adults and one car, round trip, fall season: roughly $40 for the two adults plus about $68 to $78 for the car, so somewhere around $108 to $118 all in. Swap in two kids under 13, and the passenger side drops, but the car fare doesn’t move. Compare that against gas and tolls for the two-to-three-hour drive around the bay, plus the value you put on not doing the driving, and the ferry usually pencils out for a leisure trip. For a pure cost-cutting commute, the drive can still win.

Frequent riders can bring the per-trip cost down. The DRBA sells a Frequent Traveler Book and runs a loyalty rewards program, and AAA members, seniors, military, and first responders all get the discounted passenger rate with valid ID.

What’s the Cape May-Lewes Ferry schedule?

The Cape May-Lewes Ferry schedule changes with the season, and there’s no single fixed timetable to memorize. The DRBA sets seasonal schedules shortly before each season starts and posts them by color-coded service pattern on the online calendar.

In the quieter months, expect roughly six departures a day from each side. A typical fall weekday from Cape May looks like 7:00 AM, 9:30 AM, 10:30 AM, 1:00 PM, 2:30 PM, and 6:00 PM, with the crossing landing about 85 minutes later. Weekends add sailings. Summer ramps up to as many as 14 a day.

Two schedule realities matter more than the exact times. First, the ferry sells out regularly, and it sells out often from spring into early fall, so the sailing you want may be gone if you wait. Second, weather can reshape the day.

The DRBA aims to run every scheduled crossing, but its marine team can postpone, combine, or cancel departures when conditions turn. Reserved guests get notified by email, text, or phone, which is one practical reason to reserve even when you don’t strictly have to. Always pull the current schedule from cmlf.com or the downloadable PDF close to your travel date rather than trusting a timetable you saw weeks earlier.

How do you book tickets, and is standby worth the risk?

You can buy Cape May-Lewes Ferry tickets online at cmlf.com or by calling 800.643.3779. Reservations aren’t strictly required for walk-on passengers, but they’re strongly recommended for everyone and close to essential if you’re bringing a vehicle in peak season.

A valid photo ID is required to board. If you’re driving on, plan to arrive 45 minutes to an hour before departure. Foot passengers check in at the ticket counter first, then clear a security screening with metal detectors, so arriving about 45 minutes early keeps things unhurried. Boarding for walk-ons starts roughly 20 minutes before the sailing.

The standby gamble

If the sailing you want is sold out, standby exists, with real limits. Standby tickets are sold first-come, first-served at the toll booth, and only when several consecutive departures are already sold out. They’re available only for vehicles under 20 feet, they can’t be reserved ahead, and they carry no guarantee of boarding. If you don’t make it onto your target sailing, you get a full refund at the booth. That’s a fair deal, but it’s a gamble, not a plan. On a summer Saturday, betting your afternoon on standby is how people end up driving around the bay anyway, hours behind schedule.

One nice touch for round-trip travelers: overnight parking is free at both terminals if you hold a round-trip ticket. Register your license plate, return date, and phone number with the ticket counter before you sail. Leashed dogs and crated pets are welcome aboard, and you can bring a bicycle for free or rent one at either terminal.

How do you get to each terminal?

The two terminals sit at opposite ends of the bay, and the directions to the Cape May-Lewes Ferry are simple on both sides once you know the exit.

Cape May Terminal: 1200 Lincoln Blvd, North Cape May, NJ 08204. Coming from the north, take the Garden State Parkway to Exit 0, the very end of the Parkway, then follow the signs to the ferry terminal after the toll plaza. There’s plenty of free on-site parking. Foot passengers can connect via NJ Transit Bus Route 552 to Wildwood, Rio Grande, and Cape May City, or use rideshare and Cape May County Transit. The ticket office runs Monday to Friday, 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM.

Lewes Terminal: 43 Cape Henlopen Drive, Lewes, DE 19958. The Lewes side sits near Cape Henlopen State Park, minutes off Coastal Highway (Route 1). From Route 1, follow signs for the Lewes Historic District and continue onto Cape Henlopen Drive. Free parking is available for cars and bikes. The DART Route 204 bus stops right in front of the terminal, with connections toward Rehoboth Beach and the outlets. The Lewes ticket office runs daily, 7:45 AM to 7:45 PM.

Both terminals have ATMs, accessible facilities, restrooms, and grassy areas to stretch your legs before boarding. If you’re walking from the terminal onto the vessel, the pathway runs about 325 feet on the Lewes side, mostly level with a steeper slope at the gangway, and crew help anyone who needs it.

What’s it like on board?

The vessels are wide, low-slung boats built around an open car deck, with two passenger decks stacked above it. Once the crew parks the cars, you head upstairs and pick your spot, and there’s real variety in where you can sit.

The interior of the Cape May-Lewes Ferry gives you options for whatever kind of ride you want. The second-deck interior salon has reclining single seats down the center and tables with bench seating along the windows, so you get bay views whether you want to nap or spread out a card game. Outside and up top, you’ll find Adirondack-style chairs, classic wooden benches, metal table sets, and Lido Bar seating on the upper deck.

Reviewers with kids consistently praise the table options for snacks and games and note that seating isn’t assigned, so you can roam the whole ship. One accessibility note worth planning around: reaching the first passenger deck means climbing 24 stairs. If stairs are a problem, tell the toll booth or security staff before boarding, and the crew will help.

The M/V New Jersey is worth requesting if you care about amenities. It carries the largest café and ferry store in the fleet and crosses the bay in about 80 minutes.

Then there’s the reason regulars keep coming back: the bay itself. The Delaware Bay is known for dolphin and even whale sightings, and travelers report captains slowing or stopping the vessel when whales surface nearby. Dolphins near the Lewes harbor, seabirds trailing the boat, sunsets over the water, and the occasional passing ship all show up again and again in reviews. A frequent rider from the DC area with close to 50 crossings says he’s never had a bad one.

A few honest caveats the promotional copy skips. Onboard WiFi is spotty; one reviewer found it down on a foggy morning and wrote postcards instead. And the crossing is only as calm as the bay. On windy days it can get rough enough that seasoned riders warn each other to skip it, so if you’re prone to motion sickness, check the marine forecast before you commit.

Where can you eat at the ferry?

There’s more of a Cape May-Lewes Ferry restaurant scene than most people expect, and it’s split across the two terminals plus the boat.

Stowaways Restaurant & Café (Cape May Terminal): Stowaways serves breakfast, lunch, and dinner with local seafood and coastal comfort food inside the New Jersey terminal. Upstairs, The Overlook is a private event space for weddings and gatherings. Fall hours run 9:00 AM to 8:00 PM for the restaurant and 6:00 AM to 6:00 PM for the café, so you can grab coffee before an early sailing.

Grain on the Rocks (Lewes Terminal): On the Delaware side, Grain on the Rocks pours craft beer and serves creative pub fare, including a lobster roll that shows up in photos a lot, with patio seating and firepits facing the sunset. Lewes Coffee Company sits right next door for espresso and pastries. Summer hours stretch to 10:00 PM on weekends.

On board: Each vessel has an indoor grab-and-go café and, seasonally from May through October, outdoor Lido Bars for drinks and light snacks. Both cash and credit work everywhere. One consistent piece of traveler feedback: onboard snacks run pricey for what they are. If you’re watching your budget, eat at one of the terminal restaurants or pack your own for the crossing.

Who should take the ferry, and who should skip it?

Take the ferry if the crossing is part of the point. For a family beach trip, a day out to Lewes or Rehoboth, a scenic reroute that dodges I-95, or anyone who’d rather relax than drive for three hours, it’s an easy yes, and the dolphin-spotting makes it more than transportation.

Think twice if you’re on a tight connection, if the forecast is windy and your stomach is sensitive, or if you’re chasing the absolute cheapest way across and don’t mind the long drive. And if you’re traveling in peak summer without a reservation, either book ahead or build in a real backup plan, because standby won’t save every Saturday.

Cape May-Lewes Ferry at a glance

Fares, schedules, and hours change by season and were current at the time of writing. Confirm the latest details and book at cmlf.com or by calling 800.643.3779 before you travel.

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