The cheapest ticket on the Oklahoma River this fall is $4. EMBARK added it for 2026. The fare covers the East Route, which stops at FAM Landing, Bricktown and Regatta Park. The Adult Day Pass, which covers every route and landing, costs $12. The downtown streetcar also became permanently fare-free in August, so getting from downtown to the water costs nothing.
The catch is the calendar. Public ferry service runs Friday through Sunday in October and only on Saturday and Sunday in November. There are only a few weekends left, so it helps to know which ride is worth which fare.
What a river afternoon costs in 2026
EMBARK's current fare list looks like this:
- Adult Day Pass: $12, good on any route and landing
- Reduced Fare Pass: $6
- Ferry Family Pass: $6, a discounted group rate for 4 to 8 riders on any route and landing
- East Route fare: $4, valid only between FAM Landing, Bricktown and Regatta Park
- Kids 6 and under: always free
You can't combine discounts. You can pay as you board, pay ahead on the Token Transit app or buy at the Regatta Park Landing ticket booth. EMBARK notes that some discounts aren't available through Token Transit, so if you plan to use the $4 East fare or the family rate, paying on board is the safer bet. Federal transit rules allow only service animals on the boats, so the dog stays home.
The $4 route ends at a museum and a resort
The East Route's far end got easier to reach on foot in 2025, when a MAPS 4 pedestrian bridge opened. The bridge lets people walk or bike across the river to the First Americans Museum and the OKANA Resort and Indoor Waterpark. FAM Landing serves both. That makes the $4 fare a boat ride from Bricktown to a lunch spot and a museum visit on the far side of the river.
At the museum, 39 Restaurant and the museum store sit alongside the galleries. OKANA's dining options include Jack Rabbit, Smokehouse Social, Chido Tacos X Tequila, Curveball Kitchen and Market 56.
East Route boats leave each landing roughly once an hour from early to late afternoon, with the last departures in the 5 o'clock hour. Check the exact stop-by-stop times on EMBARK's posted schedule before you go. A sample East Route afternoon:
- Ride the streetcar into Bricktown for free.
- Board at the Bricktown Landing on the $4 East fare.
- Get off at FAM Landing for lunch at 39 Restaurant or one of OKANA's restaurants, then visit the museum.
- Ride back to Bricktown, or stay on to Regatta Park and the Boathouse District.
The free streetcar is what makes the $4 fare work
Until this summer, the free streetcar was a pilot scheduled to end August 20. COTPA made it permanently fare-free effective August 7, so the downtown and Bricktown loops now cost nothing.
That matters because the Bricktown Landing is the stop most residents can reach without a car. EMBARK lists the Centennial Land Run Monument, Brickopolis and nearby bike trails around the landing, along with Bricktown Brewery among the restaurants. With the streetcar free, the $4 East Route fare is the only ticket you need to get from downtown to FAM Landing. Groups of 4 to 8 riders can use the Ferry Family Pass instead, and kids 6 and under always ride free.
When the $12 Day Pass is worth it
The West Route is where the $12 pass pays off. It runs between Meridian, Stockyards, Bricktown and Regatta Park, so it's the only way to reach Historic Stockyards City by boat. EMBARK lists Historic Stockyards City and bike trails near the Stockyards Landing. Cattlemen's Steakhouse and McClintock Saloon & Chop House are both nearby and serving.
The West Route has fewer trips, so plan around it. EMBARK's 2026 schedule lists Meridian departures at 12:00 p.m., 12:35 p.m. and 5:00 p.m. and Stockyards departures at 1:10, 3:05 and 6:10 p.m. Bricktown boats leave at 2:05 and 4:00 p.m., and Regatta Park boats at 2:15 and 4:10 p.m. Times shown in bold on the posted schedule are one-way trips with no return, so if you leave Bricktown at 4:00, confirm a boat is coming back before you settle into a steak dinner.
A day that covers both routes is the strongest case for the Day Pass. Take the West Route to Stockyards City for lunch, then cross over to the East Route at Bricktown or Regatta Park, the two stops the routes share, and ride out to FAM Landing.
Regatta Park, after the big weekend
Regatta Landing sits in the Boathouse District. EMBARK lists RIVERSPORT Adventures and bike trails nearby. The Oklahoma Regatta Festival already ran October 2 through 4, but the district still has one more night on the calendar this fall. RIVERSPORT lists its Scholastic Youth Rowing League Fall Championships for Saturday, November 14, with racing under lights on the Oklahoma River. That's a November ferry weekend, so you can ride a Saturday boat and catch races after dark.
The newest river park isn't on the ferry map
The biggest change on the river this year is at Wiley Post Park, which is not a ferry landing. The park's north section opened in June. It has two new playgrounds, a band shell, shaded swing loungers, solar lighting, new trees, shade structures, parking and views of the river and downtown. Before the $8.1 million project, which was paid for with American Rescue Plan Act funds and Tax Increment Financing, the north area was green space with a parking lot.
"We invite residents to come and explore the playgrounds, sit and enjoy the quiet of the river, and spend time together outdoors." — Melinda McMillan-Miller, OKC Parks Director
The park covers 48 acres between South Walker and South Robinson avenues, from Southwest 15th Street to roughly Southwest 20th, at 2021 S. Robinson Ave. The North Oklahoma River Trail runs through it, so you can get there on foot or by bike as well as by car.
The park has a longer history than the new playgrounds suggest. It was built on the riverbanks in the 1930s to serve the Capitol Hill community, and Oklahoma City schoolchildren voted to name it a few months after Wiley Post's solo flight around the world. Early attractions included shuffleboard, croquet courts and a small zoo. In 1960, ballfields replaced the zoo.
A submarine memorial under construction
City officials broke ground September 23 on the USS Oklahoma City Navy Memorial, in the park's north section near Robinson Avenue and SW 15th Street. Plans include a plaza, service memorial walls, historical panels and a temporary replica of the submarine's sail. The $4.1 million project is designed by Beck Design and built by Libbert Bros. Inc.
The memorial honors two ships. The Los Angeles-class submarine USS Oklahoma City was commissioned in 1988, was based in Guam and served until February 2022. It carried the motto "The Sooner, The Better" and was the first U.S. submarine to switch from paper navigation to an all-electronic system. A naval cruiser carried the name before it. Former Mayor Ron Norick, who took part in the submarine's commissioning, joined veterans at the groundbreaking.
The replica sail is meant to be temporary. The USS Oklahoma City Park Association is raising money to bring the submarine's original sail and dive planes to the park. The group also hopes to display the earlier cruiser's bell, screw and ceremonial cannon. The submarine's reactor is still cooling in Bremerton, Washington, and will be taken apart in a few years. After that, the sail and dive planes will ship to Oklahoma City for permanent display. For now, a visit means a new playground and a fenced construction site that will slowly become a memorial.
The weekends that are left
| Window | Ferry days | Also on the river |
|---|---|---|
| Rest of October | Friday, Saturday, Sunday | Kids Haunt the River on Saturday afternoons |
| November | Saturday and Sunday | Youth rowing championships under lights, Nov. 14 |
Kids Haunt the River puts costumed kids on a haunted boat, with candy, activity books and a costume contest on board. Visit OKC lists it on Saturdays from 1:40 to 5:30 p.m. Adults pay $12, seniors and kids 7 to 17 pay $6, and kids 6 and under ride free. The listing's own details disagree with each other. It describes the cruise as running the last three Saturdays in October but gives October 24 as the end date. Call Oklahoma River Cruises at (405) 702-7755 before planning around Halloween weekend.
EMBARK hasn't announced a final day for public service in 2026. November is listed as weekends only, and the schedule page notes that service isn't daily. If you want one more boat ride after Thanksgiving, check EMBARK's schedule that week.
If a ferry Saturday has you curious about the riverfront streets or the older blocks around Wiley Post Park, Carpenter W Parham can share what we know about the neighborhoods along the Oklahoma River. You can also contact us about the parts of Oklahoma City that drew you in from the water.
