BUFFALO, N.Y. — In less than a month, the Tall Ships Festival is bringing about a dozen vessels to Buffalo's waterfront.
It's going to be one of the biggest events our waterfront has seen in quite some time and it all starts on the 4th of July.
In just four short weeks, some of the boats moving along Buffalo's waterfront will be quite a bit larger than the ones currently there.
"We're very excited about this, there'll be ships from the South Pacific, from Spain, and Canada, and the United States," Tall Ships Festival organizer Mike Vogel said.
A team of 30, along with 800 volunteers, are finalizing plans for what will be the largest Tall Ship Festival ever in Buffalo.
12 ships will be docked at Canalside, the Riverwalk, and Erie Basin Marina from July 4 through July 7.
"We're very pleased to be bringing this to Buffalo and establishing it," Vogel said. "If we do well this time through it will occur every three years, and that would put it back in Buffalo in 2025 which is the bicentennial year of the completion of the Erie Canal."
More that ships that visitors can look at, and in some cases ride on, there'll be cultural activities including a performance by The New Almanac Singers.
"It's just a terrific thing to have these ships here, and I think there's probably a lot to learn, and I don't think there's too many people a lot about how these ships operate," Tom Naples of the New Almanac Singers said. "And there's going to be a lot of music, we're not the only band playing. There's a variety of music, and it's been structured so it will be an educational experience as well as entertaining."
You can learn more about the festival here.