With The Hamburg making its port of call on Tuesday, it will be the last passenger cruise ship to dock at Port Milwaukee this year.
The approximately 400-passenger vessel arrived with more than 300 passengers at the dock east of the Lake Express ferry.
Port Milwaukee wraps up the 2019 season with 10 passenger ship visits, which more than doubles last year’s total. Those vessels brought an estimated 3,200 tourists to the area this year, according to a news release.
Four of those visits were made by the 210-passenger Pearl Mist cruise ship, which docked in June, twice in July and August.
“Milwaukee is an important and growing port-of-call for Great Lakes cruising, and that means more visitors, more tourism dollars, and greater attention focused on our city,” said port director Adam Schlicht. “I am pleased with this year’s increase and optimistic that we will see even more cruise ship visits in the coming years.”
The Hamburg is operated by Plantours, a Bremen, Germany-based cruise company and markets its cruises primarily to German tourists. It previously docked in Milwaukee in 2017 and 2015.
Port Milwaukee said efforts are underway to promote the passenger cruise ship business in Milwaukee and throughout the Great Lakes, especially as Milwaukee has become a turnaround point for cruises, which means visitors are starting or ending their journeys here and likely staying for longer than a daylong excursion.
