May 22, 2026
Asbury Park Press/Imagn Images
Seastreak ferry service will operate a direct route this summer from Lower Manhattan to Point Pleasant Beach at the Jersey Shore. Above, a Seastreak ferry is shown off the coast of Sandy Hook.
A trip between the Jersey Shore and New York City will be possible by sea this summer with a new ferry route running from Point Pleasant Beach to Lower Manhattan.
Seastreak, the high-speed passenger ferry service, will operate the route on select dates from June 19 to Aug. 9 and then from Sept. 4-7. The trip is about an hour and 15 minutes.
The ferry requires reservations in advance. One-way adult fares cost $69 and round-trip tickets go for $99. Discounted prices are available for children ages 3-12, and kids under 3 can ride for free.
In New York, the ferry departs from the Battery Maritime Building at Slip 5 in Manhattan at 11:30 a.m. on Fridays. In Point Pleasant Beach, the ferry will depart from the Seastreak Ferry Dock at 49 Inlet Drive at 1 p.m. on Sundays.
Seastreak's ferries offer a daily commuter service between Lower Manhattan and Highlands, Atlantic Highlands and Belford in North Jersey. The company operates daily service between Manhattan and Sandy Hook during the summer and also has routes from New Bedford, Massachusetts, to Nantucket and Martha’s Vineyard, as well as between Providence and Newport, Rhode Island. Other trips include whale-watching tours and fall foliage cruises.
Seastreak President James Barker said the company has been seeking ways to offer scenic trips further south in New Jersey.
“Getting from Manhattan to the Jersey Shore in about an hour and fifteen minutes changes the equation entirely," Barker said in a statement. "This is a direct trip from Lower Manhattan to the Shore with no stops, and there really isn’t another option that matches it in terms of simplicity and travel time. Point Pleasant Beach is a great destination in its own right, but it also opens up the entire stretch of shore towns nearby."
Point Pleasant Beach is about an hour and a half drive from Center City in Philadelphia, depending on traffic. The Ocean County community is known for its white-sand shores and mile-long Jenkinson's Boardwalk, which has an aquarium, amusement rides and arcades. It sits between Bay Head to the south and the Manasquan Inlet just north.
“I think it’s going to be a boon for tourism here in Point Pleasant Beach," Mayor Doug Vitale said at a borough council meeting this week. "We’ll see a lot more visitors coming down, and I think that’s great.”
People who ride the ferry are allowed to bring food and nonalcoholic beverage on board in soft-sided coolers. Those who book the ferry between Manhattan and Point Pleasant Beach can bring bicycles and scooters for an additional fee. Passengers are advised to arrive for check-in about 20 to 30 minutes before departures.
