After a long search for a new owner, the Tahquamenon Falls Train and Riverboat Tours company has officially shut their doors for good.
Last year, owners Kris and Dixie Stewart announced their retirement, placing the business up for sale in hopes they could find someone willing to take the helm in their place. They did not open the boat tours for the 2024 season as they searched for a new owner.
On Saturday, September 7 they took to Facebook to announce the official closure of the business and said they were unable to find anyone to take over. The land the business stood on will be up for sale, including over 100 acres of land.
For nearly a century, one of the ways to view the falls was through the Tahquamenon Falls Riverboat Tours. The guided tours covered over 21 miles on the way to a private, upstream view of the Falls unseen through the state park, taking six and half hours to make the round trip.
Tahquamenon Falls is the second largest waterfall system east of the Mississippi River, only behind Niagara Falls. Nearly half a million people make the trip each year to Paradise in the eastern Upper Peninsula to view the falls for themselves, putting it among Michigan's top tourist attractions.
A spokesperson for the Michigan Department of Natural Resources told WCMU they will continue to have personal rowboat rentals available for people within the state park boundaries.
