Hornblower Coupons & Promo Codes April 2024

Since Hornblower Founder and CEO Terry MacRae purchased a small charter yacht business in 1980, the California-based company has focused on one mission: delivering premier, high-quality dining, entertainment and cruise experiences. Guests choose Hornblower Cruises & Events for vacations, weddings, corporate outings and private charters of any kind as well as for individual dining cruises and tourism excursions.

Today, the company cruises from seven California port cities and New York City. It also operates two National Park Service concessions with Alcatraz Cruises and Statue Cruises and recently began Niagara Cruises, in partnership with The Niagara Parks Commission, an Operational Enterprise Agency of the Canadian Ministry of Tourism, Culture and Sport.

Terry and a business partner acquired Hornblower Coach Tours in 1980. At the time, the two-yacht company was based in Berkeley, California and its assets included a 75-passenger catamaran called the M/V Admiral Hornblower. Hornblower's early efforts focused on private group charters but the company also committed to future growth by signing a long-term facility lease in the Berkeley Marina.

In 1984, Hornblower moved its headquarters across the bay to San Francisco. Four years later, the company added new harbor tours and whale watching adventures in San Diego. Terry became the sole owner of Hornblower Yachts, Inc. in 1992 and he renamed the company as Hornblower Cruises & Events to more accurately reflect the variety of products and services offered. He also continued enhancing the charter and dining cruises available to Hornblower guests. The company bucked a nationwide recession to post increased annual revenue during the early 1990s.

As Terry and his team grew the business, several highlights distinguished Hornblower Cruises & Events from its competition. The company added a number of noteworthy yachts to its fleet, including the elegant M/V Wild Goose in 1995. Actor John Wayne used the restored 1942 minesweeper as his private getaway for years and Hornblower Cruises & Events continues to operate the historic yacht in Newport Beach.

The company's fleet topped 30 vessels in 2001 with the addition of the 2,200-passenger San Francisco Belle. It remains the largest dining yacht on the West Coast. Since then, the company has introduced the nation's first hybrid ferry, Hornblower Hybrid, as well as Hornblower Infinity, a 1,000-passenger gem with private event spaces and an open-air deck set 65 feet off the water.

Hornblower Cruises & Events' leaders also chartered a successful course by adding new port cities. In 1997, the company acquired Lake Tahoe Cruises, Inc. and the vessels Tahoe Queen and Tahoe Princess. Hornblower Cruises & Events then added land shuttle services between South Lake Tahoe and Squaw Valley Ski Resort and the Lake Link ferry service across Lake Tahoe. In its day, it was the fastest passenger boat on the lake. Hornblower sold its Lake Tahoe port business in 2002.