A three-dimensional hydrodynamic model is presented which combines a terrain-following vertical coordinate with a horizontally orthogonal curvilinear coordinate system to fit the complex bottom topography and coastlines near estuaries, continental shelves, and harbors. To solve the governing equations more efficiently, we improve the alternating direction implicit method, which is extensively used in the numerical modeling of horizontal two-dimensional shallow water equations, and extend it to a three-dimensional tidal model with relatively little computational effort. Through several test cases and realistic applications, as presented in the paper, it can be demonstrated that the model is capable of simulating the periodic to-and-fro currents, wind-driven flow, Ekman spirals, and tidal currents in the near-shore region.