Queen Mary tours are slated to return starting April 1, while hotel rooms on the ship are available to book starting May 12, the vessel’s operator has announced.
Tickets for the Glory Days Historical Tour, Steam & Steel Tour and Haunted Encounters Tour will be for sale online starting at 10 a.m. Tuesday, and hotel stays beginning May 12 can be booked online now.
“It is so exciting to finally welcome visitors back onboard this historic landmark,” Mayor Rex Richardson said in a statement. “We have worked tirelessly to protect the ship’s safety, preserve its rich history and bring it back to life. These tours are just the beginning of a larger phased reopening plan and we look forward to sharing more details of the ship in the coming months.”
In December and January, the city opened the Queen Mary to a limited number of visitors for tours of a few specific parts of the vessel. It was the first opportunity for members of the public to be on board since the ship closed in March 2020 due to the pandemic.
The vessel remained closed throughout the pandemic as officials determined the ship would need tens of millions in repairs to remain functional and above water, after previous operators deferred maintenance for years.
In 2021, the city took over ship operations after the hired operating company gave up the lease in a bankruptcy proceeding.
Some of the repair work has been performed over the past year or so, but city leaders will face tough decisions about the future of the historic ocean liner, which is estimated to need nearly $300 million in fixes to remain a safe and viable tourist attraction.
No matter what the city does with the Queen Mary, it won’t be cheap, new report says