

In June 1944, The Cobia began the first of six war patrols in which she sank 13 Japanese vessels.Īs the tour group stood on deck, Johnson used an admittedly cheesy analogy, likening the submarine to a Coney Island hot dog. The fully restored USS Cobia, a National Historic Landmark, is very similar to the 28 submarines built by the Manitowoc Shipbuilding Co. “This is for people who really want to get into it.” “It’s more for people who want to learn about the submarine than just get on it,” Johnson said. The tour offers visitors a chance to see areas of the World War II submarine not seen on typical tours.

“We thought it would be interesting to see some history,” said her husband, Matt. “We just wanted to get away for the weekend,” said tour member Ang Dralle of Milwaukee. His wife came along “because she loves me,” he added with a laugh. “I love World War II history,” Brusky told the Herald Times Reporter of Manitowoc. He and his wife, Rhonda, were part of the Wisconsin Maritime Museum’s USS Cobia Nook & Cranny Tour, led by guide Mike Johnson. (AP) – Kelly Brusky of Sturgeon Bay, Wis., sounded the dive alarm and shouted “Dive! Dive!” into the PA system in the control room of the USS Cobia submarine on a recent Saturday morning. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share-Alike 2.5 Generic license. We went out on a limb and named this the best AirBnB in Wisconsin.USS Cobia docked at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc, Wis., where the vessel was built in 1943. As of this writing, the USS Cobia has a perfect five star rating on AirBnB. When we visited they really sold the experience with guests receiving their bedding and toiletries in a World War II esque bag. The latest pricing we saw was $714 / a night which for their recommended minimum guest count of 16 is just over $40 a night. This is best suited for groups or a few families traveling together.
#Manitowoc submarine tour full#
Enjoy turning it from Full Ahead to Full Stop and watching how the engine works. The working engine is a 65-ton steam engine that you can control. The engine is from the Chief Wawatam car-ferry which was built in 1911 and used to ferry vehicles across the Straights of Mackinac. The exhibit is like entering the engine room of a Great Lakes ship from the early 1900s. One non-submarine oriented exhibit our family enjoyed was the Chief Wawatam Steam Engine.
#Manitowoc submarine tour free#
Overnight you are also free to explore all the museum has to offer including exhibits on WWII Submarine life, and shipwrecks. Our kids partook in this exhibit several times.Īs part of your stay, you will enjoy a personalized behind-the-scenes tour of the submarine and your guide is on site all night should you need assistance. Here it was actually encouraged.īefore we even entered the submarine there is the USS Cobia Below the Surface exhibit which transports you to WWII where you experience what it would have felt like to be submerged in a submarine while depth charges as an actual mission from the Cobia’s War Patrol Log is simulated. This is not your typical stodgy museum exhibit where you are expected to eagle eye your kids to make sure they are not touching anything. They allowed us to actually take the controls (don’t worry they are disconnected from the actual dive planes) and simulate a dive, hearing the warning sounds that would have been heard by a submerged crew.


Their USS Cobia AirBnB listing states “Your stay will be as unique as the submarine, no two visits are exactly the same”.ĭuring our special behind-the-scenes private tour my son was encouraged to open up a torpedo door and slide into the torpedo bay which was a special experience. With a stay on the Cobia, you can expect an immersive and unique experience. Manitowoc has a history with submarines, during WWII 28 Submarines were built in the town of Manitowoc. The USS Cobia is a fully restored US Navy Gato World War II class submarine located at the Wisconsin Maritime Museum. There are unique AirBnB and VRBO rentals throughout the country, but Wisconsin’s coolest location is the USS Cobia.
