There was a lot of finger-pointing Thursday, but not a lot of answers about an important ferry service that has been out of service all summer.

A Tory candidate in the upcoming provincial election says the New Brunswick government should have found a replacement for the Campobello-to-Deer Island run because Campobello Island is one of New Brunswick’s premier tourist attractions.

Each summer, the island has been linked to Deer Island and the mainland by a privately operated ferry. But this summer, that ferry is under repair, and the island is feeling the loss.

“Our tourism industry and our tourism providers are definitely feeling an impact as visitors from Canada and the United States are cancelling their trips,” said Campobello Island Mayor Stephen Smart.

Provincial government officials confirm those losses.

“It is unfortunate and we're not seeing the tourism results that we probably would see if it was up and running, not just on Campobello, but on Deer Island as well,” said New Brunswick Tourism Minister John Ames, who calls the ferry situation completely unforeseen.

“It is something that we take extremely seriously, and we will continue to work hard with the ferry operators and there’s a working group that has been established on the island,” said Ames. “We're going to continue to work with them to see what can be achieved in the long run.”

That working group on the island will explore whether year-round ferry service should be provided to Campobello. But critics say that won’t solve the problem this summer and looking at a full-time ferry is ambitious.

“That would be a pipe dream of at least five or 10 years down the road if everything was a green light today,” said Greg Thompson, the Progressive Conservative candidate in St. Croix. “The immediate is what we're after.”

Thompson says the government should have found a temporary replacement for the ferry.

“In the entire east coast, I'm sure there's a ferry, or scow or barge that could do the job but I don't think any effort -- any effort -- was put into doing that,” Thompson said.

There are no guarantees, but everyone seems to be hopeful that the summer ferry service between Deer Island and Campobello will resume in a few weeks and then perhaps extend its season into the fall.

With files from CTV Atlantic’s Mike Cameron.