Ocean Voyager cruise ship visits Escanaba

ESCANABA, Mich. (WLUC) - An American Queen Voyages cruise ship made its maiden visit to Escanaba.

The Ocean Voyager pulled into the North Shore Marine Terminal Thursday morning.

The 120 passengers of the ship were met with coffee, cupcakes, and a band. One of these passengers was Uwe Weymar from California.

He was surprised by the hospitality.

“It gave us a good smile, my wife and me, it was very nice,” Weymar said. “It seems like a very warm place, with warm people.”

Delta County Chamber of Commerce Executive Director Vickie Micheau said they also gifted the captain of the Voyager with a key to the city.

“Just really thanked them and showed our respect for them being a part of our community for this day,” Micheau said.

North Shore Marine Terminal’s President Nicholas Kobasic said it took a lot of work to get this celebration together.

“It’s a big day for Escanaba, as a community and a city, welcoming in a cruise ship for the first year, ever, that Escanaba has had cruise ships dock here,” Kobasic said. “Besides that, it’s a welcoming thing, it’s an honor thing to show our guests, our captain, and our cruise ship company.”

After the welcoming ceremony, passengers loaded onto charter buses to tour around Escanaba.

Micheau also said this is just the start of their cruise ship season.

“This is the third visit of 28 visits. We are really looking forward to future ship visits as they ‘Dock in the Noc,’” Micheau said.

The Ocean Voyager docked at 8:00 a.m. on Thursday. The ship left for Chicago at 5:00 p.m. the same day.

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