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Service notice - Notice of Project Work - Gabriola Island (Descanso Bay) Terminal - March to May, 2026

Posted:   Tuesday, March 03, 2026

Issued: March 3, 2026

Notice of Project Work
Gabriola Island (Descanso Bay) Terminal
March to May 2026

As part of our commitment to maintaining safe and reliable terminal facilities, we will begin necessary work to extend the life of the Gabriola Island (Descanso Bay) terminal starting early March 2026. The project is expected to be completed by the end of May 2026.

Work will be completed between sailings from 7:00 am to 5:00 pm, or overnight between 8:00 pm and 5:30 am, Sunday through Thursday. Overnight work is required for most aspects of the project to minimize disruption to terminal operations and avoid impacts to scheduled crossing times. All efforts will be made to minimize construction noise for our neighbours.

To minimize impacts to service and facilitate the replacement of the apron structure, end of day sailing cancellations will be required in mid-March. Dates and times for sailing cancellations will be:

Cancelled sailings – March 17-18, 2026

  • Tuesday, March 17:
    • 9:25pm, 10:30pm and 11:30pm departures from Nanaimo Harbour
    • 9:55pm and 11:00pm departures from Gabriola
  • Wednesday, March 18:
    • 9:25pm and 11:30pm departures from Nanaimo Harbour
    • 9:55pm departure from Gabriola

The final opportunity to travel to Gabriola (Descanso Bay) will be:

  • March 17 & 18: 7:40pm departure from Nanaimo Harbour

The final opportunity to travel to Nanaimo Harbour will be:

  • March 17 & 18: 8:15pm departure from Gabriola

A supplementary water-taxi will operate between the Nanaimo Harbour Port Authority Marina next to Nanaimo Harbour, and the Regional District of Nanaimo's Emergency Wharf located adjacent to the Descanso Bay terminal. Water taxi-service will run on a first come first served basis and will aim to match the sailing schedule as close as possible. 

We thank the community for the feedback they provided on preferred days/times for the cancellations.

For up-to-date sailing and departure information, check Current Conditions, follow @BCFerries on X or phone 1-888-223-3779 for further assistance.

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