River to Bay is a small, locally owned business about to significantly change how Brisbane locals and visitors access the Bay Islands by running a new ferry service to Stradbroke Island, departing from Manly and Hamilton Northshore.
New owner Paul Crowther took over River to Bay at the end of 2023 and realised that a convenient and time-efficient way to get to North Stradbroke Island was lacking from Brisbane, and decided to change this. River to Bay’s vessels have operated since 2019, running tours from Brisbane City.
“Stradbroke Island is a hub for tourism that isn’t as accessible as it should be, and our mission is to change this for Brisbane locals, Stradbroke locals and tourists,” said General Manager Isla Toomey.
From March, River to Bay will run services from Manly and Hamilton Northshore six days a week from Tuesday to Sunday. Manly will have three services running to North Stradbroke Island in the morning and two in the afternoon. Hamilton Northshore will have two services in the morning and two in the afternoon.
River to Bay is pitching the service as a tourism initiative to attract day trippers and passengers who seek convenience and fun.
The fleet includes Leatherback, which can carry 38 passengers and Bottlenose, which can take 28 passengers – both alloy ribs that can handle the conditions of Moreton Bay.
Major improvements are being made to both vessels, including replacing and extending clears to keep passengers as dry as possible, installing dry boxes for passengers’ luggage, and installing new FLIR cameras for the Captain to maintain visibility in any conditions.
The company has also announced a series of new tours that will run in between the ferry service from Stradbroke, including cultural tours, 4WD tours, Bay tours and a tour for oyster lovers.
For more information, go to rivertobay.com.au.
