Buffalo, N.Y. (WBEN) - Work is being done in Western New York to explore the possibility of making the City of Buffalo a destination for cruise ships to port or make a stop on their journey across the Great Lakes.
Several weeks ago, the Erie Canal Harbor Development Corporation (ECHDC) approved a feasibility study to determine whether or not Buffalo would be a logical destination as a port city on the Great Lakes cruises. The study is expected to be completed before the end of March 2024.
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However, others like Patrick Kaler - President and CEO of Visit Buffalo Niagara - are doing their part to get ahead of the study, preparing the "Queen City" for the opportunity to be a landing spot for one of these popular cruse ships on the Great Lakes.
In fact, the City of Buffalo is hosting this year's annual meeting of Great Lakes USA, where the city is a new member of the consortium.
"We see this as our opportunity to start gleaning information and best practices from the member states, member destinations. We really wanted to take an opportunity to host the group here in Buffalo, so that they could actually see what we have to offer," said Kaler during a press conference on Tuesday with fellow Great Lakes cruise experts.
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"Our goal is to continue the growth of the cruise business in the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence [River]," said Dave Lorenz, Chair of Great Lakes USA and Cruise the Great Lakes on Tuesday. "Actually many of us in the group are here today in hopes that the folks in Buffalo will be able to continue to move forward with the thought of, perhaps, hosting cruise ships. It's not a cheap thing to do. It costs some real investment to prepare your port to be able to host cruise ships, but over time, there were so many benefits to having cruise ships coming to your area. I know the community would really love to see cruise ships come here."
According to Kaler, Visit Buffalo Niagara has already started some of the groundwork in communications with cruise companies about Buffalo becoming one of their ports. Once the port is open and ready to go, the city would need to have some infrastructure in place for these cruises.
"Hopefully we can also be the beginning, or the ending portion of one of these cruises and not just a stop, but we want to make sure that we have the best practices, learning from our counterparts from around the region. But also building the product, getting the community ready so that when that first cruise ship comes to town, we are ready to go, and we have great itineraries that are unique to the overall cruise experience that detail that Buffalo story," Kaler explained.
Tuesday was set to be a day to feature a tour of Buffalo for the parties involved to get a little flavor of what the city is all about. Then Visit Buffalo Niagara will hold their meeting with Great Lakes USA and others on Wednesday.
The cruise ships navigating the waters of the Great Lakes will not be like the ones you may see heading to the Caribbean.
"Our cruise ships are relatively small," Lorenz said. "I know a lot of people might be thinking, 'Oh, those 4,000-6,000 passenger ships.' That's not the case here. The longest cruise ship could be is about 700 feet or so, because they've got to get through the locks. We'll never have those mega ships, so I think the biggest ship you'll ever see here might have around something under 500 passengers. Most of the time, there'll be around 250-350."
As for the demographic of passengers that come to the Great Lakes, while they may be more on the older side of the table, some feel they are still extremely attractive to the region.
"They are typically over 55-years-old, affluent, people who have been everywhere and seen the world. And they come to the Great Lakes because they want a new experience, something they haven't yet seen," said David Naftzger, President and CEO of the Council of Great Lakes and St. Lawrence Seaway Governors and Premiers. "Typically on the ship, they're getting educational programming, teaching them about the place they're going to visit. They go to museums and want to seek out fine dining and things of that nature. So this is a very desirable demographic, and if they can return, then the dividends pay themselves many times over."
While the results of the feasibility study from the ECHDC will not be known for several more months, Great Lakes cruise experts feel there is a truly unique opportunity to be had for the City of Buffalo going forward.
"What happens when cruise ships come to your area? A couple of things," Lorenz said. "First off, even in the preparation for the trip, people are doing their investigation, they're doing a little research, they're discovering that, 'Hey, Buffalo looks like a pretty cool town. I want to check out that architecture, I want to check out those restaurants, I want to see what the waterfront looks like.' Things like that. Then when they come, it provides them with a new experience, a new perspective, and they will share that with people everywhere. Sharing their stories through word of mouth, it's the cheapest way to market any destination, but people have to be there first. It always starts with that trip, and then from there, if the community has provided the experience that that traveler was looking for, they're going to share that with the world. That's why it's really important.
"The more travelers you have here, that means the more business for your business community, the more jobs and more tax revenue. And all the things that the community deserves and expects are able to be provided from that community with an appropriate and strong tourism industry. This is just another way that people can get here, and a really fun way to do it, as well."
The success of the cruise ships along the Great Lakes have been quite evident in other communities around the region. This includes Detroit, Michigan, that has been a port for these cruises for 15 years now.
"This has been a game-changer for our hospitality community," said Jennifer Ollinger, International Tourism and Domestic Tourism Manager with Visit Detroit. "Our tour guides are busy on a consistent basis now. But what I think is more important is we're hosting a tourist that may never have thought to come and visit us in the City of Detroit, because it's part of a larger experience in exploring the Great Lakes. We've had people that have come and said, 'I had no idea of all the things that you'd have to offer. I didn't know Detroit was so clean, Detroit is extremely safe. The food scene here is great.' And from what I've experienced so far, Buffalo has those exact same things here."
Ollinger feels these cruises across the Great Lakes has not only benefited Detroit over the years, but the entire region with communities big and small. This is especially evident coming out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
"The number of tourists that we have now visiting our attractions in the area of Metro Detroit has really helped secure jobs for those locally in our community. Those visiting restaurants, as well, has really helped to speed up our dining scene coming back, coming out of the pandemic," Ollinger said. "Overall, it's great to have in Detroit from May until October."
"Just a couple of facts and figures that can underscore some of the successes that have been taking place in the cruise marketplace recently: 25,000 passengers this year, that's up 20%. 170,000 visits that those passengers will make to regional courts, that's up over 10%. 11 ships on the lakes this year, that's up 20%," Naftzger added. "As important as those figures are and the visits that those visitors make and the economic impact that they create, is also the likelihood of their return visits."
When it comes to comparing Buffalo to other port cities with the cruises, Lorenz feels where the city sits in the Great Lakes, St. Lawrence system, it would certainly have a good chance of potentially becoming an embarkation location.
"Milwaukee is being used by Viking right now, so they're going to have those ships coming in-and-out of Milwaukee, Wisconsin again this season, they did last year. It worked really well," he said. "Being kind of on one end, or the other, I think just makes it easier for those ships to do that. But that's going to really depend on a lot of things. Is that port facility really ready to offer that experience? Is the community ready, and are they welcoming to the thought of having cruise ships?
"I haven't been here for a long time, and it just reminds me why I love the Great Lakes region. There's something special about our region. ... This is the real American experience. I really should say the real North American experience, because just like I love Toronto - one of the cities the cruise ships go to - there's something special when you go to a Buffalo, or you go to a Cleveland or Detroit or Duluth, [Minnesota] or Milwaukee or Sault Ste. Marie [Michigan]. Same thing with some of those second tier, in size, communities in Canada. That's the real North American experience that I think a lot of people would love to enjoy, and will enjoy when they come here."
Hear more from Tuesday's press conference with Great Lakes cruise experts available in the player below: