Clipper Navigation, Inc., is an American ferry operator and subsidiary of

Förde Reederei Seetouristik FRS GmbH & Co KG (formerly ''Förde Reederei Seetouristik'', also operating internationally as ''Fast Reliable Seaways''), commonly known as FRS, is a German transportation company specializing in passenger ferry and freight transportation. It o ...

based in Seattle, Washington. They provide multiple

transportation Transport (in British English) or transportation (in American English) is the intentional Motion, movement of humans, animals, and cargo, goods from one location to another. Mode of transport, Modes of transport include aviation, air, land tr ...

and

vacation A vacation (American English) or holiday (British English) is either a leave of absence from a regular job or school or an instance of leisure travel away from home. People often take a vacation during specific holiday observances or for sp ...

packages—many of which are offered under the name Clipper Vacations—including hotel and tour packages in Seattle and in

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

, and

Vancouver Vancouver is a major city in Western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the List of cities in British Columbia, most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the cit ...

, British Columbia. The company operates the Victoria Clipper, a high-speed passenger-only ferry service between

downtown Seattle Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared with other city centers on the U.S. West Coast due to its geographical situation, being hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by ...

and the Inner Harbour in downtown Victoria.

History

Clipper Navigation, Inc., was founded in 1986 with the original MV'' Victoria Clipper I'' on the Seattle/Victoria route. The MV '' Clipper II'' was actually two different boats that ran to the

San Juan Islands The San Juan Islands is an archipelago in the Pacific Northwest of the United States between the U.S. state of Washington and Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. The San Juan Islands are part of Washington state, and form the core of ...

. Then the MV ''Victoria Clipper III'' (now MV ''San Juan Clipper'') was purchased. The service between Seattle and Friday Harbor, Washington provides

orca The orca (''Orcinus orca''), or killer whale, is a toothed whale and the largest member of the oceanic dolphin family. The only extant species in the genus '' Orcinus'', it is recognizable by its black-and-white-patterned body. A cosmopol ...

and

gray Grey (more frequent in British English) or gray (more frequent in American English) is an intermediate color between black and white. It is a neutral or achromatic color, meaning that it has no chroma. It is the color of a cloud-covered s ...

whale watching Whale watching is the practice of observing whales and dolphins (cetaceans) in their natural habitat. Whale watching is mostly a recreational activity (cf. birdwatching), but it can also serve scientific and/or educational purposes.Hoyt, E. ...

out of that port and has been in operation since 1991 daily from mid-May through September. As Clipper Navigation grew, it launched Clipper Vacations. German navigation company Förde Reederei Seetouristik (FRS) acquired Clipper Vacations in 2016. FRS announced plans to expand the company's service to include routes between Victoria and Vancouver, and between

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

Fleet

The Clipper fleet currently consists of two high speed

catamaran A catamaran () (informally, a "cat") is a watercraft with two parallel hull (watercraft), hulls of equal size. The wide distance between a catamaran's hulls imparts stability through resistance to rolling and overturning; no ballast is requi ...

s, the MV ''Victoria Clipper V'' and the MV ''San Juan Clipper'' that serve Seattle, Victoria, and Friday Harbor. The Clipper fleet is one of the fastest passenger vessels in the western hemisphere.Victoria Clipper Ferry , Ferry to Victoria BC , San Juan Islands Ferry
Clippervacations.com. Retrieved on 2013-07-12. Clipper Navigation was also responsible for operating the MV ''Princess Marguerite III'', a car ferry between Seattle and Victoria. Its operation was discontinued a decade ago due to the extremely high costs associated with the six-hour trip between ports. Currently, there is no car service between

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

and

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Queen Victoria (1819–1901), Queen of the United Kingdom and Empress of India * Victoria (state), a state of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, Canada, a provincial capital * Victoria, Seychelles, the capi ...

. The primary choice for passengers with cars is the MV ''Coho'' ferry out of

Port Angeles Port Angeles ( ) is a city and county seat of Clallam County, Washington, United States. The population was 19,960 at the 2020 census, it is the most populous city in the county, as well as the most populous city on the Olympic Peninsula. T ...

. The Washington State Ferry from

Anacortes, Washington Anacortes ( ) is a city in Skagit County, Washington, United States. The name "Anacortes" is an adaptation of the name of Anne Curtis Bowman, who was the wife of early Fidalgo Island settler Amos Bowman.Sidney, British Columbia Sidney is a town located at the northern end of the Saanich Peninsula, on Vancouver Island in the province of British Columbia. It is one of the thirteen Greater Victoria municipalities. It has a population of approximately 11,583. Sidney ...

to Victoria was discontinued. The WSF announced that they don't anticipate being able to return the Sidney run to service until 2030. Clipper Vacations can book passengers who wish to take the ''Coho'' in conjunction with a hotel stay. The Clipper also ran the MV ''Victoria Clipper I'', and the MV ''Victoria Clipper IV''.

Operations

The Clipper has one daily round-trip ferry service that travels between Pier 69 in

Downtown Seattle Downtown is the central business district of Seattle, Washington. It is fairly compact compared with other city centers on the U.S. West Coast due to its geographical situation, being hemmed in on the north and east by hills, on the west by ...

and Downtown Victoria, taking approximately 2 hours and 45 minutes. The vessel carries 525 passengers. Clipper Vacations provides hotel and tour packages in

and

References

External links

Official Home Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Clipper Navigation Ferries of Washington (state) Ferries of British Columbia Transport in Victoria, British Columbia Water transport in Seattle Privately held companies based in Washington (state) Transportation companies of the United States