Lagos Ferries: Questions and Answers
Answers to the questions people ask most about ferry services in Lagos. Timetables and fares for every route are on the interactive map and in the directory of terminals and routes.
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Ferry operations, schedules, and safety
Water hyacinth is a floating weed that spreads across Lagos waterways and can block boats; the season usually runs from October to late December. The Ikorodu services, including the LagFerry Ikorodu to Falomo ferry and the licensed commercial Ikorodu to Falomo ferry, stop running during the season unless the hyacinths can be cleared. LASWA works every year to clear them. Some other routes are disrupted but keep running. Each route page says how hyacinth affects it.
LagFerry is the Lagos State Government ferry service; licensed operators are private companies licensed by LASWA or NIWA; unlicensed boats have no license from either. LagFerry requires every passenger to wear a life jacket and runs 7 routes on the Lagos Ferry Map. Licensed operators run most routes, 80 in all, and must register their boats with LASWA and provide life jackets. The 7 unlicensed routes are short local crossings, where safety practices can vary, so it's a good idea to ask for a life jacket before you board.
Omi Eko is the Lagos State Government's ferry expansion program, which plans new routes and upgrades to ferry facilities. The Lagos Ferry Map shows 7 planned Omi Eko routes, such as the planned Ikorodu to Falomo route and the planned Marina/CMS to Ebute Ojo route, and 25 facilities earmarked for upgrades. Start dates have not been announced yet, and they have no timetable or fares.
Government and licensed ferries in Lagos run under safety rules, but standards can vary from boat to boat. LASWA, the Lagos State Waterways Authority, requires registered passenger boats to carry life jackets and posts water guards at terminals. LagFerry makes every passenger and crew member wear a life jacket and monitors its boats with CCTV and real-time tracking. Unlicensed boats are not guaranteed to follow any standard safety rules. We recommend wearing a life jacket on every trip and avoiding travel in heavy rain.
LagFerry takes the Cowry card; most commercial boats take cash. Some licensed commercial operators also accept bank transfers, and a few take debit cards at POS terminals, such as the Badore Ferry Terminal to Ijede ferry. Fares are paid per trip, except charters, where you pay for the whole boat. Each route page on the Lagos Ferry Map lists the payment options and the fare for that route.
Light bags are usually fine, but heavy luggage is generally not allowed on ferries within the city, and boats to Porto-Novo also have a limit. On some local and community routes, boat drivers and passengers carry goods instead. Traders carry foodstuffs on boats between Sagbokoji and Liverpool, such as the Liverpool to Sagbokoji ferry, to sell at the fish market, the second-biggest in Lagos. On routes such as the Badore Ferry Terminal to Itomu Jetty route, boats carry building materials and other loads.
Download the full Lagos ferry dataset as a GTFS file from [lagosferries.com/gtfs.zip](/gtfs.zip). It covers the routes, stops, timetables and fares on the Lagos Ferry Map, in GTFS, the standard format that journey planners read. Public Tech Studio publishes it free under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 license, so you can reuse it as long as you credit the source; the terms are on the Lagos Ferry GTFS license page.
They differ in how they are built, how big they are and how sheltered you are from the weather. Banana boats are among the biggest boats on Lagos waterways, and also among the most open to the weather; they are the boats used to carry people to Porto-Novo in Benin Republic. Wooden boats are local, canoe-shaped boats that are usually slower and cheaper. Fiber boats are faster and usually more expensive. On the Ojo market waterside to Ilashe crossing, fiber boats take about 20 minutes, while banana and wooden boats take about 35 minutes.
Most boats do, but LagFerry boats do not usually run on public holidays. LagFerry does not run on Sundays at all, and some of its routes do not run on Saturdays either: the LagFerry Ikorodu to Falomo ferry runs Monday to Friday, while the LagFerry Badore to Liverpool ferry runs Monday to Saturday.
Ikorodu ferries
About 30 minutes. Both services from Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal to Five Cowries/Falomo in Ikoyi take about 30 minutes: the LagFerry Ikorodu to Falomo ferry, run by the Lagos State Government, and the licensed commercial Ikorodu to Falomo ferry. LagFerry boats call at Addax/Sandfill/Maroko in Victoria Island on the way. Both services can stop running during water hyacinth season.
₦2,200 on LagFerry or ₦4,500 on licensed commercial boats (2026 fares). The LagFerry Ikorodu to Falomo ferry is the Lagos State Government service and takes payment by Cowry card. The licensed commercial Ikorodu to Falomo ferry is run by private operators licensed by LASWA or NIWA and takes cash. From Offin, also in Ikorodu, licensed commercial boats to Falomo cost ₦3,500.
LagFerry is the Lagos State Government service; the commercial boats are run by private operators licensed by LASWA or NIWA. From Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal to Five Cowries/Falomo, LagFerry costs ₦2,200, takes the Cowry card and runs on weekday mornings, with boats back from 4:30 PM. The licensed commercial service costs ₦4,500, takes cash and also runs on weekends. Both take about 30 minutes (2026 fares).
The Lagos Ferry Map does not show live service updates, but the usual pattern is predictable. From Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal, the LagFerry ferry to Falomo runs Monday to Friday, and the licensed commercial ferry to Falomo runs every day. Both can stop during water hyacinth season, and boats can be held in very heavy rain.
Yes, in most rain. Boats from Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal, including the LagFerry and licensed commercial ferries to Five Cowries/Falomo, keep running in the rain unless it is heavy enough to make navigation unsafe. Smaller jetties differ: boats from Offin in Ikorodu to Falomo stop completely when it rains. Water hyacinth season, not rain, is what usually stops the Ikorodu ferries.
Take a ferry from Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal to Five Cowries/Falomo in Ikoyi, which takes about 30 minutes. The LagFerry service costs ₦2,200 and stops at Addax/Sandfill/Maroko in Victoria Island on the way; licensed commercial boats cost ₦4,500 (2026 fares). Coming back, evening boats to Ikorodu also leave Lagos Island from the Marina/CMS to Ikorodu ferry and the Ebute Ero to Ikorodu ferry.
6:30 AM. On weekdays, the first LagFerry and licensed commercial boats from Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal to Five Cowries/Falomo both leave at about 6:30 AM, as do LagFerry boats to Flour Mills in Apapa. LagFerry boats to Liverpool start at 7:00 AM. Most Lagos ferries leave once they are full, so departure times can shift a little.
LagFerry does not, but licensed commercial boats do. The LagFerry Ikorodu to Falomo ferry and LagFerry's other boats from Ikorodu (Ipakodo) Ferry Terminal run Monday to Friday only. The licensed commercial Ikorodu to Falomo ferry also runs on Saturdays and Sundays, from about 6:30 AM, for ₦4,500 (2026 fare). On weekends, some operators also offer private charters when there are fewer passengers.
Badore, Ajah and the Lekki axis
Use Badore Ferry Terminal for most trips. Badore Ferry Terminal has the most scheduled services, including the LagFerry Badore to Liverpool ferry, which stops at Marina/CMS and Five Cowries/Falomo, and commercial boats to Addax/Sandfill/Maroko in Victoria Island and Ijede in Ikorodu. Badore Jetty (Tarzan) is a separate jetty whose scheduled boats cross to Ijede/Tarzan in Ikorodu in about 10 minutes.
Badore Ferry Terminal is a ferry terminal with several scheduled routes; Badore Jetty (Tarzan) is a jetty with one main crossing. From Badore Ferry Terminal, boats go to Marina/CMS, Five Cowries/Falomo and Liverpool on LagFerry, and to Victoria Island, Ijede, Gberigbe and Itomu on commercial boats. From Badore Jetty (Tarzan), banana boats cross to Ijede/Tarzan in about 10 minutes for ₦2,500 (2026 fare), but stop running when it rains.
Take the LagFerry morning boat from Badore Ferry Terminal, which stops at Marina/CMS on its way to Liverpool. The LagFerry Badore to Liverpool ferry leaves Badore at about 7:00 AM, Monday to Saturday; the fare between Badore and Marina/CMS is ₦3,000 (2026 fare), paid by Cowry card. It also stops at Victoria Island and Five Cowries/Falomo. In the morning it only drops passengers off at its stops; the evening boat back picks passengers up at Marina/CMS.
About 40 minutes. The LagFerry Badore to Liverpool ferry reaches Addax/Sandfill/Maroko in Victoria Island about 25 minutes after leaving Badore Ferry Terminal, Five Cowries/Falomo about 7 minutes later and Marina/CMS about 10 minutes after that. The whole trip to Liverpool takes about 57 minutes. It leaves Badore at about 7:00 AM, Monday to Saturday, and costs ₦3,000 (2026 fare).
₦3,000 on LagFerry (2026 fare). That is the fare between Badore Ferry Terminal and Five Cowries/Falomo in Ikoyi on the LagFerry Badore to Liverpool ferry, which reaches Falomo about 32 minutes after leaving Badore. Pay by Cowry card. It runs Monday to Saturday, leaving Badore at about 7:00 AM, and the evening boat back to Badore picks passengers up at Falomo.
Yes, parking is free. You can park your vehicle inside Badore Ferry Terminal in Eti Osa at no cost.
Tarkwa Bay
Take a licensed commercial boat from Marina/CMS, which takes about 19 minutes and costs ₦2,000 (2026 fare). The Marina/CMS to Tarkwa Bay boat runs from about 7:00 AM, in both directions, and is busiest from early afternoon to early evening. The boats are banana boats paid for in cash, and only covered boats keep running in the rain. Most boats at Tarkwa Bay are also hired as private charters.
Take a boat from Marina/CMS or from Fiki Marine in Victoria Island. The Marina/CMS to Tarkwa Bay boat takes about 19 minutes and costs ₦2,000. On weekends, the Fiki Marine to Tarkwa Bay catamaran takes about 30 minutes and costs ₦15,000 for a round trip (2026 fares). You can also hire a private boat at the charter jetties shown on the Lagos Ferry Map.
Marina/CMS and Fiki Marine in Victoria Island have scheduled boats to Tarkwa Bay. From Marina/CMS, licensed commercial banana boats run from about 7:00 AM. From Fiki Marine, a catamaran runs on Saturdays and Sundays from about 11:00 AM. Most boats at Tarkwa Bay are hired as private charters, so you can also charter a boat from the charter jetties shown on the Lagos Ferry Map.
Mostly private charter. Most boats at Tarkwa Bay are commercial boats hired as private charters, where you pay for the whole boat. There are also shared boats where you pay per seat: the Marina/CMS to Tarkwa Bay boat for ₦2,000 and, on weekends, the Fiki Marine to Tarkwa Bay catamaran from Victoria Island for ₦15,000 return (2026 fares). Both are run by licensed commercial operators; LagFerry does not serve Tarkwa Bay.
About 19 minutes from Marina/CMS, or 30 minutes from Fiki Marine in Victoria Island. The Marina/CMS to Tarkwa Bay boat runs from about 7:00 AM and is paid for in cash. The Fiki Marine to Tarkwa Bay catamaran runs on Saturdays and Sundays from about 11:00 AM. Both run in both directions. Only covered boats keep running in the rain, so trips on open banana boats can be canceled in bad weather.
₦2,000 from Marina/CMS, or ₦15,000 for a round trip from Fiki Marine in Victoria Island (2026 fares). The Marina/CMS to Tarkwa Bay boat is paid in cash. The Fiki Marine to Tarkwa Bay catamaran runs on weekends and takes cash, bank transfer or debit card. Most boats at Tarkwa Bay are private charters, where the price is agreed with the operator for the whole boat.
Ojo and Ilashe
20 to 35 minutes, depending on the boat. From Ojo market waterside, the fiber boat to Ilashe takes about 20 minutes, while the banana and wooden boats take about 35 minutes because they stop at villages such as Iyagbe and Ikare on the way. Both cost ₦1,500 (2026 fare). From Ebute Ojo/Sifax Ferry Terminal, boats to Ilashe take about 45 minutes.
Some do. The fiber boats from Ojo market waterside to Ilashe and the boats from Ebute Ojo/Sifax to Ilashe keep running in the rain unless it is heavy enough to make navigation unsafe. The banana and wooden boats from Ojo market waterside stop completely when it rains. During water hyacinth season, both services from Ojo market waterside are disrupted but keep running.
₦1,500 from Ojo market waterside (2026 fare). Both the fiber boat and the banana and wooden boats from Ojo market waterside to Ilashe charge ₦1,500, paid in cash or by bank transfer. From Ebute Ojo/Sifax Ferry Terminal, the boat to Ilashe costs ₦2,000. All are run by licensed commercial operators.
Take a boat to Ilashe from Ojo market waterside or from Ebute Ojo/Sifax Ferry Terminal. From Ojo market waterside, the fiber boat takes about 20 minutes and the banana and wooden boats about 35 minutes, both for ₦1,500. From Ebute Ojo/Sifax, boats to Ilashe take about 45 minutes and cost ₦2,000 (2026 fares). Boats are busiest on Saturday evenings, when people head to the beach houses along the route.
Boats to Benin Republic
There are boats to Porto-Novo (sometimes written Port Novo), but the Lagos Ferry Map has none to Cotonou. Licensed commercial boats run from several Lagos jetties to Porto-Novo in Benin Republic, taking 2 to 3 hours and costing ₦10,000 to ₦15,000 (2026 fares), including the Marina/CMS to Porto-Novo boat and the Mile 2/NIWA to Porto-Novo boat. Cotonou is reached by road from Porto-Novo.
Five: Marina/CMS, Mile 2/NIWA, Kirikiri, Abule Osun and Ebute Ero/Elegbata Jetty, all with boats to Porto-Novo. The morning boats leave Marina/CMS and Mile 2/NIWA at about 6:00 AM and Kirikiri at about 6:30 AM, Monday to Saturday. Later boats leave Ebute Ero at about 4:15 PM on weekdays and Abule Osun at about 6:00 PM. Coming back, boats from Porto-Novo to Ebute Ero leave at about 7:30 AM.
Take a licensed commercial boat to Porto-Novo from a Lagos jetty such as Marina/CMS or Mile 2/NIWA. The Marina/CMS to Porto-Novo boat leaves at about 6:00 AM, Monday to Saturday, takes about 3 hours and costs ₦11,000 (2026 fare), paid in cash or by bank transfer. The stops at checkpoints on the way are what make the trip long. Boats from Ebute Ero, Kirikiri and Abule Osun stop running when it rains. Bring your passport and your yellow fever card.
Not directly: the Lagos Ferry Map has no boats to Cotonou. The nearest destination by boat is Porto-Novo, the capital of Benin Republic, with licensed commercial boats from Lagos jetties including Marina/CMS, Mile 2/NIWA and Kirikiri. The trip takes 2 to 3 hours and costs ₦10,000 to ₦15,000 (2026 fares). From Porto-Novo, Cotonou is reached by road.
2 to 3 hours, depending on where you leave from. The boats from Abule Osun take about 2 hours, Kirikiri about 2 hours 15 minutes, Mile 2/NIWA about 2 hours 30 minutes, and Marina/CMS and Ebute Ero about 3 hours. Coming back, the Porto-Novo to Ebute Ero boat takes about 2 hours 30 minutes, most of it spent at checkpoints before Gbaji.
Yes, you need an international or ECOWAS passport and your yellow fever card. Boats to Porto-Novo pass several checkpoints, and most of the 2½-hour trip on the Porto-Novo to Ebute Ero boat is spent at them. Boats leave from Marina/CMS, Mile 2/NIWA, Kirikiri, Abule Osun and Ebute Ero.