To go from Roses to Cadaqués by boat you take a return boat trip, not a ferry. The Els Blaus de Roses trip takes about 45 minutes each way, leaves between 1.5 and 2 hours in the village and cost 27 € for adults and 17 € for children in October 2026. It passes Cap Norfeu and the Cala Nans lighthouse.
By road, Roses and Cadaqués are separated by a winding climb. By sea it is a different story: you follow the Cap de Creus coast and enter the bay from the sea. This guide covers what can be checked: which boat leaves from Roses, how long it takes and what it costs, what you see, and the rules if you arrive in your own boat.
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A return trip, not a ferry
The official websites consulted show no scheduled passenger line between Roses and Cadaqués. What there is are boat trips. The operator Els Blaus de Roses describes its Cadaqués trip as a standard return excursion by catamaran: about 3 hours in all, with between 1.5 and 2 hours of free time in the village. According to its FAQ, the crossing takes approximately 45 minutes.
Checked in October 2026, that trip cost 27 € for adults and 17 € for children. There is also a full-day option, Cadaqués All Day, lasting 8 to 9 hours with 6 to 7 hours free in the village, for 35 € and 20 €. The ticket offices are in central Roses and on the Santa Margarida seafront.
The operator says it sails every day except in bad weather or if the minimum number of passengers is not reached, but in October 2026 its website did not publish the season's calendar or a full timetable: check before you go. If it cancels because of the weather, it offers a new date or a refund. Dogs are allowed on deck, not in the underwater viewing room.
What you see on the way
The operator lists the route itself: the Cap de Creus Natural Park, Cap Norfeu, the rock known as El Gato, the Cala Nans lighthouse and, if the sea allows, the entrance to the Tamariu cave.
Cap Norfeu is the most protected headland on this stretch. According to the park, the land of the cape and its islets is an integral nature reserve, the highest level of protection in Catalonia, and the sea around it is a partial nature reserve. In the partial reserves passenger boats may only sail between sunrise and sunset, and only in the coves of Montjoi and Jóncols may they land more than 20 people, with municipal permission.
And in the bay where you arrive, the Cadaqués council's 2025 beach-use plan added two buoys for the golondrinas, the passenger boats, and replaced the signs on the Portlligat waterfront with a single one listing the passenger transport companies.
When the tramontana blows
All of this depends on the sea. In bad weather the boat may not sail, and the operator allows for it in its conditions: it is worth having a plan on land. For tramontana days in Cadaqués, we cover them here.
In your own boat: the bay of Cadaqués
Cadaqués has no marina or commercial port: its own beach-use plan says so, because of the shape of the coast and its small beaches. Boats tie up to low-impact buoys spread across four zones in the bays of Cadaqués and Portlligat (the figures are here). The buoy fields are run by concession holders, and their season runs from 1 March to 31 October.
Inside the buoy fields it is forbidden to drop anchor or lay your own buoys. To get ashore there are five floating pontoons on different beaches, meant for buoy holders, with a taxi service out to the boats. From 1 June to 15 September, from 10 am to 8 pm, the council has a patrol boat in each bay that asks boats not to exceed 3 knots; its Serveis Marítims department also offers towing in those months. The plan does not publish prices.
The park's rules at sea
The crossing runs through the Cap de Creus Natural Park, which has had its own rules for the sea since August 2025. According to its FAQ, the top speed is 12 knots, 5 knots within 300 metres of the coast and 3 knots within 50 metres. A motorboat needs at least the basic navigation licence, and visitors who do not come from the ports or buoy fields of the park's municipalities must give notice of their visit.
Anchoring is free except inside buoy fields, in the Cala Murtra, Cala Jugadora and Cala Galladera sectors once their boundary buoys are in place, and over posidonia or Cymodocea nodosa. The park points to its seagrass map. The buoy fields at Montjoi, La Pelosa and Jóncols are run by Roses council and charge a fee. You may stay overnight at anchor for a maximum of 2 consecutive nights, outside the partial reserves.
Three more bans: no refuelling inside the park, except at Portlligat; no parties on board; and jet skis are only allowed in specific cases, such as registered residents of the park's municipalities. The coves one by one are covered in this guide.
Checked
Facts checked in October 2026 with: Els Blaus de Roses (Visit Cadaqués and Cadaqués All Day trips, FAQ and home page), Cadaqués town council (2025 seasonal beach use and services plan) and Cap de Creus Natural Park (FAQ on the regulation of the marine environment, July 2026 version).
Quick questions
How long is the boat trip from Roses to Cadaqués?
Approximately 45 minutes, according to the operator Els Blaus de Roses; the whole trip lasts about 3 hours.
Can you spend the whole day in Cadaqués by boat?
Yes: the Cadaqués All Day trip lasts 8 to 9 hours and leaves 6 to 7 hours free in the village; it cost 35 € for adults and 20 € for children in October 2026.
Can you anchor in the bay of Cadaqués?
Inside the buoy fields it is forbidden to drop anchor: you must use the buoys, whose season runs from 1 March to 31 October. Outside, in the park, anchoring is free except over posidonia and in the excluded sectors.