Our Vessel

Sailing with pride for over 60 years!

The Island Queen ferry provides passenger ferry service between Falmouth on Cape Cod and Oak Bluffs on Martha’s Vineyard.

The Vessel History

The first vessel, the “Vineyard Queen”, carrying 108 passengers provided ferry service from 1960 through 1962. Then, in 1963, the “Vineyard Queen” was replaced with a new ferry, the “Island Queen”, carrying 280 passengers and continuing daily ferry service until 1974. Our current ferry, The “M/V Island Queen” is actually the third ferry in our company’s history. It came into service 1974. The design and build is by Blount Boats in Warren, Rhode Island. The Island Queen is a 125 foot, 522 passenger, triple screw, diesel powered ferry constructed of steel.

The Island Queen Ferry features a single helm position and a wing station on the starboard side of the vessel. And, a wide range of pilothouse navigation and communication equipment. Including, radar, NAV net3D, chart plotter, GPS, depth sounder, compass, and VHF Radios.

There are a number of Safety Systems onboard the Island Queen Ferry. They include life jackets, life floats, life rings with strobe lights, and first aid kits. Also, it has Automated External Defibrillator (AED), Man Over Board Apparatus and an Emergency Positioning Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB). The Island Queen is also equipped with two fire pumps, multiple fire hydrants, portable fire extinguishers and an engine room fire suppression system.

There is a full service Snack Bar and Restrooms available onboard the ferry.

Vessel Details

• Length: 125 feet
• Beam: 26 feet
• Draft: 7 feet
• Registered Tonnage: 99 tons
• Cruising Speed: 12 knots
• Fuel Capacity: 1150 gallons
• Fuel Consumption: 40 gallons per hour @ 12 knots (average)