Taxi now tacks weekends

The weekday commuter ferry between Newburgh and Beacon has been such a success that both cities have been working to launch ferry service on the weekends. Those efforts have finally met with success: a new water taxi inaugurated service on the weekend of June 23-24. The service, which is being operated by Hudson Cruises, will operate on weekends and holidays through Oct. 14.
“This water taxi service, in tandem with the ferry, will go a long way to enhance tourism and economic development endeavors in both our cities,” said Newburgh Mayor Nicholas Valentine in a press release.
The water taxi, a pontoon boat that seats 18 people, will operate between noon and 7:30 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays, departing from either city every 15 minutes. The fare is $10 roundtrip; round-trip tickets are good for the weekend. The one-way fare is $8. Children travel half-price. 
The schedule is coordinated with trolley service in Beacon, said A. Noor Rahaman, director of marketing at Hudson Cruises. After exploring the galleries and shops in Beacon, “tourists and residents can come back on the trolley and catch the boat and go to the Newburgh side for supper,” said Rahaman. “We also cater to people from Metro-North. They can walk to the ferry from the train station in Beacon.”
Folks taking the train to Beacon from New York City can thus experience a full weekend of culture without getting in a car: from visiting DIA Beacon to dining in Newburgh”™s waterfront restaurants and gallery hopping, shopping and enjoying the distinctive architecture and riverfront views of both cities. Linking the two cities by water on weekends also is expected to boost the attendance at the Saturday gallery openings in each city, which take place the second Saturday of the month in Beacon and the last Saturday of the month in Newburgh.
Rahaman said Hudson Cruises, which is based in Hudson, also owns a larger, paddle-wheel-style boat, which it utilizes on boat tours out of Hudson. (Visitors can walk from the Amtrak train station in Hudson to the dock.) This summer, the company is expanding its coverage from Hudson to the mid-Hudson region, with tours scheduled out of Poughkeepsie and Highland and charters booked out of Newburgh. The large boat has an enclosed dining room seating 80, plus a full bar and the upper decks can be closed off from the weather, said Rahaman.

“We”™re trying to serve other ports during the week,” he said. “We”™ve been working closely with the Poughkeepsie Chamber, Dutchess County Tourism, and the cities of Newburgh and Beacon. We”™ve also been working with Hudson (Columbia County) and Catskill (Greene County), which have been tremendously supportive and have given us the momentum to get to higher levels of involvement. There are different ways of doing this without hitting public funds. We”™re a commercial venture with a public mission.”
Rahaman said his company also uses the smaller boat for educational tours of the river and is trying to get underwriting for programs for the “underrepresented folks,” such as youth. The pontoons of the water taxi boat enable it to access the islands north of Hudson at low tide. “Students can get off and touch things. They are being taught the flora and fauna.” Educational boat tours have also been conducted from Poughkeepsie and Highland, he said.