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Cruise Ship Terminal

I will put this here because if they are successful in Quebec they will come to Toronto next. And I heard at work that Ports Toronto has hired a very senior veteran from the cruise industry to head up that end of things which is a good sign.

‘Toronto is the Barcelona of the Great Lakes!’ 🤣

 
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I will put this here because if they are successful in Quebec they will come to Toronto next. And I heard at work that Ports Toronto has hired a very senior veteran from the cruise industry to head up that end of things which is a good sign.

‘Toronto is the Barcelona of the Great Lakes!’ 🤣

Would that even work for Toronto? The seaway locks close for winter at the start of January and don't open until late March. I suppose you could do voyages in December though. Unless you mean a trip route that stays on Lake Ontario the whole time?
 
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This may be the cruise ship schedule for 2025 but no date.

 
This may be the cruise ship schedule for 2025 but no date.

I wondered that, but I looked up the 2025 reservations for one ship (MVS Hamburg) and it's on the other side of the Atlantic at the time that it is scheduled for Toronto, if that was 2025.
 
Had a webinar with a new company sailing in the Great Lakes starting in May (Hapag-Lloyd) and a few things seem relevant here. The first is that they are already sold out this year, part of next and will start selling 2027 soon thus there is no lack of demand for another surge in sailings. Also the itineraries are solely in Canada (Halifax to Milwaukee) thus avoiding ruinous US health care. Finally more Ontario ports have been added like Bayfield so can Cobourg, Belleville and Hamilton be far off?
 
Had a webinar with a new company sailing in the Great Lakes starting in May (Hapag-Lloyd) and a few things seem relevant here. The first is that they are already sold out this year, part of next and will start selling 2027 soon thus there is no lack of demand for another surge in sailings. Also the itineraries are solely in Canada (Halifax to Milwaukee) thus avoiding ruinous US health care. Finally more Ontario ports have been added like Bayfield so can Cobourg, Belleville and Hamilton be far off?
Have you been in downtown Bellville lately? Though a case could be made for tours of PEC.
 
Had a webinar with a new company sailing in the Great Lakes starting in May (Hapag-Lloyd) and a few things seem relevant here. The first is that they are already sold out this year, part of next and will start selling 2027 soon thus there is no lack of demand for another surge in sailings. Also the itineraries are solely in Canada (Halifax to Milwaukee) thus avoiding ruinous US health care. Finally more Ontario ports have been added like Bayfield so can Cobourg, Belleville and Hamilton be far off?
How is Milwaukee part of an all-Canadian itinerary?
Do you mean Bayfield or Bayfield Inlet? Bayfield Ontario (south of Goderich) only has a shallow small vessel harbour. (Edit: same with Belleville)
 
^Of course it isn’t but only US destination likely due to a sizeable airport. And of course those wanting to avoid The States can disembark one stop earlier.
 
Updated 2025 cruise ship schedule starting in mid-April, two weeks earlier than last year and with two new lines, Hapag-Lloyd and Ponant.
 
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Downtown Belleville is fine. If it's anything like the cruise ship industry on the East Coast there'll be buses waiting for the passengers to quickly swoop them somewhere where they can spend their money more quickly and touristy. I imagine PEC would be a good landing spot for them.

I haven't sailed this part of the lake but I imagine the time it would take to get into Belleville wouldn't be worth it when the ships can just continue on between Kingston and Cobourg. I'm not even sure Belleville has a wharf large enough to accommodate something like this. Viking Cruises only makes reference to Toronto and Great Lakes Tours makes reference to Prince Edward Island (sic) and Thousand Islands.
 
What’s wrong with downtown Belleville? If it’s junkies, vagrants and squatters in parks and public spaces, well that’s everywhere.


Downtown Belleville has a beautiful built form and public realm. It deserves to be a thriving and vibrant place with busy street patios, especially with PEC's popularity. However, when I went to PEC last summer, it was an unfortunate lowlight of the trip.

On a warm Sunday afternoon, the streets were empty except for the junkies and vagrants. It's true that many towns and cities in North America have that issue. But they're not that noticeable when there are plenty of ordinary people on the streets. In Belleville, they were the only people on the street at the height of tourism season.
 
Downtown Belleville has a beautiful built form and public realm. It deserves to be a thriving and vibrant place with busy street patios, especially with PEC's popularity. However, when I went to PEC last summer, it was an unfortunate lowlight of the trip.

On a warm Sunday afternoon, the streets were empty except for the junkies and vagrants. It's true that many towns and cities in North America have that issue. But they're not that noticeable when there are plenty of ordinary people on the streets. In Belleville, they were the only people on the street at the height of tourism season.
In Prince Edward County or in Belleville?

I'm not even sure Belleville has a wharf large enough to accommodate something like this
Neither am I, nor the draught, nor the air draught and beam clearance at the Cty. Rd. 49 bridge. It would depend on the ship.
 

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