Two different boats go from Redland Bay to Russell Island and they work nothing alike. The passenger ferry is a Translink public transport service with a 50 cent fare and no booking; the vehicle ferry is a SeaLink barge that must be booked, costs $94.50 for a standard car each way and currently carries a 3% fuel surcharge.
Passenger times from the Translink journey planner (read 15–16 October 2026 for 17, 18 and 19 October) and the Translink timetable effective 24 February 2025; vehicle ferry from SeaLink's booking timetable for 16–29 October, 9–15 November and 25–26 December 2026 Translink – Southern Moreton Bay Island ferry timetable · 2026-10-15
In 1987 Stradbroke Ferries, the company that had started carrying vehicles to North Stradbroke Island in 1964, began running vehicle ferries to the Southern Moreton Bay Islands of Russell, Macleay, Karragarra and Lamb. Transit Systems bought the business in December 2011, and in November 2015 it passed to SeaLink, now part of Kelsian, together with the islands' passenger operator, Bay Islands Transit.
That history explains today's split. The passenger ferry is now a Translink service, run for Translink by SeaLink Bay Islands, with fast boats leaving Redland Bay Marina through the day and late into the night. The vehicle ferry is SeaLink's own commercial barge from Weinam Street, booked in advance and priced by vehicle length. A little further north along the Redlands shore, the Coochiemudlo Island ferry from Victoria Point is divided the same way: a 50-cent Translink boat for walkers, a booked barge for cars.
For most visitors the choice is easy. On foot, the passenger boat reaches Russell Island in about 20 minutes on a direct run, costs 50 cents and needs no reservation. With a car, allow an hour or a little more on the water and close to $100 each way once the surcharge is added.
On the passenger ferry you pay like on a Brisbane bus: 50 cents a trip on go card, a bank card or a paper ticket, the flat fare Translink applies across south-east Queensland. Children aged four and under travel free, and with an orange child go card, so do 5 to 14-year-olds at weekends.
The barge is a commercial booking. SeaLink's fares depend on vehicle length, and since 10 June 2026 every new vehicle booking also attracts a temporary 3% fuel surcharge, which SeaLink says it reviews each month. The vehicle prices below come from one SeaLink page, without the surcharge; the checkout total is what you pay.
| Any trip, adult or concession | $ 0.50 |
| Child aged 4 or under | Free |
| Car or motorhome up to 5.4 m long and 2 m wide | $ 94.50 |
| Car or motorhome 5.5–6.4 m | $ 110.25 |
| Car or motorhome 6.5 m and longer, per metre | $ 25 |
| Motorbike | $ 35.25 |
| Motorbike with sidecar | $ 49 |
| Trailer, caravan or camper trailer, per metre | $ 21.50 |
| SMBI resident, car up to 5.4 m (subsidised) | $ 37.80 |
| Adult | $ 10 |
| Child 5–14 | $ 4 |
| Kayak or canoe (passenger extra) | $ 16.80 |
| Bicycle with a passenger ticket | Free |
Translink 50 cent fare page and SeaLink Bay Islands fares 'effective 1 July 2026', both read on 15 October 2026; 3% fuel surcharge in force since 10 June 2026 and reviewed monthly SeaLink Bay Islands – Ferry fares · 2026-10-15
The barges on this run have long histories of their own. SeaLink's MV Lakarma started life as a military vessel, was brought from the Netherlands in 2003 and has served the Bay Islands since 2005. MV Moongalba has been part of the story since 1974, when it joined Stradbroke Ferries; it later worked in New Zealand and Tasmania before returning to south-east Queensland in 2021. MV Island Odyssey and MV Island Venture are sister ships of about 45 metres with cafes on board. On shore, Redland City Council and the state transport department have been planning new passenger terminals for Russell, Macleay, Lamb and Karragarra since 2014, built to meet the national accessible public transport standards and freeing the old pontoons for fishing and mooring.
The same company carries Redlands traffic to the bigger island across the bay: its water taxis and vehicle ferries run from Toondah Harbour to North Stradbroke Island, the route where Stradbroke Ferries began in 1964. Inland, the smallest piece of the old Transit Systems business that SeaLink bought in 2015 is the Moggill cable ferry on the Brisbane River.
The two services leave from neighbouring spots in the Weinam Creek precinct. Passenger ferries use numbered platforms at Redland Bay Marina, and Translink's printed timetable reminds riders to find the right platform before boarding. The barge, SeaLink's reservations office and the vehicle check-in are a short distance away at 1 Weinam Street; SeaLink wants drivers there 20 minutes before departure. Parking around the terminals is free but time-limited in places, with more spaces at the Moores Road car park, about a seven-minute walk away over a footbridge.
Passenger boats and the barge land almost side by side at the island's main jetty. A bakery, newsagency, butcher, chemist, supermarket and garage are a short walk away, and beside the jetty there is a swimming enclosure with a small beach and picnic area. The island is about eight kilometres long and almost three wide, so beyond the jetty area a car or a bike helps.
Passenger ferries need no booking, but SeaLink describes bookings on the vehicle ferry as essential. Arrive 20 minutes before departure for loading.
SeaLink warned on 6 October 2026 that especially low tides may delay or reschedule some barge sailings into January 2027, partly because of silt, and that it is arranging dredging. Affected customers are contacted.
A dog must stay inside the car with the windows up far enough that it cannot reach anyone, or wear a fitted lead and a muzzle.
There is no cafe at SeaLink's Redland Bay terminal or on its Bay Islands barges, though there are cafes nearby.
Russell and Macleay are the biggest of the four islands. Russell looks down Canaipa Passage towards North Stradbroke Island and one of only two stands of orange mangroves in Moreton Bay. It is also the last stop on most barge runs, so the barge needs more than an hour to get there while Macleay, the next island in, is about 40 minutes away.
No. It is a Translink public transport service: turn up at Redland Bay Marina, check the platform and touch on. Only the SeaLink vehicle ferry needs a booking.
50 cents on the Translink passenger ferry, the flat fare for every trip in south-east Queensland. Walking onto the SeaLink barge instead costs $10 for an adult.
$94.50 each way when the car is no longer than 5.4 metres and no wider than 2, plus the temporary 3% fuel surcharge on all vehicle bookings since 10 June 2026. Longer vehicles and trailers pay per metre.
The 00:25 passenger ferry, leaving Redland Bay Marina just after midnight at the end of each Monday to Friday evening and reaching Russell Island about 00:55. The last barge leaves Weinam Street at 19:40.
Yes. SeaLink has warned that particularly low spring tides between October 2026 and January 2027 may delay or reschedule some vehicle ferry sailings, and it contacts affected customers.
In 1987, when Stradbroke Ferries began vehicle services to Russell, Macleay, Karragarra and Lamb. SeaLink has run them since buying the business in November 2015.
Not on the passenger ferry: fuel and other dangerous goods have been banned there since October 2021. Ask SeaLink about its dangerous goods conditions before taking any on the vehicle ferry.