Harbor Towns Cruises plans to launch its long-awaited ferry service on area waterways starting May 17, beginning with an hour-long cruise from Edenton to Columbia.
The new passenger ferry service, which will operate two specially designed Hysucat vessels between six towns and cities along the Albemarle Sound, released an online schedule of its initial cruises and tours last week.
According to Harbor Towns’ website, 64 separate cruises and tours are scheduled over a 15-day period starting May 17 and continuing through May 31. More than half the boat trips — 34 — will be between four towns. Nine cruises are from Edenton to Plymouth and nine are from Plymouth to Edenton. Eight others are from Elizabeth City to Manteo; eight more are from Manteo to Elizabeth City.
The cruises between towns allow passengers to visit the second town for several hours before boarding the ferry for a return trip to the town from which they embarked. Each leg of the trip is a separate cruise requiring a separate booking.
Seventeen of the initial boat trips are billed as waterway tours. Eight are called Historic Edenton and Chowan River Cruises and will be on Edenton Bay and the Chowan River. Six others are called Historic Roanoke Delta Tours and will be on the Roanoke River, while three are Historic Pasquotank River Cruises and will be on the Pasquotank River.
According to Harbor Towns’ website, many of the one-way cruises will last between 60 minutes and 85 minutes and cost $25 for passengers age 2 and older. Passengers 1 and younger ride free. Several cruises — Plymouth to Edenton and Edenton to Plymouth, for example — are shorter, taking only about 45 minutes and costing $20, according to Harbor Towns’ website.
The three waterway tours in Edenton, Elizabeth City and Plymouth last about an hour and 25 minutes and also cost $25. An exception are the Albemarle Plantation Excursions, which last about six hours and cost $50. The first of those round-trip excursions will be from the Perquimans County golfing community to Columbia and back on Friday, May 24.
All of the initial cruises and tours are scheduled for either Sundays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays or Saturdays. There are currently none scheduled for Mondays or Tuesdays, according to the website.
Initially, Harbor Towns has scheduled fewer cruises to two other towns that are among the six original cruise destinations: Columbia and Hertford. There are only two cruises planned during the initial 15-day period between Edenton and Columbia, two from Manteo to Hertford, two from Hertford to Manteo, two from Manteo to Columbia, and two from Columbia to Manteo.
There is also only one currently scheduled Historic Perquimans Tour on the Perquimans River and one Historic Columbia/Scuppernong Tour on the Scuppernong River. Both are set for Sunday, May 26.
Peter Thomson, a member of Harbor Towns Cruises Board of Directors, said the ferry passenger service only set up an initial 15-day schedule because of the upcoming Major League Fishing Bass Tournament in Edenton. Scheduled for June 2-9, the fishing tournament is expected to bring large crowds to Edenton, many of whom might want to take a ride on the new passenger ferries.
“We don’t know what they’re going to need yet,” Thomson said of the tournament, adding that once Harbor Towns knows that need, a second 15-day block of cruises and tours in June will be scheduled. Thomson expects a full schedule of cruises and tours will be released by the end of June.
Thomson said many of the cruises initially center around Edenton and Elizabeth City because they are the ferry service’s “two terminals, and we’ll have to start at those towns most of the time.”
He said each of the towns that’s a destination for the cruises “has a different thing they want” from Harbor Towns. Elizabeth City, for example, wants to attract visitors from Hampton Roads, Virginia, to come down, take a boat ride and then stay for dinner, he said. Hertford, on the other hand, is looking for visitors from the Outer Banks hoping to learn more about the town’s history and shop in its downtown. Plymouth envisions itself as the “gateway” to the Roanoke River Delta, and is looking for Harbor Towns’ vessels to provide visitors with scenic views of nature and wildlife not readily accessible otherwise.
Thomson said Harbor Towns’ schedule, which allows passengers to book a cruise or tour online, just went up online over the weekend, so he’s not sure how many bookings have been made thus far.
In addition to its regular scheduled cruises and tours, Harbor Towns also plans to conduct what Thomson referred to as “introductory trips.”
“We will hold these in the different towns for festivals and special events,” he said. “The introductory tours are really a way for folks to get on the water and experience the ride while the captain of the day explains what the boat is all about.”
The introductory tours are cheaper than regular cruises — $15 instead of $25 — and will last about 30 minutes. No reservations will be taken for those cruises, Thomson said. Harbor Towns will accept credit card payments from passengers before they board.
Thomson said the first of the introductory tours will be held in Elizabeth City during the N.C. Potato Festival scheduled for May 17-19, and the second batch will be held in Plymouth during its N.C. Black Bear Festival on June 1.
Harbor Towns Cruises also plans to introduce its own app that, once downloaded, will allow passengers to book a tour or cruise, find out more about the town where they’re going and its attractions and dining options, Thomson said.
Both of the vessels Harbor Towns plans to use for its cruises — The Penelope and The Moses Grandy — were built by Smoky Mountain Jet Boats in Bryson City and are specially designed to meet the sometimes rough conditions found in the Albemarle Sound and the rivers that flow into it.
The 45-foot long, 16-foot wide ferries of the Albemarle class series are foil-assisted, catamaran-hulled craft that gain extra lift from a hydrofoil, raising the hull above submerged logs, choppy waves, and other obstacles.
The boats can travel up to 38 mph under calm river conditions or 33 mph through waves up to 5½ feet. The boats cost approximately $1 million each and were paid for with state appropriations to Harbor Towns.
Thomson said Harbor Towns expects to get final U.S. Coast Guard approvals for The Penelope on April 25 and for the Moses Grandy on May 3.
To find out more about the Harbor Town Cruises or book a tour or cruise, visit https://harbortownscruises.com/ferries-tours/.
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