Sweet Victory: Two coastal ships with a long history get new lease on life
Under new ownership, the 190-passenger coastal ship is back on the Great Lakes, to be joined in May by sister ship the Victory II.
And "Victory" is a fitting name, since this is one of cruising's great comebacks.
Entrepreneur John Waggoner came out of retirement to revive the line, which he once owned, following the 2024 bankruptcy of parent company Hornblower Group. Waggoner and his wife, Claudette, paid $1.9 million in cash at auction for the ships.
Shaded lounge seating on Victory I's sundeck. Photo Credit: Anne Kalosh
During Victory I's naming festivities in Toronto on April 27, Waggoner recounted how, in a "very short 380 days," he was able to arrange financing to resume operations, "put the band back together," set up reservations and accounting systems, repair both ships (including a new engine for the Victory II) and enhance the interiors, open bank accounts for credit card payments, launch sales and marketing, develop a website, set up a call center and "a thousand other tasks" to restart service.
The Victory I's christening in Toronto was an emotional event for the Waggoners. Their youngest daughter, Emily Coleman, served as the godmother, smashing a bottle of Crown Royal Canadian Whisky on the bow.
The event was sentimental for me, too.
Recalling the Cape May Light's debut
In April 2001, I was present to report on the ship's first naming, as the Cape May Light, for Delta Queen Coastal Voyages, then a new brand.
It was a rare U.S.-built cruise ship, constructed at Atlantic Marine in Jacksonville, Fla., as part of a strategy to revive commercial shipbuilding and create American jobs by financing U.S.-built ships with government loan guarantees through the U.S. Maritime Administration.
A deluxe outside stateroom with a veranda that is shared with other staterooms on Deck 4. Photo Credit: Anne Kalosh
The Cape May Light had national, patriotic significance far beyond its small size. Secretary of Labor Elaine Chao served as the godmother, and the naming took place near Washington, in Alexandria, Va. Maritime union brass turned out, and a thick cloud of cigar smoke swirled around their intense discussions in the bar.
Delta Queen Coastal Voyages belonged to Chicago business mogul Sam Zell's American Classic Voyages, which also operated Delta Queen Steamboat Co., American Hawaii Cruises and United States Lines.
The Cape May Light and its sister, the Cape Cod Light, were designed to expand Delta Queen's river focus into coastal operations, including the Great Lakes.
But the Cape May Light sailed for just a few months: The 9/11 terrorist attacks and the ensuing travel downturn led to American Classic Voyages' bankruptcy. The U.S. Maritime Administration took possession of the two Cape ships -- the Cape Cod Light had never even sailed -- which languished for years. In 2006, Waggoner put in an offer for the ships but was outbid. Eventually Denmark's Clipper Group, a bulk cargo operator with an office in Nassau, acquired the vessels, reflagged them to the Bahamas and put them out for charter.
The Cape May Light, renamed the Sea Voyager, housed relief workers for Haiti's 2010 earthquake recovery and did a stint as a floating dormitory for St. Mary's College in Maryland.
In 2015, it would go back to what it was built to do. Chartered to Haimark Line, it was renamed the Saint Laurent and launched Great Lakes itineraries. But early on, the ship struck a lock in the St. Lawrence Seaway and an insurance dispute led to Haimark's demise.
Victory Cruise Lines is born
Haimark had also been planning to launch Cuba cruises under a partnership with Bruce Nierenberg, an entrepreneur who had snagged a license to sail between the U.S. and Cuba when relations between the countries thawed during the Obama administration.
A "LakeLorian" lecture in the Compass Lounge. Photo Credit: Anne Kalosh
When Haimark went under, Nierenberg became CEO of the newly formed Victory Cruise Lines, designed to pick up Haimark's Great Lakes business and launch Cuba cruises on the ship that was now named Victory I.
In 2019, Waggoner's American Queen Steamboat Co. (AQSC), part of Hornblower, acquired Victory: At last the ships were his. The first Trump administration abruptly halted Cuba cruises in June of that year, and the company focused on the Great Lakes itineraries.
Then the Covid-19 pandemic struck. With Canadian ports closed, AQSC canceled Victory's 2020 season.
As cruising resumed in 2021, AQSC rebranded as American Queen Voyages, combining its river and coastal fleets. Victory I became the Ocean Voyager and Victory II the Ocean Navigator.
Around that time, Waggoner sold his stake to private equity and left Hornblower, which had brought in new management. In early 2024, American Queen Voyages filed for bankruptcy.
Waggoner was saddened to see the company he'd built evaporate so quickly. But he also missed the cruise business, and when the ships were put up for auction, he decided to get back in. Once he and his wife had won the Victory pair, they got financing to spruce up the ships, and in a "very short 380 days," he said, the line was relaunched.
The Victory I now
The Victory I looks fresh but retains it original elements and historic charm.
New technology includes LED screens with destination information in the stair landings and the Compass Lounge, the main entertainment and lecture venue. The Compass Lounge is where the "LakeLorian," a storyteller/destination expert trained by the National Museum of the Great Lakes, gives briefings.
Diners at the Tuscan Stone Grill cook their steaks on individual hot stones. Photo Credit: Anne Kalosh
A compass rose-inspired floor on the Saloon Deck, stained-glass accents in the cozy Tavern, and the tin ceiling and chandelier in the main Compass Lounge are all original and give the ship historical flavor.
In the Coastal Dining Room, one dinner menu's entrees included rack of lamb, Boston scrod, spaghetti aglio e olio, Punjabi eggplant, New York sirloin steak, grilled chicken breast and Atlantic salmon -- all elegantly plated. I found the grilled haloumi appetizer and Valrhona chocolate dessert scrumptious.
The Grill, a casual buffet spot during the day, converts into the Tuscan Stone Grill by night. Each diner gets a preheated stone to cook their own filet mignon, sirloin or salmon.
Staterooms start at 146 square feet, and most have windows, not balconies. My Category AA deluxe outside stateroom with veranda was 161 square feet, with a compact shower, Aveda toiletries, a desk and stocked minifridge. The AA rooms open to a shared veranda.
A grilled haloumi appetizer served in the Coastal Dining Room. Photo Credit: Anne Kalosh
This is a quaint but well maintained ship, comfortable and perfectly sized for the Great Lakes.
I'm happy that after 24 years and many incarnations, it's back where it belongs.
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