Sault Ste. Marie Tour 1 – 2 Hours

The City of Sault Ste. Marie’s first European visitor wasn’t nearly as well received as your group will be when you tour the second-oldest city in the United States. What happened to Etienne Brulee, and why did he meet his end in such a horrible fashion?

His story is but one of the fascinating tales on the city tour of “The Soo” as it is known to the locals. You’ll visit the spot where the voyageurs portaged their trade canoes around the rapids, and see the place that today’s fishermen still catch “the big ones” as they attempt to jump the rocky ladder from the St. Marys river into the waters of Lake Superior.

The Soo Locks are the centerpiece of any visit to this border community. With a combined population of nearly 100,000 residents, the “Twin Saults” comprise the Ontario and Michigan cities that guard the locks and its equally important border crossing between the United States and Canada. Your guide can expedite your Soo Locks Boat Tour*  through the locks, assisting your passengers and answering questions throughout the tour. This trip is also available as a dinner cruise. The boat trip lasts approximately two hours.

Another option is to view the locks without the boat trip, instead stopping at the Locks Information and Visitors Center, which has clean restrooms and a 20-minute video about construction of the locks. The Center has an update board, which lists vessels that are upbound or downbound through the locks, as well as video monitors to see the giant ships from beyond the entrance to the lock channels. Your guide will take you to a covered viewing platform to watch the freighters as they pass through the locks. This creates a 60-90 minute visit.

Optional visits are available to the Museum Ship Valley Camp*, a 1920s era freighter now dry-docked for on-board tours; the Tower of History and River of History Museum*, which provides a panoramic view of the area plus Native American artifacts and exhibits; and the Kewadin Casino and Convention Center, the North’s largest gaming and entertainment complex.

Separate entrance or admission price for these attractions*.