ESCANABA — At least three vessels from two cruise lines will be making regular appearances as they dock in Escanaba this summer. The city on Little Bay de Noc will receive upwards of 30 port calls from cruise ships, each with up to around 200 passengers, between May and October 2025.

The Victory I and Victory II, though rechristened, have been here before — they used to belong to American Queen Voyages (AQV) under the names Ocean Voyager and Ocean Navigator, which visited Escanaba in 2023. In June of 2023, the Florida-based AQV planned to sell those two vessels and focus on river cruises in 2024, reported Cruise Industry News. But that never panned out.

AQV filed for bankruptcy in February 2024, citing changes in travel preferences after the pandemic, and AQV — owned by Hornblower Group — dissolved. Hornblower Group continues to operate several cruise lines and owns over 250 vessels, according to their website.

Despite AQV’s failure, the cruise industry is not dead — in fact, demand appears to be up in the Great Lakes region.

Cruises on the lakes were projected to welcome 22,000 passengers in 2025, a 10% increase from 2024, with 700 port visits — a nearly 30% increase, reported marketing company Cruise the Great Lakes in December. While not all of those visit Little Bay de Noc, two lines — Pearl Seas Cruises and Victory Cruise Lines — are scheduled to make port in Escanaba with 36 visits this year.

Victory Cruise Lines is the new company resurrected by John Waggoner, who acquired the vessels then-named Ocean Voyager and Ocean Navigator at a bankruptcy auction for just under $1 million each a year ago. Waggoner was familiar with the ships; he had long been involved with Hornblower Group before selling AQV and retiring a few years ago.

The vessels just rechristened with the Victory name aren’t strangers to even those titles — they had been named Victory I and Victory II previously, before what became AQV bought the earlier iteration of Victory Cruise Lines in 2019.

The new Victory line, whose ships have been refurbished, is independently owned by Waggoner and is not affiliated with Hornblower.

Waggoner, an industry veteran described as a visionary, is reportedly excited to be coming out of retirement to take on a new Great Lakes adventure.

“There is a strong market for cruising the Great Lakes, and buying the Victory Cruise Lines ships and brand presented me with the opportunity to create a wonderful experience for thousands of travelers,” he said during an interview in the fall.

Following a visit between local community leaders and Waggoner and others from Victory Cruise Lines last July, the Delta County Chamber of Commerce has been working closely with Victory to help provide itinerary timeline management and will again be providing tour guides.

“Through past visits, we’ve learned that while they welcome our input on what we consider important highlights of our community such as historical landmarks, local attractions, and cultural experiences, they ultimately make their programming decisions based on their own market research and what they believe will resonate most with their passengers,” Micheau said. “The good news is that Victory recognizes what makes our area special.  That understanding is a big part of why they’re returning to the Bays de Noc again this year.”

She said that Waggoner had mentioned at the July meeting that Escanaba had reputation for going above and beyond expectations, and that Victory guests appreciate “quaint, homey, and unique small-town experiences.”

The ships are smaller than many ocean-going cruise ships that fit thousands of passengers: Victory I and Victory II each have a capacity of 190, and Pearl Mist — the ship from Pearl Seas Cruises, owned by American Cruise Lines, that will stop in Esky just twice this summer — carries a maximum of 210.

Victory’s inaugural season is already underway, and the first ship will reach Escanaba this Sunday, May 4.

After a christening ceremony for the Victory I in Toronto on April 27, during which a bottle of Crown Royal Canadian whisky instead of the traditional champagne was broken on its bow, the flagship vessel set off. The Victory II will be christened at Chicago’s Navy Pier on May 12.

In addition to Escanaba, passengers of Victory’s “Cruise All Five Great Lakes” tours will also visit Chicago; Mackinac Island; Sault Ste. Marie, Mich.; Detroit; Cleveland, Ohio; Niagara Falls, Ontario; Toronto; and Montreal.

When they arrive in Escanaba, guests will be provided with the Delta County Visitors Guide and Chamber of Commerce Business Directory to help them navigate the highlights of the area.

“The Victory team has been professional, engaged, and respectful of our local perspective, and we truly value the ongoing partnership,” Micheau said. “We are planning on a picnic for the Victory Cruise management and passengers this summer to show our appreciation for their return visit to the Bays.”