Ditch the drive, take the ferry.
The Manatee Belle pulled away from the Bradenton Riverwalk Pier on April 22, its engines building. The boat eased forward into the Manatee River and then picked up speed toward Anna Maria Island.
Passengers on the newest and largest Gulf Islands Ferry boat settled into shaded seats or leaned along railings, watching the downtown skyline give way to open water.
Within minutes, the boat was plowing wake across the river, leaving Bradenton behind.
The ferry ride, about 35 minutes from Bradenton’s downtown to the Bradenton Beach Historic Bridge Street Pier, offers a steady trip across the mouth of the Manatee River through the Intracoastal Waterway, with views of Palmetto, Bradenton, Snead Island, the Sunshine Skyway Bridge and Tampa far to the north and later the Cortez waterfront and Anna Maria Island.
The Manatee Belle’s been on the water since April 11, a long-awaited addition to the GIF fleet that Elliott Falcione, executive director of the Bradenton Area Convention and Visitors Bureau, said will improve reliability and reduce traffic between Bradenton and AMI.
The Belle was introduced in part to address weather-related disruptions that affected GIF’s smaller boats. The larger ferry is designed to operate in conditions that sometimes sideline the smaller pontoon boats, allowing for more consistent service during peak travel periods.
“It’s what we need to take the water ferry operation to a new level,” Falcione said in an April 21 interview with The Islander.
On April 22, Manatee Belle riders ranged from families and tourists to organized groups, including a club of vintage car enthusiasts who rode the ferry to the island for lunch.
“We are coming out to the island to have our club lunch at the Anna Maria Oyster Bar,” Tom Gherna, a member of the Sara-Mana Model A Ford Club, said. He was traveling with nine others in a group that dates to 1962 and focuses on preserving and restoring the old Fords.
Sue Vurge of the United Kingdom and her husband, John, combined transit options, using the island trolley to go to the beach and then riding the Belle into Bradenton.
“We took the trolley to the beach this morning, but now we’re headed to downtown Bradenton to have lunch at Pier 22,” she said.
The couple took open-air seating at the back of the boat and chatted with others as they departed Bradenton Beach.
Their trip is an example of how the county’s multimodal transportation offerings can move people between the mainland and the island without putting cars on the road.
The ferry system includes:
- The Miss Anna Maria and Downtown Duchess, 30,000-pound pontoon catamarans that launched the service.
- The Manatee Belle, the new 60-foot boat weighing about 100,000 pounds, built by Breaux Brothers Enterprise of Loreauville, Louisiana, for $2.86 million.
Constructed of marine-grade aluminum and powered by twin Cummins X15 diesel engines, the Belle is significantly larger than the other boats, allowing it to better handle wind and rough water. It can accommodate about 91 passengers and features an enclosed area for climate-controlled seating.
The weather has been a limiting factor for the catamarans.
“We may have lost almost two dozen days in February and March,” Falcione said, referring to winds that prevented the smaller boats from operating. “You can’t control the weather … but you want to be running almost every day during peak season.”
During favorable conditions, ridership has been strong, with 550-650 passengers per day during peak spring periods, according to Falcione, and more than 90% boarding in downtown Bradenton.
“When you’re moving 600-plus passengers, you’re taking roughly 280 cars a day off the road,” he said.
County data shows more than 55,000 passengers used the ferry in 2025, eliminating an estimated 23,000 vehicle trips from Manatee and Cortez.
However, the service’s impact on traffic remains limited, as the boats are limited to two landings, the Bradenton Riverwalk Pier and the Bridge Street Pier.
Falcione said he envisions adding more stops, including at the Anna Maria City Pier, Coquina Beach and potentially Cortez, with larger boats handling cross-bay routes and smaller boats moving passengers along the island.
For now, the appeal is simple: From downtown, board the ferry and step off at Bridge Street to walk to shops, restaurants and the beach or board the trolley.
Restaurants and the Bishop Museum of Science and Nature are the appeal for people taking the ferry from the island to downtown.
“It’s gone better than I would have ever imagined,” Falcione said of the ferry’s success.
For more
For schedules, fares and other information, visit gulfislandsferry.com.
What no workers traversing the river and bay, while it is a nice boat ride and may well save someone from driving to an appointment if they have other transportation to get them there, the numbers are cooked. Most take the ride on a lark and if punctuality and ease of delivery are necessary they won’t be on the boat, even with an enclosed air conditioned cabin.