Great Lakes Cruise Ship Docks in Detroit

[401don]

https://www.detroitnews.com/story/ne...ge/9625826002/

I'm wondering why the ship had to dock at the old Boblo location rather than the Hart Plaza terminal. Wasn't it built for that purpose?

[Richard]

Hart plaza looks like it was built as a terminal,docking and loading
unloading passengers.

Nicholson Terminal & Dock Company provides marine service. The Company offers maintenance work on tugs, barges, cargo handling vessels, and passenger carrying vessels. Nicholson Terminal & Dock serves customers in the United States.

They may be there for service related stuff while stopped if they are still working bugs out of the ship,pretty cool history where they at at.

Good for detroit,river cruises tend to be more structured around group stuff at stops,it is already planned out verses oceanic cruises.

Good for historical societies to help arrange the tours with plenty of opportunities for stops at other local establishments along the way.

Tends to be the older generation or those looking for a structured trip where it is all laid out for you verses the independence of a oceanic cruise.

Its a good way to promote the cities historical aspects,museums and such to a broader base.

[Gistok]

I remember as a child visiting Riverside Park under the Ambassador Bridge [when MCS was still open and operational], and having our cousins take the cruise ship AQUARAMA here from Cleveland for a day trip to Detroit and back. It was the largest pleasure craft I had ever seen on the Great Lakes, with 9 decks and room for 2500 passengers, and 160 cars.

[Richard]

^ is that the same ship that ended up stuck\abandoned up in Canada back in a cove,I watched a video on one that seems to have a lot of history similarities.

[stasu1213]

It should had docked at Hart Plaza

[401don]

The Port Terminal was a complete pork spending job [[are they still illegally using it as a wedding banquet spot to raise cash) but you'd hope when they finally get a ship stopping in Detroit it would be there.

[mikeg19]

Pretty cool, until I looked at the cost of a Great Lakes cruise and decided I could go to Punta Cana twice or pay for 1/100th of a Disney family vacation lol

[JonWylie]

The Port Terminal was a complete pork spending job [[are they still illegally using it as a wedding banquet spot to raise cash) but you'd hope when they finally get a ship stopping in Detroit it would be there.

What's illegal about what they are doing?

[Jimaz]

...having our cousins take the cruise ship AQUARAMA here from Cleveland for a day trip to Detroit and back. It was the largest pleasure craft I had ever seen on the Great Lakes, with 9 decks and room for 2500 passengers, and 160 cars.

That's impressive. Somehow it seems too large. I found a video about it.

SS AQUARAMA: QUEEN OF THE GREAT LAKES.
a Harrison Engle film {2021}

[Gistok]

Thanks Jimaz! All of these years I always wondered how a boat this size could turn around in the Detroit River to make the trip back to Cleveland... now I see that it has a small turning radius, as compared to other larger cruise ships.

I've never ridden on the Aquarama, just saw her along the river... and for a little kid, it was the most impressive boat I had ever seen. Sad that this wasn't around today... it would make the long trek between Detroit and Cleveland much more enjoyable. Cleveland is only 90 miles away from Detroit by air, but 170 miles by land [a nearly 3 hour drive].

Would have been a nice way to visit Cleveland by storing your car below deck, and had a pleasant cruise, only to get the car to visit Cleveland [[and beyond).

[stasu1213]

The Port Terminal was a complete pork spending job [[are they still illegally using it as a wedding banquet spot to raise cash) but you'd hope when they finally get a ship stopping in Detroit it would be there.

Maybe that's why the ship didn't docked there. The Port probably still doesn't have the personnel to do the paperwork that would allow the ship and any other large ship not to dick there. It's, the Port, is probably used now as some type of front to other illegal activities

[jcole]

I know; it's nuts. They stop a lot of places but most of them you can drive to. This year they are stopping in the Keewenaw, I think at Houghton.

Pretty cool, until I looked at the cost of a Great Lakes cruise and decided I could go to Punta Cana twice or pay for 1/100th of a Disney family vacation lol

[Richard]

Pretty cool, until I looked at the cost of a Great Lakes cruise and decided I could go to Punta Cana twice or pay for 1/100th of a Disney family vacation lol

They are catering to a different crowd then a $199 3 day cruise.l,you will not see fights at the buffet or drunks throwing up in the passage ways at 12 pm after consuming all you can drink.

15 day cruise starting at @28k with stops at Detroit,Duluth,Toronto etc.

I can buy a Ford pinto cheaper then a Cadillac,apples to oranges.

Pocket cruisers were very popular in the 60s 70s most of their target clientele is older retired with higher disposable income that do not want to cruise around with a bunch of screaming babies and untethered kids running about,like at a theme park and every thing is laid out and organized for them,guided tours,you do not have to think about anything,it’s all thought out for you,just enjoy the experience,for many it’s a once in a lifetime thing.

They are way cheaper in Europe because you can go through several countries in a day verses 3 days from state to state.

My UK friend and his wife is on one now 45 days 85k for a suite,if one has time and money it’s a different life experience.

Not sure if you have priced Disney world lately but it’s not for the budget minded family vacation anymore,if one is looking at what they can do for cheaper then others,I can go to Disney world everyday of the week for free and take my own boat and spend a month in The Bahamas for less then $1000 everything is relevant.

It costs $11-$13,000 in fuel to motor about in a 80 to 100 ft luxury yacht for a couple of days imagine the fuel burn in that thing.

If you are looking to put your family vacation on a cruise ship for cheap,you can get them for free out of Port Canaveral,every night,just spend $10 on gambling in-between,free food and drink,just pick your nights as there are certain nights that are not considered family eccentric.

Just when they come back in port the next morning,get off,turn around and get back on,tell the kids to fall asleep at the pool,you could do it for two weeks or until your kids revolt and throw you overboard.

That one portrayed is huge compared to an actual pocket cruiser used in the river boat sense,maybe motoring about up in Alaska,the smaller pocket cruisers are more economical to book but I really do not think river cruises are really family oriented anyways,because there are not enough things to occupy kids due to space constraints.

It’s more of a couples thing or singles because of the smaller size everybody gets to know each other pretty quick.

[401don]

Behind a paywall but if anyone has a subscription are they saying the Port Terminal is too small to handle the volume of passengers on each ship?
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/bu...ms/9733291002/

[Gistok]

From what little I read of the article, I thought it said that the passenger volume was not the problem, but the fact that the dock is only 240 ft. long, while the ship is 650 ft. long. So they had to use the 3400 ft. dock near the Ambassador Bridge.