The Tsawwassen ferry terminal sits at the end of a three-kilometre causeway in Delta, and it is the jumping-off point for Swartz Bay, Duke Point and the Southern Gulf Islands. If you are heading over with cannabis in the car or in a bag, the rules are not complicated, but they are strict and they start before you reach the tollbooths.

Most of the confusion about cannabis and the Tsawwassen ferry terminal comes from people assuming that a legal product is legal everywhere. It is not. Where you can carry it, where you can consume it and how it has to be stored are three separate questions with three separate answers.

This post sorts them out for both foot passengers and drivers, and covers the one thing that turns a simple trip into a serious problem: a border crossing.

Getting there: cannabis in a vehicle

British Columbia treats a vehicle as a vehicle whether it is moving, idling in a holding lane, or parked on a car deck. Nobody may consume cannabis inside a motor vehicle or boat, and that includes passengers, not just the driver.

Storage has its own rule. Cannabis being carried in a vehicle must be in sealed packaging, or otherwise not accessible to anyone inside it. In practice that means the unopened container from the store, or a closed bag in the trunk. An open jar in a cupholder on the Highway 17 approach is exactly the scenario the rule exists to prevent.

The one narrow exception in the provincial rules is a parked motor home, camper or boat that has permanent sleeping, cooking and toilet facilities and is being used as a residence, in a location where that is permitted. A vehicle queued for a sailing is not that.

Where you cannot consume cannabis at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal

Adults in BC may generally smoke or vape cannabis where smoking and vaping tobacco is allowed. The terminal is one of the places where that general permission runs out quickly.

Consumption is prohibited within six metres of a bus stop, transit shelter, train station or ferry dock. It is also prohibited within six metres of the air intakes, windows and doorways attached to public buildings and workplaces. A ferry terminal is essentially a stack of all four of those conditions in one place: a dock, a building full of doorways and intakes, and bus loops for the transit connections that feed it.

There is no designated area you can assume exists. If you are standing anywhere in or near the terminal, assume consumption is not permitted, because it almost certainly is not.

On board

Two layers apply once you are on a vessel. The provincial rule against consuming in a vehicle or boat applies on the water as much as on land, and it applies to passengers. On top of that, BC Ferries sets its own conditions of carriage and its own smoking and vaping policy for its vessels and terminals. Those are the operator’s rules, not the province’s, and they are the ones to check before you travel.

The sensible read is straightforward: treat a sailing as a period where you carry cannabis and do not use it. The same applies to the hour you spend waiting for it. Check current onboard policy with BC Ferries directly rather than relying on what someone told you in the lineup.

Quick reference

Situation	Where it stands
Carrying up to 30 g of dried cannabis or equivalent	Legal for adults 19 and over anywhere in Canada, subject to the rules on storage and consumption
Consuming in your vehicle in the holding lanes	Prohibited, including as a passenger
Consuming within six metres of the ferry dock	Prohibited
Open, accessible cannabis inside a moving vehicle	Prohibited. It must be sealed or out of reach
Sailing to Vancouver Island or the Gulf Islands	A domestic trip within BC. No customs process, no border
Carrying cannabis into the United States	A federal offence. Never do it, in either direction

Where your sailing actually takes you

Every route out of Tsawwassen is domestic. Swartz Bay, Duke Point and the Southern Gulf Islands are all in British Columbia, so travelling with cannabis on these sailings is travel within a single province. There is no customs inspection and no declaration process on a domestic sailing.

Travelling with cannabis between Canadian provinces is also legal, within the possession limits that apply. The limit you carry with you is 30 g of dried cannabis in public, or the equivalent in another format. Federally, 1 g of dried cannabis is treated as equal to 5 g fresh, 15 g of edible product, 70 g of liquid product, 0.25 g of concentrate, or one cannabis seed.

The hard line is the international one. Taking cannabis across the Canada and United States border in either direction is a federal offence, regardless of whether the product is legal where you started or where you are going. That applies at Point Roberts, at Peace Arch, at an airport and at a marina. It is not a Tsawwassen issue specifically, but it is the mistake with the largest consequences, so it is worth stating plainly: leave it at home.

Practical planning

If you are driving on

Buy before you leave, keep the product sealed, and put it somewhere nobody in the vehicle can reach. Do not open anything in the holding lanes, and do not treat the car deck as private space.

If you are walking on

You are subject to the same public possession limit of 30 g or equivalent, and the same consumption restrictions around the terminal, the bus loop and the dock. A closed bag is the whole of the requirement for a foot passenger.

If you are heading to a park or campsite

Provincial, regional and municipal parks generally prohibit cannabis consumption except in designated areas or campsites, and Parks Canada prohibits use at most of its places. Check the specific park operator before you assume, because these differ. The Province of BC publishes the provincial baseline these sit on top of.

Buying before you sail

Nothing about cannabis and the Tsawwassen ferry terminal stops you buying before you go. The terminal is a short drive from the Tsawwassen town centre, which makes stocking up beforehand the straightforward option. You can browse categories, flower, pre-rolls, vaporizers, concentrates, edibles, tinctures, topicals and accessories, on the shop page and either order ahead or walk in.

Shopping online lets you choose Pickup (In-Store) or Pickup (Curbside) at checkout, which suits a morning sailing. Free same-day delivery also reaches Tsawwassen, with orders placed by 9:30 pm treated as same-day, though for a trip it is usually easier to collect. The Tsawwassen store page has the details, and the FAQs answer the procedural questions. Everything here assumes you are 19 or older, which is the legal age in BC.

FAQ

Can I bring cannabis on a BC Ferries sailing from Tsawwassen?

Travelling with cannabis within Canada is legal for adults 19 and over, within the 30 g public possession limit or its equivalent. Carriage on a specific vessel is governed by the operator’s own conditions, so confirm current policy with BC Ferries. Keep it sealed and stored, and do not consume it during the crossing.

Can I smoke or vape cannabis at the Tsawwassen ferry terminal?

No. Consumption is prohibited within six metres of a ferry dock, and within six metres of doorways, windows and air intakes of public buildings, and near transit stops and shelters. A terminal combines all of those, so there is effectively nowhere on the site where consumption is permitted.

Do I have to declare cannabis on a domestic ferry?

There is no customs process on a sailing between BC ports, so there is no declaration in the border sense. That said, the operator may ask about what is being carried under its own conditions of carriage, and dangerous goods rules apply to things like fuel. Answer honestly if asked.

Can I take cannabis to Vancouver Island or the Gulf Islands?

Yes, within possession limits. Those destinations are in British Columbia, so provincial rules travel with you unchanged. Local government bylaws still vary, and island municipalities and regional districts may be stricter about consumption in public spaces, so check the relevant local authority before you use it anywhere public.

What about taking cannabis across the border after a ferry trip?

Do not. Taking cannabis across the Canada and United States border in either direction is a federal offence, regardless of what is legal on either side. That applies whether you are driving off a ferry toward a land crossing or boarding an international sailing. Leave it in Canada.