Coupeville — Local services in Whidbey Island

I had an issue come up and I needed to get from Coupeville to Port Angeles, Wa. I tried to make a reservation as soon as I found out... but it was not the minimun 2 hours prior to boarding... only 90 minutes. I drove up to the toll booth to see if I could wait for spaces available on the ferry... this is a common practice.

The very rude woman in the booth told me that they were not allowing vehicles to wait because the reservations were backed up due to fog. I asked if the ship was full of reservations and she said no, and that they were not accepting drive ups for the forseeable future. I asked "If there are spaces on the ferry, and people need to cross, you will not allow them to cross? She said " You can leave by driving between the cones and making a right at the road." And She could not have been more arrogant and dismissive if she tried.

These people are well paid to sit and collect money. They should realize that they will be dealing with the public all the time that they are in the booth. If they can't answer questions from calm customers and resort to immature and petty bebavior, perhaps there is a position where their underdeveloped social skills will not be on full display. It reflects poorly on the majority of the ferry employees who are courteous and helpful.

If there are any Washington State Ferry supervisors reading this post, I didn't get her name, but she was in the far-right booth at the Coupeville terminal between 1:00 pm and 2:00 pm on...

I've been riding the ferries for more than 20 years, and have never experienced anyone as much of a displeasure to deal with or as rude as the unhappy, disgruntled, and clearly dissatisfied with his job short-haired/bald white guy working on 9/23/23 in the reservation lane at the Coupeville terminal. We had a reservation for 7:30 and showed up at 7:01, 29 minutes early. We were told we were late (!), charged the $10, and put in stand-by. The boat hadn't arrived yet and we still made it on--it was barely half full! He said it was all part of "the agreement". When I asked what agreement he meant, he couldn't tell me, and upon researching online, and calling customer service, I found only a SUGGESTION, stated as such, to arrive 30 minutes early, but certainly no clause about being 29 minutes early is late. No wonder this corrupt ferry...

If you don't have a reservation, you will wait for 6 hours, if you even get on at all. We tried booking a reservation, but 2 hours is not enough time in advance. We then paid and watched as people who were behind us in line without a reservation get on the ferry before us. When talking with the staff, they blew us off and said to get a reservation in the future and that it was not their problem. When looking up ferry's a reservation was never listed as something to for sure do! Beware people who want to visit here to get a reservation a day ahead and don't expect good customer service! It wasted over 6 hours...