Victoria Clipper suspends Seattle to Canada service until Spring 2022

The company reopened less than a month ago and says the shutdown was due to the ongoing effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.

SEATTLE – The Victoria Clipper fast ferry will be closed until March 2022. The ship’s parent company, Clipper Vacations USA, Inc., said passenger numbers had not increased enough to cover costs since reopening on Sept. 17.

The last boat docked in Seattle on Monday evening. The company said it would have to refund about 500 people who bought pre-sale tickets.

“It’s just very difficult right now,” said David Gudgel, CEO of Clipper Vacations USA, Inc.

The boat can accommodate up to 500 passengers. Gudgel said there are currently between 50 and 60 passengers traveling.

“One of the headwinds was that the US border wasn’t open to Canadians at the time and another big one was the entry requirements into Canada,” said Gudgel.

The prerequisites are to be fully vaccinated and to present a negative COVID-19 test that was taken no more than 72 hours prior to entering Canada.

“That extra step has taken away many of our day-trippers that we would see at this time of year,” said Gudgel.

The ship made its first voyage to Victoria, BC, 24 days ago after being out of service for 18 months. The return has been seen as a sign of hope and relief for both Clipper Vacations and the Victoria tourism industry.

RELATED: Victoria Clipper left Seattle for the first time in 17 months after pandemic delays

The crew will be doing maintenance over the next few weeks, Gudgel said. After that, the company will return to a limited workforce of around eight.

“If we could cover our running costs and fuel, our crew costs and port fees, we wanted to do this to keep the people who have been with us for over 25 years, but it just didn’t last.” so at this point we had to pull the plug, “said Gudgel.

Gudgel said that decision ensures the company is financially able to reopen in March 2022.

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The company sent a letter to customers on Monday that said in part, “We are sorry to announce that we are canceling our scheduled fast ferries from Seattle to Victoria with immediate effect Tuesday October 12th. Unfortunately, due to the ongoing effects of the pandemic, we will not be able to maintain our business operations during the fall and winter seasons this year. We are currently planning to reintroduce our Seattle to Victoria fast ferry service and hotel / tour packages in the spring of 2022. Our exact restart date and date for accepting bookings will be posted on our website later in November. ”

Clipper Vacations offers its customers travel credit for future bookings or a full refund.