Port Milwaukee to welcome 1st cruise ship of 2026 season

Port Milwaukee to welcome 1st cruise ship of 2026 season

Port Milwaukee will welcome the Viking Octantis on Thursday, April 23 – the first cruise ship to call on the city for the 2026 season.

MILWAUKEE - Port Milwaukee will welcome the Viking Polaris on Thursday, April 23 – the first cruise ship to call on the city for the 2026 season.

1st cruise ship of season

Dig deeper:

From April through October, Port Milwaukee is expecting a record-breaking season, with 64 ship visits and over 80 itineraries.  This also includes 32 turnaround visits and 11 Milwaukee round trip itineraries. 

Officials estimate that 20,000 global travelers will visit Port Milwaukee over the course of the current season. 

What they're saying:

"We are proud to kick off our record-breaking cruising season and welcome visitors from around the world to our city," Milwaukee Mayor Cavalier Johnson said. 

South Shore Cruise Dock-East—Port Milwaukee’s third designated dock—is slated for operations this season. Designed for scale, the facility can host the largest cruise ships currently sailing the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence Seaway route. 

Viking Octantis

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American Cruise Lines will also kick off service to the Great Lakes this season, including two new itineraries to Milwaukee, which will be operated by the American Patriot. The vessel has a 130-passenger capacity. 

Last year, Port Milwaukee hosted 23 cruise ship calls and 11,255 passengers. The 2025 cruise season created a $2.5 million local economic impact and is projected to exceed $3.5 million this year.

After generating $2.5 million last year, Port Milwaukee’s cruise activity is forecasted to inject more than $3.5 million into the local economy this year.

Cruise ship arrivals and departures 

What you can do:

The public is encouraged to stay up-to-date on cruise ship arrivals and departures throughout the 2026 season by using Port Milwaukee’s virtual vessel tracker.