Great Lakes cruises having moment, Milwaukee invests to meet demand

MILWAUKEE - A couple decades ago, it would be rare to find someone who had experienced the Great Lakes by sailing. Fast-forward to 2026? The Great Lakes are having a moment as cruise expeditions to our region explode.

FOX6 News recently hopped aboard one of the largest cruise vessels to sail the Great Lakes, the Viking Polaris, to see what visitors get to experience.

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Great Lakes cruises

The backstory:

We start this tour aboard one of the newest ships anywhere in the world. We climbed the stairs and hopped onboard the Viking Polaris to see what a $10,000 vacation looks like that starts or ends in Milwaukee.

The Viking Polaris sparkles as you enter. It's built specifically for an exploding industry, cruising on the Great Lakes.

Pools? Yeah they've got that. Fresh food? It's available 24 hours a day. Amenities onboard include a library curated by a bookstore in London, a snow grotto where guests can rub snow on their bodies that falls from the ceiling, multiple restaurants and more. But one of the most surprising features in this lap of luxury is the 380-square-foot room that may impact you whether you sign up for a cruise or not.

"It’s very unusual for a ship like this to have a science lab and a science team," said Meghan Goggins.  

Cruise and research collide

What they're saying:

As the chief scientist onboard, Goggins, an England native, walks us through some of the research she is leading on the water in our backyard.

"I think the Great Lakes is an under recognized ecosystem," she said. "People aren’t aware about these ecosystems, and the Great Lakes has so much to offer."

Goggins spent years living and working on remote islands in Antarctica and now leads guests in helping her collect and analyze water samples on all five Great Lakes, and research microplastics and invasive species. All with plenty of tools to help her and those onboard.

"We’re a ship of opportunity.  We have a whole suite of instruments that we utilize onboard," said Goggins.

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The Viking Polaris is equipped with underwater drones that can investigate shipwrecks, a submarine to explore the lake bottom, and with her sister ship the Octantis, they are the only commercial ships in the world that releases weather balloons.  Goggins said it's helping forecast in remote areas of the Great Lakes.

"Quite often, people think weather is unpredictable. Often, there’s a lack of data in those weather systems, so by releasing these balloons in these remote areas, we can contribute to improving the accuracy of the weather forecasts," said Goggins.

If you haven't noticed by now, those who board the Viking expedition ships may be looking for a different kind of cruise ship experience. And the ships aren't the only things that are new.

"We’re standing on the new cruise ship platform out here in Lake Michigan," Benji Timm, Port Milwaukee director, said with a smile. 

New cruise ship platform

What's next:

It may not look like much now, but Timm showed off a future $17 million project where the largest cruise ships on the Great Lakes, like the Viking ships, will dock as early as August.

"This is going to be a 50,000-square-foot platform which is not insignificant. And it’s going to serve the vessels that call here," said Timm.

Great Lakes cruising broke records last year for visitors.

"And this year is going to exceed that by three times. I think it’s a new frontier," Timm said.

Eight ships from six companies will make 64 visits to Milwaukee, bringing in more than 20,000 visitors. Some will explore our inland sea between Norwegian spa treatments from the snow grotto. For scientists onboard, they're hoping to make a lasting impact.

"There’s so much to learn on the Great Lakes. Everytime I’m here, I learn something new," said Goggins.