By John Francis, Bruce Peninsula Press
Tobermory’s 2023 tourist season began with a bang on the Victoria Day weekend. After a quiet (rainy) Saturday, Sunday was frantically busy. Then Victoria Day Monday turned it up another notch with the arrival of the year’s first cruise liner.
The Hanseatic Inspiration arrived off Doctor Island in Tobermory’s outer harbour on Monday morning and immediately lowered the two ship’s tenders. The tenders ferried passengers back and forth between the vessel and the village so that passengers could walk around, check out the stores, hike the first bit of the Bruce Trail, explore the National Park Visitor Centre and then get an ice cream cone.
The Hanseatic Inspiration is owned by Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, one of three “Expedition Class” ships that were built for the Antarctic run. The rest of the year, they travel the world, visiting Africa, Arabia, Asia and the Arctic… and this year, the Great Lakes as well. The vessels are relatively small as cruise ships go, at 138m (452 feet) long, by 22m (72 feet) wide, displacing 15,650 tonnes. (The Chi-Cheemaun is 111/19/6,990 by comparison.)
The Expedition Class vessels can carry up to 230 passengers and advertise service in both German and English. The passengers visiting on Victoria Day were German nationals and they were eager to see the beginning of the legendary Bruce Trail.
Tobermory Chamber of Commerce coordinator Doris Jaehrling points out that the Inspiration passengers were not the only European visitors in town that day. “We’ve seen a lot of international travellers, which surprised me,” she reports. Industry insider predictions had led her to expect a relatively quiet spring season.
According to Tobermory Harbourmaster Carla Watson, the Hanseatic Inspiration will visit four more times this year, on June 11, June 16, July 3 and September 30. Tobermory has also received enquiries from another cruise line regarding visits in the fall but there are no plans at this time.
