The Office of the Governor of the State of Wisconsin

10/30/2025 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 10/31/2025 09:37

Gov. Evers, Wisconsin Department of Tourism Celebrate Forecasted Record-Breaking Growth For 2026 Great Lakes Cruising Season

Press Release: Gov. Evers, Wisconsin Department of Tourism Celebrate Forecasted Record-Breaking Growth For 2026 Great Lakes Cruising Season

State of Wisconsin sent this bulletin at 10/30/2025 12:00 PM CDT
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: October 30, 2025
Contact: [email protected]
Gov. Evers, Wisconsin Department of Tourism Celebrate Forecasted Record-BreakingGrowth For2026 Great Lakes Cruising Season
Over 170,000 passenger visits andapproximately $290millionin economic impact from Great Lakes cruises expected in 2026
GREEN BAY - Gov. Tony Evers, together with the Wisconsin Department of Tourism, DiscoverGreen Bay, and Cruise the Great Lakes, a regional cruise marketing programled by the Great Lakes St. Lawrence Governors and Premiers, today celebrated the announcement of the 2026 visitor and economic impact projections for Great Lakes cruises. The 2026 cruising seasonis projected to seeover 170,000 total cruise passenger visits-up 10 percentfrom 2025-as well as roughly 800 port visits, andaregional economic impact of approximately $290 million, representingan estimated 20 percent increase compared to2025.

"GreatLakes cruising is vitally important to Wisconsin and the Great Lakes region. It'sa major economic driver and job creator for our port communities and the state," said Gov. Evers. "I commend Cruise the Great Lakes for playing a key role in promoting the Great Lakes as a world-class destination."

This announcementcomes as, earlier this year, Gov. Evers announcedWisconsin's tourism industry in 2024 saw its third consecutive record-breaking year of economic impact under the Evers Administration. According to 2024 economic impact data, the tourism industry generated a record-high $25.8 billion in total economic impact, or about $70 million per day, surpassing the previousrecord of $25 billion set in 2023, which itself was a record year.

Additionally, Wisconsin also welcomed a record-breaking 114.4 million visitors in 2024-a 1.4 million increase from the previous year and eclipsing the former record of 113.2 million visitors in 2019, and the state's tourism industry generateda record amount of state and local revenue, generating a record $1.7 billion that goes back to local communities and essential state services.

"Great Lakes cruising does more than delight passengers, it drives dollars to shorelines across the region," said Wisconsin Tourism Secretary and Cruise the Great Lakes Chair Anne Sayers. "The expected growth means more travelers making lifelong memories, more passengers visiting businesses in port cities, and more economic impact in Wisconsin and across the Great Lakes region."

 "As we look to 2026, we're excited to see continued growth in the Great Lakes cruise sector," said Cruise the Great Lakes Tourism Director Sally Davis Berry. "We forecast this upcoming season to be even stronger than 2025, both in terms of passenger numbers, destinations visited, and economic impact, which underscores the appeal of cruising in the Great Lakes."

"Being part of Cruise the Great Lakes is a tremendous opportunity for Green Bay," said President and CEO of Discover Green BayBrad Toll. "Each ship that visits introducestravelers from around the world to our community while generating meaningful economic benefits for local businesses. We'reexcited to continue building on this momentum in 2026 and to showcaseall thatGreen Bay has to offer cruise passengers."

Wisconsinis home to more than 800 miles of Great Lakes coastline, and more than 20 percent of the state's land area lies within the Great Lakes basin. Lake Superior and Lake Michigan are critical economic drivers of Wisconsin's economy and play an important role inthe state's record-breaking tourism industry. Thanks to Wisconsin's access to Lake Superior and Lake Michigan, its harbors and marinas support a $9.4 billion a year recreational boating industry. The lakes serve as a wet highway linking the heartland to global markets with major shipping ports in Green Bay, Milwaukee, and Duluth/Superior, and more than $7 billion worth of cargo passes through Wisconsin ports each year.

ADDITIONAL EVERS ADMINISTRATION EFFORTS TOSUPPORT WISCONSIN'S TOURISM INDUSTRY

Gov. Evers has been a champion of the tourism industrysince Day One, andunder his leadership,the state hasseen three record-breaking yearsof economic impact from Wisconsin's booming tourismindustry. This success is thanks in part to the EversAdministration's strategic investments to expandWisconsin's coastlineinfrastructure to directly supportthe health of thecruisingindustry. In 2022, Gov. Evers awarded a $3.5million Tourism Capital Investment grantto Port Milwaukee, in addition to a $500,000 Harbor Assistance grantfrom the Wisconsin Department of Transportation,to get the South Shore Cruise Dock expansion project over the finish line. Thanks to these investments, Port Milwaukee will open the 2026 cruise season with a newcruise dock, a crucialturnaround point for cruise ships, and as a result, the port expects to see over 60 cruise visitsin 2026 alone-an increase from the four ships that visited the city in 2015.

To build upon this work, the 2025-27 Biennial Budget provided additionalinvestments for the Department of Tourism, including:
  • Making the Office of Outdoor Recreation, created by Gov. Evers in the 2019-21 state budget, permanent;
  • Matching the 2023-25 investment in the last state budget of $31 millionover the biennium for tourism marketing, which will help the agency attract events and increase advertising in key tourism markets;
  • Creating a State Film Office and providing one new position as well as authority to provide up to $5 millionannually for film production tax credits to attract film opportunities to the state;
  • Providing $5 millionfor a Taliesin Preservation Grant to support projects that sustain Taliesin's unique mix of nature and Frank Lloyd Wright's architecture in Spring Green, Wisconsin, such as an education center, upgraded visitor amenities, and structural improvements;
  • Providing three positions and associated funding to support the planning, preparation, and operation of the new, state-of-the-artWisconsin History Center, scheduled to open in 2027; and
  • Providing $340,000GPRin fiscal year 2025-26 and $222,000GPRin fiscal year 2026-27 to make security and safety improvements at historic sites across the state.
Gov. Evers also exercised his broad, constitutional veto authority to partially veto aspects of the budget that were outside of the bipartisan budget negotiations. More information about the bipartisan budget signed by Gov. Evers is available here.
An online version of this release is available here.
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Office of the Governor • 115 East Capitol, Madison, WI 53702
Press Office Email: [email protected]
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The Office of the Governor of the State of Wisconsin published this content on October 30, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on October 31, 2025 at 15:37 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]