Victory Cruise Lines to Return to the Great Lakes
The Victory Cruise Lines brand will be relaunched in July 2024. With a new website already online, the company is set to return with the Ocean Navigator and the Ocean Voyager. (more…)
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Stateside Podcast: Muskegon Welcomes Increase in Cruise Tourism
In the past decade, the popularity of Great Lakes cruises has been steadily increasing. (more…)
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Cruise ship Viking Octantis brings passengers to Algoma and a boost to its economy
It’s a chance to see what experts call the largest fresh water system on the planet: the Great Lakes. (more…)
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Pearl Seas Cruises Opens 2024 Great Lakes Season Introduces New Great Lakes Explorer Cruise from Duluth
Pearl Seas Cruises is pleased to announce its biggest season ever on The Great Lakes, operating four different itineraries that visit 16 ports of call, and introducing a brand new 14-Night Great Lakes Explorer cruise between Duluth, Minnesota, and Toronto, Canada–delivering the opportunity to sail all five Great Lakes in a single journey. (more…)
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‘Less ships, means less visits’ but tourism operators still bullish on Great Lakes cruises
There will be a lot fewer cruise ships out on the Great Lakes this summer. This after a couple of the companies that were offering tours with multiple stops in northern Ontario have gone out of business. (more…)
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Alpena becomes a cruise ship destination. Viking Octantis anchored in Thunder Bay
Viking cruise ships anchored in Thunder Bay and their passengers enjoying a day in Alpena have become common occurrences over the last several years. (more…)
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Great Lake cruise ships making 600 port visits in 2024
More than 20,000 passengers are expected to cruise the Great Lakes this season. (more…)
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Cruise Ship Visits to West Michigan Generate $700k in Economic Impact, and More
Cruise passenger spending generated nearly $700,000 in economic impact for west Michigan in 2023, according to Visit Muskegon and the Muskegon Lakeshore Chamber of Commerce. (more…)
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Cruise ship activity remained high in Milwaukee in 2023
Cruise ship visits to Milwaukee were down slightly in 2023, compared to the record-breaking year in 2022. (more…)
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20K Mackinac Island cruise ship passengers had $2M impact this year
Around 20,000 cruise ship passengers visited Mackinac Island this year, making an economic impact of nearly $2 million, officials announced. (more…)
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Duluth port drew thousands of Great Lakes cruise passengers this year
Travelers on Lake Superior resulted in a $600,000 economic impact for the city, according to DECC officials. (more…)
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Algoma reflects on first year of cruise ships
There were a lot of new faces at Yardstick Books in Algoma this summer. That was due in large part to regular stops made by cruise ships on the Great Lakes. (more…)
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Last cruise ship docks in Escanaba, MI
The last American Queen Voyages cruise ship docked in Escanaba Monday. According to the company’s schedule, the October 2 arrival of the Ocean Voyager was the last scheduled docking in Escanaba for the 2023 season. (more…)
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Georgian Bay cruise ships bring tourism dollars to the area, but what do they leave?
Cruise ships provide a valuable commodity to the tourism areas of Georgian Bay, bringing in visitors to shop locally, as well as visibility and a spotlight on the global stage. (more…)
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New study explores possibility of Buffalo as port for Great Lakes cruises
Buffalo’s waterfront has seen a transformation over the past decade or so — bustling with people at Canalside and the revamped Outer Harbor. (more…)
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Unlikely bond between luxury cruise line, Great Lakes climate scientists
Three years ago, Viking, the luxury cruise line, struck a deal with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to launch passenger cruises on the Great Lakes with a scientific bent. (more…)
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Study could bring Great Lakes Cruises to Buffalo
It’s been talked about for a couple of months, but some progress is starting to be made on bringing Great Lakes cruise ships to Buffalo. (more…)
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Algoma anxiously awaits first cruise ship, Viking Polaris, arrival
You are about two weeks away from seeing the first cruise ship of the summer stop in Algoma for a quick visit to northeast Wisconsin. (more…)
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Milwaukee Kicks Off Three-Cruise-Ship Weekend. The two biggest cruise ships on the Great Lakes were both in Milwaukee simultaneously Friday
Driving over the Hoan Bridge Friday likely induced a sense of deja vu.If you looked left, you saw the massive Viking Octantis cruise ship, the largest on the Great Lakes. (more…)
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Parry Sound prepping for record number of cruise ship visits. “Explosive” industry growth prompting town to expand ship-hosting capabilities
The Town of Parry Sound is preparing for a busy cruise ship season, with a record number of vessels set to arrive in port this year. (more…)
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What will it take to bring Great Lakes cruise ships to Buffalo?
When the DL&W railroad station was built in 1917 at the foot of Main Street, it brought passenger boats with travelers that bustled into the Queen City. (more…)
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Port of Toronto Kicks Off 2023 Cruise Ship Season
PortsToronto welcomed its first cruise ship of the 2023 season on Friday, April 28. (more…)
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First cruise ship of the season docks in Montreal
The Port of Montreal welcomed its first cruis ship of the season on Saturday and more than 1,000 people set sail for Boston. (more…)
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Milwaukee Mayor Johnson: Announces first cruise ship arrival for 2023 season
Mayor Cavalier Johnson welcomes the Viking Octantis, the first cruise ship to visit Port Milwaukee as part of the 2023 season. This passenger vessel is scheduled to dock in Milwaukee Harbor on May 4, 2023. (more…)
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With the pandemic waning, Milwaukee saw a big increase in cruise ship activity in 2022
With the COVID-19 pandemic waning, Milwaukee saw a big increase in cruise ship activity in 2022, according to a new city report. (more…)
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Cruise ships to remain familiar sight at Thunder Bay port
This summer, the Thunder Bay port will host 15 cruise ship arrivals from three cruise lines and four different vessels, and the numbers are expected to grow in 2024. (more…)
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Cruise ships returning to Muskegon this year, including during Irish music fest
Muskegon will be a port of call for three cruise ships that are scheduled to make 19 stops this year, three more than in 2022. (more…)
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Cruise ships to return to Great Lakes for record-breaking 2023 season
The 2023 Great Lakes cruise ship season is poised to be record-breaking. Officials expect nearly 170,000 passenger visits – an increase of 15% over 2022 – and a total economic impact of $180 million. (more…)
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Cruise ships coming to Buffalo? Study hopes to see benefit of joining growing industry on Great Lakes
Can the Buffalo/Niagara region establish itself as an attractive port for the growing cruise ship industry on the Great Lakes? That’s the focus of a new study the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation is proposing. (more…)
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American Queen Voyages™ Announces New, Exclusive Port in Escanaba, MI on Select Great Lakes Voyages
Steps away from the sound of the gentle waves of Lake Michigan, Escanaba offers the best of art and culture with live music, historic neighborhoods, wineries, breweries, art galleries and more. (more…)
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Detroit and Great Lakes Celebrate Strong Cruise Season, Economic Impact
With a call by Ponant’s Le Bellot, the Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority and Cruise the Great Lakes marked a record-breaking $125 million 2022 cruise ship season for Detroit and the Great Lakes region, according to a press release. (more…)
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American Queen Voyages Partners with the National Museum of the Great Lakes to Introduce Lakelorian for the 2023 Season
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After pandemic shutdown, the cruise ship industry is booming on the Great Lakes
Scott Kidd and his wife had always wanted to go on a cruise. But the 63-year-old Episcopal priest from the rural mountains of Georgia wanted something different. (more…)
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The Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority thanks the Detroit Historical Society, Visit Detroit and American Queen Voyages for a successful “Port Days – Great Lakes Cruise Shipping” event and looks forward to more Port Days along the Riverwalk
The Detroit/Wayne County Port Authority, with the help of the Detroit Historical Society (DHS), Visit Detroit and American Queen Voyages (AQV), hosted a successful Port Day on Saturday, July 9th, celebrating the return of Great Lakes Cruise Shipping. (more…)
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Viking Celebrates Start Of Inaugural Season In North America’s Great Lakes. The 378-Guest Viking Octantis Becomes the Most Modern Vessel to Sail in the Region
Viking® continues to mark new milestones for its expedition voyages, as the new purpose-built Viking Octantis® kicks off its inaugural season in the Great Lakes. (more…)
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American Queen Voyages Ocean Navigator Welcomed to Navy Pier, Chicago’s Waterfront Destination
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Pearl Seas Cruises is Exploring Again in 2022 Cruising New England, Canada, and The Great Lakes
Pearl Seas Cruises is pleased to announce the 2022 cruise season aboard 210-passenger Pearl Mist, begins this week. (more…)
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‘It’s beautiful’: Octantis cruise ship draws admirers in Detroit on its first Great Lakes voyage
A Viking arrived in Motown on Tuesday. But instead of a Norse warrior bent on plunder, this one is a cruise ship with tourists on an expedition on the Great Lakes. (more…)
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American Queen Voyages™ Celebrates Ocean Navigator ™ Return to Fleet in Savannah. The Vessel will Sail Up the Eastern Seaboard for the 2022 Great Lakes Season
American Queen Voyages marks the return of Ocean Navigator™, the final Lakes & Oceans vessel to be added back to the fleet, as she welcomes her first guests in over two years. (more…)
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Cruises returning to the Port of Montreal in 2022. A total of 46 port visits are scheduled
This spring, after two seasons cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic, cruises are set to make a great comeback at the Port of Montreal. A total of 46 port visits are scheduled for 2022. (more…)
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