VIKING EXPEDITIONS / GREAT LAKES
Torstein Hagen unveils the expedition plans
FEATURE
Big and bold
For its expeditions debut, Viking is going big in the Great Lakes. Anne Kalosh reports.
V
iking optimised its expedition newbuild design for the Saint Lawrence Seaway and will be fi elding the largest cruise ship
by far in the Great Lakes.
‘This new cruising area, the Great Lakes, should be very interesting,’ Viking founder and chairman Torstein Hagen says, calling it an ‘underserved market … that we thought deserved better tonnage.’
Viking Octantis measures 30,150gt and stretches 205mtr/673ft. It fi ts all the seaway’s locks and canals, including the Welland, with a length limit of 225.6mtr/740ft. Plus, the ship’s beam, draft and air draft are all within the parameters.
Yet Octantis will be, by far, the largest international cruise vessel in the Great Lakes, nearly double the tonnage of newcomer Hanseatic Inspiration, for example. Hapag-Lloyd Cruises’ latest measures 15,650gt and stretches 138mtr/452ft, while Plantours’ Hamburg, a Great Lakes stalwart, is 15,000gt and 144mtr/472ft long.
Hamburg has the greatest passenger capacity, though, with 420, topping Viking’s 378 and Hanseatic Inspiration’s 230. Other ships are much smaller, such as Ponant’s 10,000gt, 184-passenger Le Champlain, the 5,109gt, 210-passenger Pearl Mist and the 4,954gt, 202-passenger Victory I and Victory II.
Also distinct to Viking is its new partnership with the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration that will bring NOAA scientists aboard in the Great Lakes to conduct research on weather, climate and ecosystems.
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As well, Octantis will carry rigid infl atable boats that launch on a conveyor from inside the ship and are capable of longer-range duration than Zodiacs.
Stephen Burnett, executive director of the Great Lakes Cruising Coalition, credits his members for their work to entice Viking and says the Saint Lawrence Seaway has been a ‘remarkable partner’ with leadership by Rebecca Yackley on the US side and Capt. Peter Burgess on the Canadian side.
‘This is a signifi cant development for the binational eff ort to bring more cruise ships to the Great Lakes and we are glad to see the realisation of years of work on this front,’ says Yackley, international trade specialist at the US Saint Lawrence Seaway Development Corp. ‘The SLSDC has been working as a regional facilitator between Seaway System stakeholders and US Customs and Border Protection and the US Coast Guard to develop cruise ship clearance procedures into US Great Lakes ports of entry. That work has helped secure multi-year commitments by cruise lines to serve Great Lakes markets.’
From April to October 2022, Viking Octantis will off er varied eight-day itineraries bookended by 13-day New York- Toronto sailings.
‘We think they’re being extremely bold, particularly coming into Lake Superior,’ Burnett says. The routes require a speedy ship, and calls are dispersed among Canadian and US ports.
Some marquee names, like Chicago, are missing, though. Hagen says: ‘We haven’t found a way to get into Chicago yet, but
that may come.’ Instead, Viking Octantis is turning in nearby Milwaukee.
It’s challenging to secure a berth at Chicago’s prime location, Navy Pier, because tour boats and dinner boats occupy most of the space. That’s why the Great Lakes Cruising Coalition informs that Milwaukee is just a 92-minute drive from key hub O’Hare International Airport, and many lines that turn in Milwaukee – Viking included – off er add-ons in Chicago.
‘Viking has done a fabulous job in this fi rst round of itineraries,’ in Burnett’s view. He credits Matt Grimes, vp maritime operations, and Viking’s deep customer research. ‘This is their fi rst round. There will be other rounds. The ports they’ve chosen work well. There are many others that work equally well.’
Several ports on the northernmost Lake Superior pop out in Viking’s program. And many more are untouched by any ships.
This is ‘an undiscovered part of the world,’ Burnett says. He’s been talking up the North Shore ‘Inside Passage’ as a future expedition destination. It off ers hiking, kayaking, First Nations culture and much more. Such an area may suit lines seeking the ‘exotic’ closer to home, especially if geopolitical issues make some places risky or just hard to sell.
‘There’s plenty of space,’ Burnett adds. ‘We are the last un-cruised region of the world.’
Seatrade Cruise Review 71
PHOTO: ANNE KALOSH
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