Viking Octantis arrives in Milwaukee marking first sign of summer and tourism 🚢

MILWAUKEE (CBS 58) --The Viking Octantis docked at the Port of Milwaukee on Wednesday May 1, before embarking on its journey around the Great Lakes. This marks the third consecutive year that the Octantis has arrived as the inaugural cruise ship for the season.

"When we see the first cruise ship, summer has arrived, we know we are waiting for June but for us it's now. We are excited because it kicks off another branch of our business which is tourism," said Port Director Jackie Q Carter.

With 380 passengers onboard, Carter says Milwaukee needs people to visit.

"One of the things I like to say about when it comes to development, and this has more to do with personal development, in order to aspire you have to have exposure, I think the same is true for economic development. For people to really understand what we have, we have to have exposure," Carter explained.

The Viking Octantis is an eight-day cruise touring the Great Lakes, but Milwaukee is a pivotal point on their journey.

"It's important to understand that Milwaukee is a turnaround port and what that means is we have passengers that will end their itineraries here and later this week there will be a new group that will start a new itinerary," said Carter.

Carter says the cruise passengers come from all over the country to visit and see the Great Lakes.

"I chatted with a group of folks who are here, they got off the boat and they're from Texas. They are headed to a Brewers game. It's important to say that because we want people to understand ... when passengers off of a cruise ship in Milwaukee, they are not just servicing the port, there not just operating with Viking, they're also creating more impact with their dollar because they are going to stadiums, they’re going to museums, they're spending dollars at restaurants, so they are supporting businesses in our community as well," said Carter.

The Viking Octantis heads back to open waters on Friday, May 3.