The 342-foot-long Ocean Victory, shown here on its first voyage to Antarctica, is scheduled to stop in Wrangell on Thursday during its inaugural season in Alaska. The vessel, completed in 2021, is chartered by American Queen Voyages for Alaska and Pacific coast cruises.
From left: Britni Birchell, Carter Griss, Kristi Birchell, infant Raelynn Birchell and Kory Birchell take a stroll past the City Dock ramp to the summer float last Friday. The Port and Harbors Department installed the ramp and float that day, in preparation for the summer season of tour boats and other users.
The chamber of commerce is planning a welcome ceremony for the first ship on Wrangell's official cruise calendar, which also happens to be a brand new vessel making its inaugural sailing to Southeast.
The 186-passenger Ocean Victory, chartered by American Queen Voyages, is scheduled to arrive at 8 a.m. Thursday at the City Dock.
Chamber Executive Director Brittani Robbins on Monday said the ceremony is planned for 10 a.m. Thursday and will feature Tlingit dancers, a presentation of a key to the city and a commemorative plaque exchange - the borough to Ocean Victory, and Ocean Victory to the borough.
The event is open to the public.
Virginia Oliver is overseeing the Tlingit dancers, Robbins said. High school student dancers will be supplemented with grown-ups, because although it is the first ship on the borough's calendar, its arrival is during the school day.
The ship is scheduled to stay in Wrangell until 5 p.m.
Sweet Tides Bakery will be catering Thursday's welcoming. "We're going to do a variety of goodies," Sweet Tides co-owner Devyn Johnson said Monday.
A company branding team is on the vessel, with a videographer, photographer and the capability to capture drone camera footage, Robbins said May 4.
The 342-foot-long ship was put into service in November, after construction in a shipyard in China. It's a higher-end, small ship cruise, with rates starting at $4,200 to $5,400 per person, depending on the Alaska sailing.
CEO and Chairman John Waggoner, who founded American Queen Voyages, is on the ship as it tours the Inside Passage.
Waggoner on Monday via a phone interview said Ocean Victory has 14 visits planned for Wrangell. It carries a crew of up to 100.
"It's my first time to Wrangell, so I'm very excited about it," he said. "I try and go on all of our trips, take every shore excursion that I can. That way I get to see it up close and personal, if we want to make any changes."
Waggoner is also a runner.
"I look forward to running through Wrangell. Make a loop around the city, and stop in and try the local coffee, and get the local fishing that I can," he said.
Spokesperson Michael Hicks at American Queen Voyages, who is also aboard, said they want to be "a part of the community."
"We know Wrangell is a special port, we know not all the large cruise ships come in," Hicks said. "We want to be respectful and responsible."
The Ocean Victory departed Vancouver, British Columbia, on May 7 and will sail between Vancouver and Sitka on 12- and 13-day cruises through September.
The Wrangell itinerary offers passengers excursions to Anan Wildlife Observatory and Chief Shakes Tribal House.
The ship also will stop in Sitka, Ketchikan, Metlakatla and Petersburg on its Southeast voyages.
Michelle Fournet, director of the Sound Science Research Collective and an acclaimed acoustic ecologist and expert in the communication of North Pacific humpback whales, will be on board for the ship's inaugural Southeast run.
Wrangell could receive almost 19,000 cruise ship passengers this summer, if all of the ships scheduled to call on the community are full.
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