Seattle Locks Cruise
Recommended by 96% of travelers
Badge of Excellence
Seattle, USA
- 2 hours (approx.)
- Offered in: English
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Overview
Pass through the renowned Ballard Locks and learn about the complex system on a cruise that transports you between the freshwater of Lake Union and the saltwater of Puget Sound. The one-way cruise can be used as transportation, making it ideal for travelers who want to avoid traffic and enjoy a unique journey from the Seattle waterfront to the AGC Marina on South Lake Union (or vice versa).
- Take a one-way cruise through the Ballard Locks
- Pass by the floating community from the movie Sleepless in Seattle
- Get details about the sights through live onboard commentary
- Take photos of the Seattle skyline from the water
What's Included
- 2-hour sightseeing cruise
- Live narration
- Interior and exterior seating areas
- Restrooms available on board
- Snacks and beverages (available for purchase)
- Gratuities
- Transportation between start and end location (return bus ticket available for purchase seasonally)
Meeting and Pickup
Meeting points
Select a meeting point
End points
This activity ends in a different location. See details below:
Itinerary
Lake Union (Pass By)
Lake Union Drydock Co (Pass By)
Floating Homes Association (Pass By)
Gas Works Park (Pass By)
Fremont Bridge (Pass By)
Ship Canal Trail (Pass By)
Fishermen's Terminal (Pass By)
Hiram M. Chittenden Locks (Pass By)
Discovery Park (Pass By)
Puget Sound (Pass By)
Space Needle (Pass By)
Argosy Cruises - Seattle Waterfront (Pass By)
Additional Info
- Confirmation will be received at time of booking
- Wheelchair accessible
- Stroller accessible
- Service animals allowed
- Near public transportation
- Transportation is wheelchair accessible
- Surfaces are wheelchair accessible
- Most travelers can participate
- TWO DEPARTURE OPTIONS - This is a one-way tour that starts & ends at two different central Seattle marinas. Choose to depart from Pier 54 on the waterfront or from AGC Marina on Lake Union. The departure location is noted in the subtitle of the tour. If unsure - please call Argosy Cruises
- Check-in 30 minutes prior to tour - Boarding starting 20 minutes prior to departure
- All vessels offer both indoor & outdoor seating
- All vessels have bathrooms
- Wheelchair accessible. PLEASE CALL in advance to secure crew/boarding support.
- Kids (3 and under) ride free but do require a boarding pass
- Gates close 5 minutes prior to tour departure time for boat preparation and safety checks
- This tour/activity will have a maximum of 175 travelers
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Cancellation Policy
You can cancel up to 24 hours in advance of the experience for a full refund.
Traveler Photos
Featured review
Leslie_B
Enjoyable afternoon! We learned a lot about Seattle, past and present. The entire crew was great . Lars, or tour “guide” was a local and very knowledgeable. Perfect way to relax and enjoy the Seattle area from the water. The trip through the lock was an interesting, fun experience.
I highly recommend this excursion.
Reviews
4.8
based on 398 reviews
amy_h, May 2026
The Ballard locks tour we did on a nice sunny day. It was nice to go through the locks. We had a good captain that gave us a lot of history.
Gustavo_V, May 2026
Great experience, enjoyed it, Crew was very friendly and helpful..Great information was given on tour .Great day experience
Kevin_D, May 2026
Very enjoyable cruise, great history and going through the locks is an experience. The cruise is fun from the lake around to Elliot Bay.
William_P, May 2026
We left from Union Lake. We visited the old boat history before tug boat Arthur Foss and a old fire boat. Also sea planes landing at the start and nice trip into lock and sound. Prefer coming into Seattle from the water beautiful view that way. As an extra we saw an Orca in the sound. The weather was great. Tour guide friendly, knowledge. Cold beer on board as well.
Sabrina_K, May 2026
it was a beautiful day and a great experience. It was interesting to hear about the history of the lakes and different types of waterways on this guided tour.. as well as the history of the towns that we went by. I think my favorite part was going through the actual lock itself from freshwater to saltwater. Appreciated the education.
Jeff_R, May 2026
Very nice experience. Travel guide was awesome. Highly recommend this experience. Captain was very informative too.
Michelle_V, May 2026
The crew was very knowledgeable and friendly. Was one of our favorite experiences from our time in Seattle.
Shilpa_S, Apr 2026
It was a very well organised tour. The commentary was really good - clear, audible and relevant. Thanks to Argossy cuise .
Joseph_Y, Mar 2026
Better than I expected. It was a glorious day with views of all the mountains in the area. It can get cold and windy. Bring a jacket or coat, gloves, and a hat that can fit securely on your head!
Mary_C, Nov 2025
Very interesting. It was a good tour. The only thing that got it 4 stars, was the two different locations.
Margaret_O, Sep 2025
Boat tour was very good.
Information about parking at the Marina was not good. Once I signed up for the tour I wanted info on parking. I called the tour co. and heard a recording that said I’d get more info on the discount for the parking but I couldn’t figure out how to get that info. I ended up just showing up and interacted with a tour worker who didn’t know much about how much of a discount I should get but they provided the steps to get a whole $1 off! This whole parking thing needs to be made explicit. I wasted a lot of time trying to find out about the parking before I got there and had to take a whole lot of time from the worker to get that tiny discount.
David_M, Sep 2025
A really excellent way to see Lake Union, get out onto the sound and learn more about the history of the bay.
Cathy_H, Sep 2025
Don’t miss it. Fascinating experience. Sisters and brother in law are from
Wisconsin. They felt the Argosy tour through the locks was their highlight of a week long trip in the Seattle area
Thomas_H, Sep 2025
It’s a beautiful one way trip and the narrator did an excellent job. There were plenty of chairs outdoors and several inside with good views too.
Kristen_H, Sep 2025
My mother and I were looking for something interesting to do in Ballard while we visited with my nephew and partner. They had never done the Ballard Locks so they joined us on the tour. We all 4 really enjoyed the scenery, the narration, and even the snacks and drinks aboard the boat. Highly recommend this tour for all ages!
Rebecca_B, Sep 2025
Bring a jacket! Cold until you go through the lock and in to lake water. Very good commentary! Enjoyed the whole excursion!
John_K, Sep 2025
Nice boat. Comfortable. Roomy. Crew very nice. Safety Paramount concern. Clean and pleasant. Know that you are dropped not where you boarded.
Craig_M, Sep 2025
Enjoyable morning on the water - harbor & lake. Great views / perspective of the City. Crew was friendly
Jon_V, Sep 2025
where to board the boat unclear
can be puzzling if you don't know Seattle.
where to park if not starting at pier 54.
Colleen_S, Aug 2025
Get there early and try to sit in front and on top of the boat. Lots of fun, and things to see, wonderful information about the area and its history.
Dr_G, Aug 2025
It's a nice cruise. The best part was seeing the Salmon jumping out of the water. Make sure to take a jacket, it gets colder when you enter the saltwater section.
Peggy_L, Aug 2025
Beautiful excursion and the guide was great, telling us about the house boat communities, the locks, sea animals, etc. Really enjoyed going through the locks.
Joe_D, Aug 2025
Worth doing! Experiencing the locks was really interesting. The onboard tour guide made the trip fun and informative.
Donald_J, Aug 2025
Excellent trip, wonderful crew. Had a great time the whole trip. Highly recommend this excursion. Love it
savitha_s, Aug 2025
Great tour, lovely tour guide who under intense heat was humorous and thoughtful in what he shared during the tour.
We did have an experience where we were standing behind another guest couple who were quite rude to my folks as they were standing behind them watching the views. You can’t fault Argosy for rude visitors to the area but that was slightly unpleasant.
Otherwise great tour of seattle.
Ashley_L, Aug 2025
This a very interesting cruise , educational & relaxing cruise l highly recommend it to vacationers.
Monique_M, Aug 2025
Great experience, great square guide, and deck hands. We really enjoy traveling from South Lake Union to downtown Seattle.
Diana_F, Aug 2025
Lovely trip - loads of little known information about the area. Both the narrator and the ship captain were very informative about local history and what to expect on the boat ride. We did the Lake Union to DT Seattle tour and bussed back. Highly recommend!
Sarah_C, Aug 2025
Was a really great way to see Seattle by water. There are drinks and snacks on board. Bring a sweater or rain jacket if you’d like to sit on the bow.
Shekhar_M, Aug 2025
Good experience. The support staff and crew members were amazing. Highly recommended.
One suggestion for folks opting for cruise with return bus, just take an Uber. You will save time and money.
From $63.28
per personup to 24 hours before the experience starts (local time)
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