ABOUT US
The M.S. River Rouge Cruise Line is Canada’s largest river cruise ship, and from May to October can be seen navigating down the Red and Assiniboine Rivers and the surrounding countryside. With its upper and lower decks the ship can accommodate up to 400 passengers for either private charters or public sight-seeing cruises. The M.S. River Rouge Cruise Line is 150 feet long, has a 32 foot beam, and weighs 450 tonne. The ship has a shallow V hull and draws only 4 feet of water, and is powered by twin marine diesel engines, and is capable of doing over 10 knots.
The idea for the M.S. River Rouge came about in the Early 1960’s by founder Commodore Dan Richie. It took three years of planning and formulating ideas to gain approval from the Federal Department of Transport before actual building could begin by Selkirk Machine and Purvis Boat Yards in Selkirk, Manitoba. Eventually in 1965, the all-steel hull and superstructure ship began to take shape, and by May 1967, the M.S. River Rouge was launched, and not long after the craft’s mid ship was lengthened in 1969 as a result of turning away as many passengers as they were carrying. The following year, in 1970, the ship was once again lengthened, this time creating a private stern stateroom specifically built to welcome H.R.H. Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon, of Kensington Palace, during her visit to Winnipeg with Lord Snowdon.
In 1986, Commodore Dan Richie sold the popular M.S. River Rouge. Since that time, the ship has changed hands once and is currently owned and operated by Mr. K Vogiatzakis, who purchased the ship in the beginning of January of 2007. He is committed to reviving the legacy of the M.S. River Rouge that once carried over 100,000 passengers in a single summer throughout its prime in the mid 1970’s. During the spring of 2007, he initiated extensive renovations of the ship, which has once again established the M.S. River Rouge as Winnipeg’s Premiere Cruise Ship.
