They had a splash!
It was defiantly not an ordinary Tuesday for the team at Hornblower Niagara Cruises. The Hornblower Ticketing Plaza welcomed three hundred extremely excited students along with 60 teachers and chaperons to experience a moment in history in Niagara Falls, Canada.

The free visit for the students and staff came as part of the school’s winning for the Hornblower Niagara Cruises international ‘Name Our Boats’ contest. The local school from Chippawa, Ontario was one of the many thousands of entries that were submitted as part of the online social media contest. The contest saw a number of creative, funny and historical names that made reference to the history of Niagara Falls. However, it was the ‘Niagara Thunder’ and ‘Niagara Wonder’ that were chosen as the names for the two state-of-the-art catamarans.

It began back in November when Hornblower Niagara Cruises welcomed their online social media followers to engage in a fun online contest to encourage visitors to partake in the naming of the two 700-passenger state-of-the-art catamarans before they were completed and ready for passengers. The contest that spread quickly received thousands of submissions beginning in Niagara Falls, to New Jersey and followed all the way to India and Japan!

Strangely creative and even historical names were among the thousands from entries, but it was two names that stuck out to the Hornblower Niagara Cruises deciding committee. ‘Niagara Thunder’ and ‘Niagara Wonder’ along with the Niagara Guardian were officially announced on Hornblower Niagara Cruises Facebook page. Nearly two months later Hornblower Niagara Cruises was approved and finalized by Transport Canada for the names that will reside on the boats for the next 30 years.
As the student and teachers arrived, the students and staff of Sacred Heart Catholic Elementary were not only sporting their blue and white attire as they entered, but their big bright smiles as the anxiously stood in front of the famous white sails to begin their Niagara experience. For many young ones this was their first time on board the mighty Niagara waters, where as in parents, teachers and guardians this was their first time to experience a new way to see the Falls on board the catamarans.
As the students lined up after their famous Niagara Falls class picture they were led the way by Hornblower Niagara Cruise staff that walked each student and staff on the ‘Niagara Wonder’ that the students so proudly named. It didn’t take long for the playful screams and laughter to begin as they departed their journey to the thunderous Bridal Veil, American and Canadian Horseshoe Falls. The smiles continued on board as hundreds of priceless pictures were captured from the Niagara Cruises marketing team.  TV Cogeco was also present capturing the fun-filled event and interviewing the students and their experience. As the students left with soggy socks and wet tangled hair, they showed their enthusiasm for the boat ride and as a team we know that we created amazing and life changing experiences for all of them.
Visit: https://www.flickr.com/photos/niagaracruises/ to view more pictures from their visit.
Watch the television coverage from TV Cogeco: http://www.tvcogeco.com/niagara/gallery/the-source/6975-june-source-stories