Cruise Resources for the Hudson River and the NY Harbor
- Cruise New York - The NYS Tour Boat Association: This highly informative website provides a long list of Hudson River cruises, starting from Albany and ending in the New York Harbor, as well as cruises from elsewhere in New York State, including Long Island.
- Sail the Hudson: Experience the thrill of sailing on a 30-foot sail boat with no more than 6 other people (as described in Cruising the NY Harbor and the Hudson River). Sit behind the wheel! Scamper over the deck! Help set the sails! Join the Sea Fever Sailing Club for longer cruises and cruise discounts.
- Hudson Highlands Cruises: Home of the 100 year old Hudson River cruise ship, the Commander, this cruise company offers cruises that leave from Haverstraw, Peekskill, and West Point. Note that you need to pass military inspection before you can arrive at the West Point dock. Once admitted, however, you can also tour West Point by car, which is a big perk for that location. (Also see Cruising the NY Harbor and the Hudson River.)
- Circle-Line Sightseeing at 42nd Street and Circle Line Downtown: Cruise the NY City area on huge, traditional tour boats (moored at their 42nd Street address), on the Beast or Shark speedboats (moored Downtown), or the Zephyr, which is a modern tour yacht (also moored Downtown). Check both of their sites for special events, such as fall color trips along the Hudson River to the Bear Mountain State Park (September through October), holiday cruises, and on-board entertainment. (Also see Cruising the NY Harbor and the Hudson River.)
- Gray Line New York Sightseeing Cruises: Cruise the New York City area on one of the Gray Line's huge red and blue tour boats, or make arrangements on this site for other vessels.
- Kingston's Rip Van Winkle Cruise: Cruise the Hudson River Valley on a large, modern tour ship, the Rip Van Winkle.
- NY Waterway: Cruise the New York City area on one of NY Waterway's famous ferry boats. (If you've seen movies about New York City and its harbor, you've probably seen NY Waterway's ferries in action.)
- Spirit Cruises of New York Harbor: Cruise the New York City area for dining adventures.
- Classic Harbor Line: Sail the New York City area on a large schooner (the Adirondack or the America 2.0), or on a 1920's style, motor yacht (the Manhattan, the Catskill, and the Beacon). Standard and various types of dinner cruises are available. (Also see Cruising the NY Harbor and the Hudson River.)
- World Yacht: Cruise the New York City area for dining adventures.
- Bateaux New York: Cruise the New York City area year-round for dining adventures that include brunch, lunch, dinner, and cocktails.
- Manhattan by Sail: Cruise the New York City area aboard an historic schooner (the Shearwater), or on a 158 foot, topsail schooner (the Clipper City).
- Historic Hudson River Towns: Learn more about the cities you see when cruising along the Hudson River.
- New York Water Taxi Tours: Quickly cruise the New York City area on speedy NY Water Taxis. Also take speedy cruises to and from West Point football games, as well as to other special events and locations that border local waterways.
- Pride of the Hudson Cruises: Cruise the Hudson Valley area on the Pride of the Hudson or on the Pollepel, both moored at Newburgh Landing in Newburgh, NY. Cruises run from Newburg south to West Point and back. Some cruises include a Bannerman Island walking tour.
- Statue of Liberty & Ellis Island Cruises: Board cruise ships from Liberty State Park, NJ, and from Battery Park, NY, and cruse out to Ellis Island to see the Statue of Liberty up close. You can purchase cruise and museum tickets from this website, thereby avoiding long lines often seen on beautiful days.
- The Staten Island Ferry: Enjoy this beautiful cruise between Downtown New York and Staten Island for free! As part of New York City's commuter system, this ferry glides through the New York Harbor and closely passes The Statue of Liberty.
- All NYC Yachts: This company provides numerous yachts for charter that can accommodate from 1 to 1200 passengers. It is located at New York's W. 79th Street Boat Basin.
- Marco Polo Cruises: This New York Harbor-based company provides yachts for group charters, as well as reasonably-priced special excursions that anyone can join. Their ships are located at Pier 81 at W. 42nd Street.
- SeaStreak: This line offers high speed cruises from shore points along Manhattan and New Jersey, as well as special event cruises, such as for the Bear Mountain Oktoberfest, the 4th of July, the NY Yankee and NY Mets games, and many more.
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Other New York State Boating Opportunities
- Long Island Boat Rentals: Long Island is renown for marine activities. This website provides an extensive list of boat rentals, including canoes, charters, kayaks, fishing boats, and equipment rentals.
- Houseboating Organization: The famous Erie Canal is at the beginning of the Hudson River, approximately 8 hours north of New York City. Once there, consider boat rentals of all types, especially houseboats for half- or full-week cruises.
- New York State - Tourism & Recreation: Need more ideas about charter boating and tours in New York? Visit this site for a long list of self-skippered charter boats, canoes, fishing boats, and kayak rentals.
- New York Canal Company: This website supplies an extensive list of boating opportunities on New York's canals, as well as in the Adirondacks, the Catskills, the central Leatherstocking area, Finger Lakes, the Hudson Valley, the Niagara Frontier, Thousand Islands, and Sarasota.
- American Cruise Lines: If a two-hour Hudson River Tour is not long enough for you, take the American Cruise Lines' week-long cruises along the Hudson River and other East Coast destinations. These cruises are especially popular in the fall when the Hudson River Valley is lined with stunning autumn color.
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Instructional Resources for Sailing and Power Boating in the New York City Area
- Manhattan Sailing School: Instructions include cruising and racing, with special programs chartering, coastal cruising, coastal navigation, dingy sailing, and much more.
- Atlantic Yachting: Located at the 79th Street Boat Basin on the Hudson, they offer group and private lessons on keelboating, keelboat challenges, and coastal cruising, among many topics. Once you've completed its Basic Sailing course (or you demonstrate experience), join the their crew on Wednesday evenings for practice sails.
- Hudson River Community Sailing, a Non-Profit Organization: Located at Pier 66 Boathouse, inside the Hudson River Park at West 26th Street, they offer public, family, and private sailing lessons which can result in sailing-related certifications.
- Steve and Doris Colgate's Offshore Sailing School: Located at Chelsea Piers at 23rd Street in Manhattan and at Liberty Landing Marina in Liberty State Park, New Jersey, they offer basic sailing and sail racing instructions. Their vast course inventory includes all the skills you need to know, such as anchor setting and how to run your sail boat at top speed. Like power? A power cruise course is also available.
- New York Sailing School: Located in New Rochelle, Long Island, courses are held on the Long Island Sound for one, two, or three day periods. The school offers an extensive list of courses, including coastal cruising, marine weather, radar for mariners, and a spinnaker workshop, to name a few.
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Instructional and Rental Resources for Kayaking and Paddleboats in the New York City Area
- Manhattan Kayak Company: Located at Chelsea Piers, this company offers instruction in kayaking and liquid yoga (standing up and slowly moving around on paddleboards).
- The New York City Downtown Boat House: This non-profit organization operates out of Pier 40, Pier 96, and where 72nd Street meets the Hudson River. You can attend their classes and use their boats for free (although donations are always appreciated).
This organization provides a long list of water sport links featuring New York-area kayak, paddleboard, and other boating sports.
- Hudson River Recreation: Located at Croton on Hudson, New York, this organization provides public and private kayak lessons (on such touchy topics as "what should I do if I fall out?") and kayak tours, plus kayak and paddleboard rentals.
- New York City Department of Parks & Recreation: this is the City of New Yorks list of paddleboat rentals.
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If you know of New York-area marine resources not listed here, please let me know!
Karen Little - Karen@Littleviews.com
Article and photograph by Karen Little. First published on www.Littleviews.com on 8/17/2011. All rights reserved.
