Cruise ships to return, and some passengers to start and end voyages in Duluth

Table Of Content

• Night Great Lakes CollectionDetails
• Cruise ships coming to Duluth this summer
• Harbor Lookout Ship Schedule
• Nearby Ports
• Night Undiscovered Great LakesDetails
• Duluth MN (Minnesota USA, Lake Superior)
• Federal environmental regulators revisit ballast water standards for ships
• New developments ahead for Great Lakes ports as 2023 shipping season kicks off

The port of Duluth is no stranger to massive ships, but they’re usually Great Lakes or ocean freighters, loaded with cargo, not passengers. ATMs are easily found in the area including at the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center (DECC) located downtown. The company will run both ships through the final scheduled voyages in October and November. A majority of the passengers for the turnaround cruise voyages will be flying in and out of the Duluth International Airport, according to Hobbs. Watch Duluth’s canal as ships enter the harbor under the famous Aerial Lift Bridge, from many Canal Park area live camera feeds. The Great Lakes region is seen by some, including Conde Naste Traveler magazine, as one of the top cruising destinations in the world.

Night Great Lakes CollectionDetails

Carter said the final parts of rail construction and inspection are ongoing right now. She said they anticipate the facility will increase tonnage moving through the port by about 400,000 metric tons. The port handled about 2.3 million metric tons last year, which was down about 5 percent from its five-year average. “That’s a big win from a supply-chain perspective for the region,” said Deb DeLuca, the port authority’s executive director. We are excited to inform you about the merger between FleetMon and MarineTraffic, which will give you more services and tools in your online account.

Cruise ships coming to Duluth this summer

This summer, nine different Viking cruise ships are set to dock in Minnesota after cruising the Big Lake They Call Gitchee Gumee, also known as Lake Superior, on Mondays throughout the summer. The cruise ship Octantis kicked off the season when it sailed under the famous lift bridge into the Duluth harbor on Tuesday, May 30th. This development is a significant boost for Minnesota’s tourism industry, as it brings a new dimension to the state’s travel and entertainment offerings. The docking of these cruise ships in Duluth not only provides a unique experience for the passengers but also contributes to the local economy by attracting visitors to the city’s attractions and amenities. In the early-20th century was highly increased Port Duluth's shipping traffic (for a short time became the USA's busiest port, surpassing in gross tonnage even Port NYC) and the city developed steel production (Duluth Works, US Steel's Morgan Park). Via Duluth, bulk carriers shipped iron ore through the Great Lakes to be processed in Illinois and Ohio.

Harbor Lookout Ship Schedule

Photos: Viking Octantis returns to Duluth - Duluth News Tribune

Photos: Viking Octantis returns to Duluth.

Posted: Fri, 18 Aug 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

The overall influence that both these cultures has had on Duluth is described in several of the local museums. For additional information, we recommend reviewing the Terms of Service, User Agreement and Photo Copyrights provided by MarineTraffic to familiarize yourself with the details of the new services. Lauren Bennet McGinty, executive director of Explore Minnesota, said she looks forward to marketing Duluth to people around the world.

Marie, Mackinac Island and Marquette, Michigan; Thunder Bay, Ontario; and Green Bay, Wisconsin. Hartman said ships will be in Duluth on Mondays, which will help balance from weekend tourism influxes and will support local businesses during the week. The ships will be docked for the day, then will travel on toward Bayfield overnight. During the Cruise the Great Lakes annual meeting, which is being held at the DECC this week, organization and Duluth officials highlighted the work that’s been done to allow for cruise ships to come to Duluth. This is the first of seven Viking cruises that will be stopping in Duluth through September. Four of these stops will be part of a new option for passengers that can either start or end their cruise here in Duluth.

Front Row Seat: What I learned on my first cruise vacation - Duluth News Tribune

Front Row Seat: What I learned on my first cruise vacation.

Posted: Thu, 30 Mar 2023 07:00:00 GMT [source]

There are 2 distinct types of ships that visit the port on a regular basis. 90% of the vessel traffic is comprised of “Lakers;” bulk carriers specially built to sail the Great Lakes. Lakers are over 1,000 feet long, with a carrying capacity of nearly 70,000 short tons. These ships are predominantly black or “hull red” (the natural color of iron ore) in color. The majority of Lakers are now self-unloaders with a long boom mounted above their decks. These ships remain on the Great Lakes because they are too large to fit through the St. Lawrence Sea Way.

Duluth MN (Minnesota USA, Lake Superior)

After nearly a decade, cruise ships returned to Duluth on May 30, 2022. Ships from multiple lines will bring people from all over the world to North America’s furthest inland seaport. Great Lakes ports are gearing up for the start of this year’s shipping season, which is bringing new developments at ports in Duluth-Superior and Milwaukee.

Naftzger said the typical passenger on a Great Lakes cruise is older and well-traveled, with a budget large enough to spend $10,000 to $15,000 on the cruise and still have a large amount of disposable income for day excursions. He said most visitors are highly interested in learning about local culture and history. Customs and Border Protection facility was “instrumental” in attracting cruise ship companies Viking Cruises and American Queen Voyages to add Duluth to their networks.

The 2022 shipping season is well underway, with challenges and opportunities presented by global supply chain disruptions further exacerbated by Ukraine, said DeLuca. The port will see more container trade, project equipment and wind turbines. Navy is commissioning the USS Minneapolis-Saint Paul in the Duluth Harbor. While the cruise ships are spending a single day here this summer, it is anticipated that ships will officially embark here in 2023, said Lauren Bennett McGinty, executive director of Explore Minnesota. “We’re like the TSA for cruise ships,” said Dan Hartman, DECC executive director, of the new customs facility built on the southern side of the old DECC arena.

Expect to see the Viking Octantis, Viking Polaris, Ocean Navigator and the Hanseatic Inspiration. Throughout the summer, between 7-9 ships from Viking, American Queen Voyages and Pearl Seas cruise lines are expected to visit Duluth. Passengers will  spend the day exploring the area with various tour options, such as Glensheen Mansion or the North Shore Scenic Railroad. The ships will leave in the evening for the next Lake Superior locations. Cruising vessels in the Great Lakes are smaller than ocean-going vessels and typically have 200 people; the larger ship Octantis brings just under 400. This smaller size allows for greater health and safety measures and a more intimate experience, said Naftzger.

Whether a local or a traveler, join us to discover the diverse attractions and create unforgettable memories in Duluth, MN. In addition to the indigenous Ojibwe, as in much of Minnesota, many folks of Scandinavian descent call Duluth home. Shops featuring indigenous and Scandinavian wares can be found throughout the area.

The sailing schedules of the ships are dictated not only by the weather but also by the economy and demand for the goods they carry. The importance of a permanent customs facility in Duluth cannot be overstated, as it was a primary barrier to cruising in the Great Lakes where passengers may cross borders multiple times, said David Naftzger, executive director of the Great Lakes/St. This unexpected development comes after an agreement with Cruise the Great Lakes, a travel company that has scheduled nine different cruises to dock in Duluth for the day. The Octantis will debut in 2022, notably visiting Duluth as part of an eight-day itinerary exploring Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. Other ports of call include Thunder Bay, Canada; the Apostle Islands; Houghton, Michigan; Mackinac Island and Milwaukee. Visit Duluth celebrated a milestone for a Great Lakes cruise line Friday, when it issued a first look at one of the under-construction vessels already ticketed to dock in Duluth.

Department of Transportation Great Lakes St. Lawrence Seaway Development Corporation. Locals in pursuit of outdoor opportunities appreciate and utilize the lake and its natural surroundings. Hiking, cycling and even surfing are a few activities that Duluthians enjoy, while fishing is popular on Lake Superior and on the 16 designated trout streams in the area.

At the western end of Lake Superior, Duluth welcomes some of the largest ships on the Great Lakes into its busy harbor. With its lakeside setting, which the local Ojibwe people call Gichigami ("great sea"), the greatest of the Great Lakes feels like a port town and takes advantage of its prime position with a coastline that is 49 miles long. Overall, the port shipped more than 30 million tons of cargo last year, which was down about 2.3 percent from the five-season average. That includes around 19 million tons of iron ore cargo, making up more than half of all tonnage.

American Queen Voyages will also be making two stops in Duluth this summer. They don’t have tenders like the Viking cruise ships so they will be docking at one of the piers. However, last year marked the first time in nearly a decade that cruise ships docked in Duluth, thanks to a new passenger cruise terminal that opened last spring on the harbor side of the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center. Duluth is Lake Superior cruise port, a major cargo port and city in the USA's Minnesota state (St Louis County), with population around 85,000 (metro around 280,000). The city is on the lake's northern shore and can be accessed by ocean-going ships from the Atlantic Ocean via GLW-Great Lakes Waterway (system of natural channels and artificial canals) and Saint Lawrence Seaway (system of locks, canals and channels). Duluth consists of several compact districts including Bayfront, Canal Park, the Historic Arts and Theater (HART) District, Lincoln Park Craft District and downtown.

Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson selected Carter to serve as port director in January. Kristen Vake, executive director of the Iron Mining Association of Minnesota, said demand for steel is strong. Steel, one of the nation’s largest steel companies, projected demand will grow this year, according to Bloomberg News.