How to Visit Bermuda: Getting In, Getting Around and What to Book
The short answer. Fly into the airport at the east end or sail into the Dockyard at the west end. Once you are here, you cannot rent a car, so you get around by ferry, pink bus, taxi or a small electric car. There is no island ticket: the beaches, the towns and the Dockyard are free, and you pay only at the caves, the lighthouse and the museums. If your time is short, Bermuda shore excursions solve the getting-around problem for you.
Quick facts
- Passport: every visitor needs one, valid for 45 days beyond the stay.
- Arrival Card: air visitors file one, online or on arrival.
- Money: the Bermuda dollar is pegged 1:1 to the US dollar, and US dollars are taken everywhere.
- Cars: visitors are not permitted to rent standard cars.
- Getting around: ferries, pink buses, taxis, electric two-seater micro-cars, scooters and bicycles.
- Paid entries: Crystal Caves US$24 a cave, Gibbs Hill Lighthouse US$2.50, the National Museum US$20.
- Size: 21 square miles across nine parishes.
Arriving by air
The island's airport is L.F. Wade International Airport, on the east end in St. George's Parish. Its new terminal opened in December 2020. The Bermuda Tourism Authority puts the flight at about 90 minutes from New York, two to three hours from Atlanta, Boston, Miami and Philadelphia, and about seven hours from London.
Two rules catch people out. Your passport must be valid for at least 45 days beyond your stay, and every air visitor files an Arrival Card. When you fly home to the United States, you clear US customs before you leave, and that preclearance runs from 7am to 4pm daily. The full picture, from the terminal to your hotel, is on how to get to Bermuda.
Arriving by ship
Cruise ships tie up at King's Wharf and Heritage Wharf at the Royal Naval Dockyard, at the far west end, and Hamilton and St. George's are the other two ports. The government projected 179 cruise calls for 2025, so on a busy day you share the pier with a lot of people.
The Dockyard is where most shore excursions start. The buses, the catamarans and the glass-bottom boats all meet you on or beside the pier, which is why a ship day works so well here. The Blue ferry to Hamilton leaves from the Dockyard too, if you would rather go it alone. Every meeting point is marked on the Bermuda map.
Getting around without a car
You cannot rent a car in Bermuda. The Bermuda Tourism Authority says visitors are not permitted to rent standard cars, to limit traffic. Instead you have taxis, ferries, the pink buses, and electric two-seater micro-cars you can rent. Scooters and bicycles are the other choices.
One rule surprises almost everyone: you cannot ride a bus, a ferry or a taxi wet or sandy. After a swim, dry off and brush the sand away before you head for the stop. It is a good reason to pack a cover-up and a small towel for a beach afternoon.
Ferries and buses: the routes and the fares
Buses and ferries share one fare system. Buses take cash; ferries do not, so buy a token or a pass first. Children under 5 ride free.
| Route or fare | What it covers | Time or price |
|---|---|---|
| Blue ferry | Hamilton to the Dockyard | 15 to 20 minutes |
| Pink ferry | Hamilton to Paget and Warwick | About 40 minutes |
| Orange ferry | The Dockyard to St. George's, May to October | 45 minutes |
| Buses 7 and 8 | Hamilton to the Dockyard | By road |
| Bus, cash | Up to 3 zones, or all 14 | US$3.50 or US$5 |
| Child fare | Ages 5 to 15, any zone | US$2.75 |
| Transport pass | Unlimited bus and ferry, 1 day | US$19 |
| Transport pass | Unlimited bus and ferry, 7 days | US$62 |
If you are staying a few days, a pass pays for itself quickly. For a single ship day, the maths changes: a tour that picks you up on the pier saves you working out connections. The fare table in full is in the visitor guide.
What you pay for at the door
There is no gate to Bermuda, so the word ticket means something smaller here. It is a ferry pass, or an entry to one of the few places that charge. Everything else is free to walk into.
- Crystal Caves and Fantasy Cave: US$24 for one cave, US$35 for both; children 12 and under US$10 or US$12, under 5 free.
- Gibbs Hill Lighthouse: US$2.50 to climb the 185 steps; daily 10am to 4pm, closed all of February.
- The National Museum of Bermuda: US$20 for an adult, US$18 for a senior; last entry 4pm.
- Free: the beaches, the Town of St. George, Hamilton's Front Street, the Dockyard and Tom Moore's Jungle, which opens dawn to dusk.
Some tours put these entries in the fare and some do not. Every cave tour pays your Crystal Cave entry, while two island drives leave the lighthouse climb for you to pay. The sights one by one, with who stops where, are on things to do in Bermuda.
How long to allow
On a ship day, think in blocks of three to seven hours. An island drive covers both ends in five. A boat trip takes two and a half to three and a half hours, leaving your afternoon free. The longer days, with two hours at a beach or in the jungle, run six to seven.
With a week, you can split the island. Spend a day at the west end, around the Dockyard and the South Shore beaches, and a day at the east end in St. George's. Use the ferries for the long legs, since the Orange ferry links the two ends from May to October.
The best time to go
The sea decides it for most visitors. The Bermuda Weather Service's long-term averages put the sea at 72.1°F in May and above 80°F from July to September, peaking at 82.8°F in August. From January to March it sits around 65 to 66°F, which is bracing for a snorkel. The Atlantic hurricane season runs from 1 June to 30 November. The month-by-month detail is on Bermuda weather.
Which tour fits which day
| If you want | Book | From | Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Both ends of the island | The pink-bus drive | $80 | 5 hours |
| A sail and a swim | The catamaran sail and snorkel | $95 | 3.5 hours |
| Your own boat | The private catamaran, per group | $1,175 | 3 hours |
| History on foot | The private St. George's walk | $95 | 2.5 hours |
| A long beach day | The beach hop | $150 | 7 hours |
For a first visit on a ship day, the pink-bus drive from the pier is the one most people choose. If the water matters more, take the catamaran sail and snorkel from the star on the pier. A family or a group of friends can have the private catamaran for up to 15. For caves, compare Bermuda Crystal Caves tours; for St. George's on foot, the private history walk includes every venue's entry. Every pier start is compared on Bermuda tours from the cruise port.
Visitor centres
The Bermuda Tourism Authority runs three Visitor Services Centres. The Hamilton one sits at the ferry terminal at Albouy's Point and opens daily 10am to 4pm. The St. George's centre is at 25 York Street, and the Dockyard one at 2 Dockyard Terrace, a short walk from the ships. All three close on New Year's Day, Good Friday, Christmas Day and Boxing Day. For the island parish by parish, read our guide to the nine parishes.
Days that solve the getting around
Bermuda Discovery & Highlights with FREE Scenic Ferry Return
Four hours by coach from the cruise pier: the lighthouse grounds, Horseshoe Bay, John Smith's Bay and St. George's, ending with free time in Hamilton. A ferry ticket back to the Dockyard is in the fare.
From $66 per person
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Crystal Caves, Hamilton Shopping and Beach Tour
Six and a half hours from the pier: an hour on Front Street in Hamilton, two hours at Horseshoe Bay and an hour in Crystal Caves, with the cave entrance fee in the fare. Children from 3; food and drinks are extra.
From $150 per person
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Private St. George's Bermuda History Walking Tour
A private walk of two and a half hours through the Town of St. George, from the ferry terminal or St. Peter's Church, with admission to every venue and bottled water in the fare. Priced per person, for two or more.
From $95 per person (minimum 2)
Check AvailabilityNext: Find out what sits at each end of the island in our walk through the parishes, west to east. Every fare sits side by side on Bermuda Tours.