Travel + Leisure lists Great Lakes as one of top 50 places to visit in 2020 — and name drops Cleveland, too
CLEVELAND, Ohio — Travel + Leisure has included the Great Lakes as one of its 50 best destinations in 2020.
And the high-end magazine is even giving a shout-out to Cleveland.
“The next hot cruise destination is…The Great Lakes? Believe it. The five lakes collectively offer 11,000 miles of attraction-packed shoreline, and new small ship cruises are making it easier to explore,” writes Emma Balter. “Lakeside cities like Cleveland and Milwaukee are drawing new crowds, the former for a thriving creative scene and revived waterfront.”
In 2019, 29 cruises were scheduled to dock at the Port of Cleveland, from May through October. In 2020, the port has 41 scheduled so far.
Most were Victory Cruise Lines, where nine-day tours between Chicago and Toronto start at $4,000, all inclusive. Victory Cruise Lines added Cleveland to its itinerary in 2017, and it ended as guests’ second favorite port, after Mackinac Island.
Each ship carries 80 to 200 passengers, who often board Lolly the Trolley for stops at museums and more. The Port of Cleveland is working on a more permanent U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility to process cruise passengers, which should open next spring.
Here’s how Victory Cruise Lines talks up Cleveland:
“Step off the ship onto what some call America’s “North Coast” and discover why Clevelanders are so fiercely proud of their home. The reinvented city reverberates with vitality and a cool new atmosphere. Expand your mind at the world-class Cleveland Museum of Art, with over 45,000 works to explore. For just the price of admission, you can also feel the backbeat at the museum devoted to one of America’s finest gifts to the world – the Rock Roll Hall of Fame. An optional premium experience to Geauga County offers a glimpse into a simpler way of life with a visit to an Amish home for a traditional wedding feast.”
What else made the enviable Travel + Leisure list? Boston, Botswana, Maine, Malawi.
Obviously lots more, too. But no where else in the Midwest.
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