Aquastar is a Great Lakes cruise boat, operated by
Aquastar Cruises. She gives public and private charter cruises on
Muskegon Lake
Muskegon Lake is a fresh-water lake in Muskegon County, Michigan, USA. Located in the lower peninsula at the mouth of the Muskegon River, Muskegon Lake forms a broad harbor along the eastern shoreline of Lake Michigan, approximately wide by ...
and
Lake Michigan
Lake Michigan is one of the five Great Lakes of North America. It is the second-largest of the Great Lakes by volume () and the third-largest by surface area (), after Lake Superior and Lake Huron. To the east, its basin is conjoined with that o ...
.
History
The former Mackinac Island ferry boat was purchased by Sylvia Precious and her husband Ralph and brought to
Muskegon, Michigan
Muskegon ( ') is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expa ...
in the spring of 1987. She was rechristened, Port City Princess.
For about 30 years under the Precious family’s operation the Port City Princess hosted not only dinner and sunset cruises, she has also hosted weddings and corporate outings.
Current service with Aquastar Cruises
In 2008, when the Precious family matriarch Silvia Precious retired, the boat was being optioned by an out of town buyer to move to a Northern Michigan port.
To keep the boat in Muskegon, the Sand Products Corporation purchased the Port City Princess and extensively upgraded her, this included a number of aesthetic and structural renovations which featured a modern deco theme.
This also included the boat being painted aqua, gray, red and white with its name on the back and the owners obtaining a liquor license.
The cruise boat was rechristened, Aquastar on August 3, 2018 by Miss Michigan and Miss Shoreline.
The name and color scheme pays homage to the
SS Aquarama
SS ''Aquarama'' was built as ''Marine Star'', one of five breakbulk cargo ships of the United States Maritime Commission (USMC) type C4-S-B5 having that C4 design variant. The ship was delivered to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) for operati ...
, the largest passenger ferry ever on the Great Lakes.
She continues to offer both private charters and public cruises along with a wide variety of specialty cruises throughout the sailing season.
See also
SS Aquarama
SS ''Aquarama'' was built as ''Marine Star'', one of five breakbulk cargo ships of the United States Maritime Commission (USMC) type C4-S-B5 having that C4 design variant. The ship was delivered to the War Shipping Administration (WSA) for operati ...
References
Passenger ships of the Great Lakes
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