Highlights Of The Great Lakes & Canada Cruises
Americas Great Lakes are a little-known, unspoiled wonderland, boasting diverse natural beauty, scenic wildlife and some of the most interesting cities in North America. Over 750 miles across with 10,000 miles of coastline, the Great Lakes cover an area twice as large as Pennsylvania. Glide silently by kayak past otters in Georgian Bay, hear the roar of Niagara Falls, hike through verdant old forests or visit Canadas prominent museums to marvel at art inspired by these shores. Here are some highlights you may experience during your journey:
- Explore the largest freshwater ecosystem on earththe Great Lakes
- Watch for wildlife, from bald eagles to moose, bears and beavers
- Hike through stunning forests in this pristine environment
- Learn about Canadas colonial past and the St. Lawrence River
- Kayak in stunning Georgian Baya UNESCO Biosphere Reserve
- View the world-class collection of the Milwaukee Art Museum
- Explore tranquil, scenic Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore
- Transit engineering marvels like the Welland Canal and Soo Locks
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What To Know About Cruising Between The Us And Canada
If you are cruising between the U.S. and Canada you will, first off, need your passport. As of press time, Canada requires cruise passengers age 12 and up to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 and to have completed ArriveCAN health forms prior to arrival.
Everyone cruising in Canada must also undergo precruise testing even though prearrival COVID testing has been dropped for international air arrivals into Canada. Make sure to check with your cruise line and the latest government restrictions as requirements can and do change. Some ships, for instance, require passengers to have booster shots.
Here Are All The Cruise Lines Sailing In The Great Lakes In 2022
The Great Lakes region is set to for a big cruising year in 2022.
Cruise Industry News looked at the plans of some of the key players sailing in the region this year:
VikingShips: Viking OctantisHomeports: Duluth and Toronto
Viking kicked off its inaugural season in the Great Lakes in May. Using a purpose-built expedition ship, the Viking Octantis, the company is now offering four different itineraries in the region.
Sailing between Toronto and Duluth, the cruises visit Lake Superior, the Soo Locks, the Apostle Islands, Keweenaw Peninsula, the Mackinac Island, Point Pelee and more.
Pearl SeasShips: Pearl Mist Homeports: Milwaukee and Toronto
From June through August, Pearl Seas offers two itineraries in the region that visit numerous American and Canadian ports of call such as Midland, Muskegon and more.
PonantShips: Le Bellot and Le Dumont dUrvilleHomeports: Toronto and Milwaukee
Ponant is returning to the Great Lakes in 2022 with two ships, Le Bellot and Le Dumont dUrville. The luxury expedition vessels are set to offer cruises in the region in September and October.
Sailing between Toronto and Milwaukee, the itineraries feature visits to Little Current, Parry Sound, Port Colborne, Sault Ste. Marie and others.
VantageShips: Ocean Explorer Homeports: Milwaukee and Toronto
After launching cruise service in 2021, Vantage Deluxe World Travel is making its Great Lakes debut in 2022.
PlantoursHomeports: Montreal
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Are The Submarines Being Used On Viking Great Lakes Cruises
Yes! On current Viking Octantis Great Lakes cruises, the submarines, along with the ship’s 16 kayaks, two SOBs, 17 Zodiacs and dive boat, are permitted to operate in Canadian waters, but not in U.S. waters.
If you’re booking this trip, be aware that the “toys” will not be used in U.S. waters and are sometimes unavailable due to weather or technical conditions. The submarines, in particular, require that passengers sign a waiver, acknowledge they can transfer to and from the sub from a zodiac, and agree to be weighed. If not being able to ride in the sub or use some of the other special equipment would ruin your vacation, this probably isn’t the right trip for you.
Sailing America’s Inland Oceans
Great Lakes Cruise Company defines luxury adventure with enticing destinations, stunning scenery, and exquisitely designed maritime experiences. Aboard the fleet of ships you can expect personalized service, enriching activities, fine dining and a once-in-a-lifetime adventure. You will be immersed in the beauty of the Great Lakes, and experience the magic of the hand-picked destinations. From historic charm of Mackinac Island to breathtaking shorelines and French Canadian villages, you are sure to soak in every ounce of the fascinating local cultures and spectacular wildlife.
With many itineraries, you will find a cruise that will provide a life-changing experience. As the only travel company in the world to specialize in Great Lakes cruises, we offer unforgettable adventures on these legendary waters. Our team of experts is ready to plan your trip at a pace that suits your taste and needs.
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Wildlife Exploration Abundant On A Viking Great Lakes Cruise
Visiting the Great Lakes by expedition ship offers the opportunity to see the region in an intimate way.
According to Reagan Errera, a research ecologist with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, guests will have plenty to take in on their cruises to the region.
Underwater, looking out of the submarine windows, that could be salmon, whitefish, lake trout, sturgeon or pike. And as anyone who remembers Gordon Lightfoots hit song, The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, there might be some shipwrecks.
Ashore, the Great Lakes are a birders paradise, a great spot to spot bald eagles, loons, sandhill cranes and cormorants. To aid in spotting, Viking has an ornithologist on its expedition team, as well as an onboard display of full-size, realistic felt birds of the region. The birds, works of art in themselves, are part of a larger collection of birds Viking commissioned from Vermont felt artist Susan Beal. Wolves and bears are also found in the region and along the shores and may occasionally be spotted from the safety of zodiac and SOB rides.
“It’s in our backyard, and it’s one of the largest ecosystem services we have in the world,” Errera said of the region. “I don’t think people have had a chance to explore them and see how big they really are.”
“I really hope people walk away , ‘I had no clue’,” she said.
Great Lakes Sailings Offer A Variety Of Itineraries
The new focus on Great Lakes cruises opens up a variety of ports that have rarely seen ships, with a season that runs early May through late September.
On AQV, the stops beyond homeports include Michigan’s quaint Mackinac Island, the locks of Sault St. Marie and Niagara Falls, as well as Detroit and Cleveland. Some longer itineraries offer passengers the opportunity to visit all five Great Lakes.
The line will have its two remodeled 202-passenger vessels in the area. Ocean Navigator is boarding passengers in Savannah today for a cruise up the U.S. East Coast en route the first Great Lakes sailing is May 9, from Toronto. Ocean Voyager will join its sister ship in Toronto on May 12.
Pearl Seas Cruises is also returning to the Great Lakes with its single vessel, the 210-pasenger Pearl Mist, in late May. The ship will only stay in the Great Lakes for a few months, however, before concentrating on coastal New England sailings.
Viking Great Lakes cruises for Viking Octantis visit upper Midwest destinations that even those living in the region rarely see. Using Milwaukee as a home port, Viking’s Undiscovered Great Lakes itinerary stops in Wisconsin’s Apostle Islands, Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, and Duluth in Minnesota before ending in Thunder Bay, Ontario.
Viking Octantis will be in the Great Lakes from late April through the end of October. The ship is currently sailing from Barbados to New York Cruise Critic is onboard and will be filing a live report.
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Great Lakes Cruises 2022
Cruise the Great LakesThough many 2022 Great Lakes sailings are nearly sold out, open spots still remain. If there’s a fully-booked cruise you simply can’t miss, our experts are happy to help you get on the waitlist. Or, if time isn’t an issue, be sure to take a look at our 2023 Great Lakes cruises — they’re already selling fast!ENGAGE A GREAT LAKES EXPERTSAVE ON YOUR NEXT ADVENTURE!Book the 2022 Splendor of the Great Lakes cruise by May 31, 2022 to save on May 11, July 4, & July 29 sailings
On Board Viking Octantis
The new Polar Class Viking Octantis hosts 378 guests in 189 staterooms and has 256 crew members.
Be sure to book early at the popular Manfredis restaurant on deck one.
Restaurants & bars: The ships dining options include Mamsens, the Norwegian-themed snack bar. Dont miss the fyrstekake, a delicious almond tart. The World Café serves global dishes throughout the day and incorporates a grill and sushi bar . The two specialty restaurants are The Restaurant and Manfredis the latter serves Italian fine fare including bistecca fiorentina, a delectable Florentine-style steak. Bars include The Hide, a clandestine speakeasy, The Living Room, Aquavit Terrace and Paps .
Have a dip any time, at a temperature of your choosing.
Wellness offering: A trio of pools spans a range of temperatures. The indoor/outdoor pool experience means you glide past nature while taking a dip. The Nordic Spa, a fitness centre and a hair salon, keep you relaxed, fit and coiffed.
Where the ship will sail: Viking Octantis, part of the newly launched Viking Expedition Fleet, is spending its inaugural season in North Americas Great Lakes. In October, it will head to Antarctica.
The writer was a guest of Viking Cruises.
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‘it’s Beautiful’: Octantis Cruise Ship Draws Admirers In Detroit On Its First Great Lakes Voyage
Detroit 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.
It’s called the Octantis and it belongs to Viking Cruises’ fleet. And the ship, on its inaugural voyage through the St. Lawrence Seaway, stopped in Detroit for its first port of call in Michigan on the way up the Detroit River. The ship was nearly sold out with more than 300 guests onboard, a company representative said.
A few Metro Detroiters even came to the riverside to see the Octantis as she took a break from her course.
Steve Lovett, 46, of Royal Oak was among them.
“It’s the first time we’ve had a modern, giant cruise ship in this area, so I just had to see it for myself,” Lovett said. “I never thought the day would come when we’d see a luxury ship like this here.”
Lovett, who owns a real estate investment company, is a boating and ship enthusiast and said he’s been following news about Viking’s Cruises on the Great Lakes for some time. He has taken the company’s virtual tours of the vessel and has been following the Octantis’ GPS signal online since it disembarked on its inaugural voyage.
“It has a lot of features you don’t find on Caribbean cruise ships or smaller vessels,” he said. He mentioned its special hull that can cut through ice and fin stabilizers that keep passengers comfortable regardless of water conditions.
“When I saw that, I said ‘I have to see this,'” Wynder said.
Great Lakes Region Sees Record Cruise Ship Season In 2022
Viking Octantis cruise ship docked in Detroit
The 2022 Great Lakes cruising season is at an end – and it was a banner year.
With more than 150,000 passenger visits to ports large and small, generating an economic impact of about $125 million, 2022 was a record-setting season for the region, officials said.
It was also a record season for Detroit, which had 52 cruise ship dockings, according to a news release from Cruise the Great Lakes, a regional marketing program. That was more than double the number from 2019, which was the last time cruise ships were on the Great Lakes.
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The broader regional success of Great Lakes cruising is represented right here in Michigan, said Dave Lorenz, vice president of Travel Michigan and chair of Cruise the Great Lakes.
This year, Michigan cruising destinations included Detroit, Alpena, Houghton, Mackinac Island, Muskegon, Holland and Sault Ste. Marie, which all saw economic benefit from the added tourism.
The regional economic impact of $125 million includes cruise ticket sales, which generally cost thousands of dollars, and passengers spending money at restaurants, businesses and attractions in port cities. The total was $5 million more than initially projected for the year.
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This year, Conde Naste recently named cruising the Great Lakes one of the best places to go.
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Viking Great Lakes Cruise Itineraries Visit Big Cities And Hidden Gems
Viking Great Lakes cruises offer a well-rounded variety of port visits, with big cities like Toronto and Milwaukee and lesser-known spots like the Apostle Islands in Wisconsin and Silver Islet in Ontario, Canada. The commonality of all Viking Great Lakes itineraries is that they visit a combination of U.S. and Canadian ports.
The Viking Great Lakes cruise season runs roughly from April through September, and itineraries have been popular with cruisers, many who are North American guests looking to explore a little closer to home.
Viking’s 15-day itineraries visit all five of the Great Lakes, giving passengers a chance to traverse the Soo Locks as well as visit Niagara Falls. Homeports for this one are either Duluth, Minnesota, or Toronto. The shorter, eight-day cruises use either Thunder Bay, Ontario, or Milwaukee as a homeport and visit lakes Huron, Superior and Michigan. These, too, go through the Soo Locks, dubbed the Linchpin of the Great Lakes by the United States Army Corps of Engineers.
Viking Octantis and Polaris offer a wide range of activities and amenities. For starters, there’s a 36-person expedition team, which includes scientists, marine specialists, naturalists and guides. This team shapes your cruise with lectures and on board research opportunities in and outside of the onboard Laboratory. The team also guides passengers in port and ashore and is available to answers questions in the casual setting of Expedition Central.
Booking Terms & Conditions
PRICE GUARANTEEOnce you have paid in full for your trip, you are safe from any additional charges. Airfare increases, currency fluctuations, increased fuel surcharges, new government taxesnone of these will apply to you.
2022 & 2024 EXPEDITION CRUISE AND AIR SAVINGS: Offer applies to bookings made from November 1-30, 2022. Special savings plus FREE roundtrip airfare valid on select 2023 departures of Antarctic Explorer, Antarctic Adventure, Patagonian Shores & Chilean Fjords, Chilean Fjords & Patagonia Explorer, and Panama & Scenic South America. Airfares may vary on other gateways & departures. Airfare does not have to be purchased to get cruise\cruisetour offer. All prices are in US dollars and for US residents only. Additional restrictions may apply. Book by November 30, 2022. 2022: Pay in full by November 30, 2022 or at time of booking if within 90 days of departure. 2023: Pay in full by December 15, 2022. 2024: Pay in full by April 30, 2023. Offer expires November 30, 2022.
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New Viking Cruise Ship Heading To Lake Superior In 2022
- outside-the-ship
DULUTH, Minn. Viking Cruises announced Thursday that it will begin sailing a new ship to the Great Lakes starting in 2022 as part of its Viking Expeditions.
The Viking Octanis is scheduled to debut in January 2022 and will sail to Antarctica and the Great Lakes.
The company says the Vikings arrival will mark a major commitment to local tourism for the region as well as economic development.
Our guests are curious explorers. They want to continue traveling with us to familiar and iconic destinations, but they would also like to travel further. We began as Viking River Cruises then we evolved into Viking Cruises with the addition of ocean cruises today we stand singularly as Viking, offering destination-focused voyages on more than 20 rivers, five oceans and five Great Lakes, visiting 403 ports in 95 countries and on all seven continents, said Torstein Hagen, Chairman of Viking.
There will be four Great Lakes cruises in 2022:
The ship will be able to host 378 guests in 189 staterooms and is designed specifically for expeditions: small enough to navigate remote polar regions and the St. Lawrence River, while large enough to provide superior handling and stability in rough waters.
For more information, you can visit the Viking Cruises website here.
Viking Octantis Makes Its Great Lakes Maiden Voyage
MACKINAC ISLAND, Mich. – The largest passenger vessel to navigate the Great Lakes, the Viking Octantis, is making its way around Michigan for the first time.
The 665-foot cruise ship started its journey in Toronto with a final destination of Milwaukee. The ship allows up to 378 passengers with 256 crew members.
The boat docked in Detroit on Tuesday, May 3 and passengers came to shore in Alpena, Mich. on Wednesday.
Mackinac Island residents shared photos of the cruise ship on social media near the island Thursday morning.
Viking Cruises are offering four different routes through the Great Lakes, with trips ranging from 8-15 days. Though none of the cruises take off from Michigan ports, there will be many stops in Michigan cities along the way. On the eight-day expedition from Thunder Bay to Milwaukee, the Octantis will stop in Houghton.
The Octantis is expected to stop in Houghton for the first time on June 1, 2022, according to the expedition itinerary.
You can track the Octantis here.
Copyright 2022 WLUC. All rights reserved.
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Smaller Ships New Experience
In addition to the upgrades to the border screening process, experts say there are additional factors driving the surge in interest in Great Lakes cruising.
Many passengers prefer the more intimate cruises offered by Great Lakes ships, which carry a few hundred passengers, rather than the several thousand guests that ocean ships can accommodate.
I’ve been on larger cruise ships. It’s just too big, said Grace Mendez. On smaller ships she feels like a person to the crew, you don’t feel like just one of a crowd.”
The Great Lakes also offer a different kind of experience. The Viking cruise is billed as an “expedition.” Guests can learn about the science of the lakes, help collect weather data, even take a ride in an on-board submarine in the depths of Lake Superior.
“It’s gigantic. It’s huge. It is like an ocean, said Mike Tedor of Calabash, North Carolina.
That vastness can be awe-inspiring, said Steven Burnett, who directs the Canada-based Great Lakes Cruise Association.
Burnett has worked for years to attract more cruise ship companies to the Great Lakes. Vikings entry into the Lakes this year was a turning point, he said.
A firm with that stature not only do they generate their own business, but they also generate an interest in the worldwide cruise industry. And where Viking goes, many other cruise organizations also go,” Burnett said.
Burnett believes the number of cruise ships on the Great Lakes will double in the next decade.