American Patriot Returns Cruise Traffic to Rochester After Six Years
Passengers were greeted by Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony reenactors before local stops at the Susan B. Anthony House and George Eastman House.
American Cruise Lines’ American Patriot docked at the Port of Rochester on Wednesday, bringing cruise-liner traffic back to the city for the first time since 2019. The call is part of the line’s Great Lakes program, which includes nine- and 14-day sailings to waterfront cities including Buffalo, Detroit and Milwaukee.
The 2025-built, five-deck ship is scheduled to visit Rochester seven times this season. The local schedule had originally included five calls before two more were added because of demand, said Rachel Pulvino of Visit Rochester.
“The arrival of these ships, it represents new visitors coming into our community,” Pulvino said. She said the calls are expected to bring economic activity as passengers leave the ship for organized excursions and time in the city.
Rochester builds a place on the Great Lakes route
Passengers on Wednesday were met by Frederick Douglass and Susan B. Anthony reenactors before heading into Rochester. Local shore programming included the Susan B. Anthony House, the George Eastman House and a Genesee River cruise aboard Riverie, the tour boat based in Corn Hill.
The Port of Rochester’s waterfront complex includes a 70,000-square-foot terminal building and a city-owned marina at the mouth of the Genesee River, but it is not a major dedicated cruise terminal. Local officials have spent recent years dredging the port as they worked to make it more usable for visiting cruise vessels.
Pulvino said she is hopeful about the season’s longer-term effect on the port. “Hopefully, all this continues to build, and word will continue to spread, and hopefully, additional cruise operators will choose to bring their ships through,” she said.
A domestic small-ship itinerary
American Patriot carries about 130 guests. The nine-day tour was listed from $8,820, while local information on American Cruise Lines’ Great Lakes products put starting fares around $8,000.
The current itinerary began Saturday in Oswego, continued to the Thousand Islands and Ogdensburg, and then returned west through Rochester. After Rochester, the ship was scheduled to continue toward Niagara Falls and the Welland Canal before reaching Buffalo.
American Cruise Lines’ Great Lakes sailings are domestic itineraries aboard U.S.-built and U.S.-crewed ships, which keeps guests from clearing customs on these trips. The company’s Great Lakes routes also include destinations such as the Upper Peninsula, Mackinac Island and the Soo Locks.
Rochester is joining a region with several active small-ship cruise products. Viking sells eight-to-17-day Great Lakes itineraries with a 378-guest capacity, Tauck offers a 12-day Toronto-to-Chicago cruise on chartered ships carrying roughly 180 travelers, and Ponant operates nine-day Smithsonian Journeys voyages carrying 184 passengers.
American Patriot’s next scheduled voyage is due to launch Friday. Rochester’s next local cruise event is planned for June 10, when the city, American Cruise Lines and Visit Rochester are preparing a formal welcome for the ship’s return call.
