About

Hornblower Group

We are Hornblower Group, the global leader in world-class experiences and transportation.

The brand heritage of our organization dates back nearly 100 years, with the establishment of Boston Harbor Cruises in Massachusetts in 1926; on the west coast of the United States, Hornblower Group began in 1980. Across our growing portfolio, we have a long-standing history of expertise and innovation and have continually redefined the marine hospitality industry. Today, our footprint spans 111 countries and territories, and 125 U.S. cities, with offerings including water-based experiences, land-based experiences, overnight cruise experiences, and ferry and transportation services and marine consulting & services.

Notably, we designed and built the first hybrid ferry in the United States which reduces fuel consumption by 75%; it is part of Alcatraz City Cruises. City Ferry operates the first zero-emission, all-electric passenger/vehicle ferry in the U.S.

Our Hornblower Group global headquarters is in San Francisco, California, with additional corporate offices in Boston, Massachusetts; Chicago, Illinois; London, United Kingdom; New York, New York; and Ontario, Canada.

Core Leadership Team

Mike Flaskey
Mike Flaskey
Chief Executive Officer

Mike Flaskey

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Flaskey brings to the Hornblower portfolio a wealth of relevant experiences, having previously held senior leadership positions at Wyndham Vacation and Starwood Hotels & Resorts and Diamond Resorts. At Diamond, Flaskey rose from Chief Sales & Marketing Officer to COO, and ultimately CEO. He led the company with a keen focus on guest experiences through a period of significant growth culminating in its acquisition by Hilton Grand Vacations in 2021. Since then, he has served as a Senior Advisor to the McKinsey Travel, Leisure & Infrastructure practice and to the CEO of Capital Vacations. He also serves as an Independent Director for Invited Clubs.

“We are thrilled to welcome Mike as Hornblower’s new CEO,” said Jonathan Waggoner, Co-Head of the North American Operating Team at Strategic Value Partners. “He has a clear vision for the future of Hornblower. He has a true passion for the operators who deliver our service day in and day out, and he has the experience needed to lead our company through the next phase of growth and innovation.”

In response, Flaskey shared, “I am honored to join Hornblower Group at such an exciting time. I look forward to working with the talented team to continue building on the company’s strong foundation and to explore new opportunities for growth and success.” He continued, “Hornblower is ahead of the curve with the significant experience-based initiatives across their business units. Touching over 20 million guests in-person annually in our various business units create unlimited flexibility to grow the company.”

Adam C. Peakes
Adam C. Peakes
President

Adam C. Peakes

President

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With Hornblower’s overarching goal of becoming a Global Experiences and Transportation Leader, Peakes works in partnership with the division leaders to enable the strategic business plans across the organization.

Peakes comes to Hornblower from Merichem Corporation, a large private industrial services company, serving as the company CFO, and previously as CFO at Noble Corporation, one of the largest publicly traded offshore drilling contractors in the oil and gas industry. Prior to that, he had a nearly 20-year career as an Investment Banker, serving as a Managing Director at Goldman Sachs, then as a Partner at the boutique investment banking firm of Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Company. Peakes additionally spent time working in the sports industry, including playing professional basketball in Europe and later as a member of the Houston Rockets management team.

Peakes graduated from Rice University where he played Division I basketball and was a two-time Academic All-American, and the Southwest Conference Scholar Athlete of the Year.  He gained his MBA from Harvard Business School. Additionally, Peakes serves on the Board of Directors for Trecora Resources (NYSE: TREC) and Diamond Offshore Drilling (NYSE: DO), and he is Chairman of the Board of Advisors for Rice University Jones School of Management (Rice MBA).

Outside of work, Peakes enjoys spending time with his wife and four children as well as traveling, reading, and playing golf.  He currently resides in Houston, Texas.

Image of Michelle Mason Hornblower Group Chief People Officer
Michelle Mason
Chief People Officer

Michelle Mason

Chief People Officer

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In her capacity as Chief People Officer at Hornblower Group, Michelle Mason oversees the global human resources strategy to support Hornblower’s 5,000-plus employees worldwide. Her key areas of focus include recruitment and retention, compensation and benefits planning, and labor relations. Mason also plays a pivotal role in shaping and evolving workplace culture, overseeing training and development programs; employee engagement; and diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives.

Mason brings more than 25 years of experience in HR and strategic consulting services for international corporations. Prior to joining Hornblower Group, Mason’s decades-long career with Procter & Gamble took her all over the world working across multiple brands, businesses, and regions. More recently, Michelle’s work with Kinetic Consulting led to several extended engagements and executive CHRO appointments. Her specialty in relationship building and her record of delivering results has made her a trusted advisor and leader

Mason holds a bachelor’s degree in design and environmental analysis and a master’s degree in industrial and labor relations from Cornell University.

Frank Dunsford
Frank Dunsford
Chief Financial Officer

Frank Dunsford

Chief Financial Officer

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As Hornblower Group’s Chief Financial Officer, Dunsford provides strategic financial insight, supports growth plans, and drives value creation while overseeing all financial and accounting matters related to the company. Dunsford’s background is in private equity-backed companies and public companies, driving value creation in M&A acquisition, integrations, and change management initiatives.

Dunsford came to Hornblower Group from Youth Enrichment Brands, a private equity-backed youth activities company, serving as the company CFO. Prior to that, he spent over three years with Hornblower Group as the interim CFO and Vice President Corporate Controller. Prior to his first stint with Hornblower Group, Dunsford spent more than 18 years with KPMG Audit and Accounting Advisory.

Dunsford enjoys spending time with his wife Pramoda and their two children as well as traveling, hiking, listening to music, and playing cricket. He currently resides in the San Francisco Bay Area, California.

Stewart Alpert
Stewart Alpert
Chief Information Security Officer and Chief Technology Officer

Stewart Alpert

Chief Information Security Officer and Chief Technology Officer

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Currently serving as Hornblower’s Chief Information Security Officer and Chief Technology Officer, Stewart has extensive experience and expertise at the nexus of technology and business. Well versed in security, engineering and IT, he’s held leadership roles in top companies such as VMware and Walmart Labs as well as several start-ups. Stewart holds a master’s degree in software engineering, and a bachelor’s degree in computer science.

Mitch Randall
General Counsel

Mitch Randall

General Counsel

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Mitch Randall is the General Counsel of Hornblower Group, the holding company for City Experiences and American Queen Voyages. He is responsible for all of Hornblower’s legal matters, including litigation, mergers & acquisitions, human resources, real estate and permitting, commercial contract negotiations, finance, risk management, corporate governance, and management of external counsel.

Mitch was previously the President and Chief Legal Officer of PureGen Power, a clean power company focused on the acquisition, improvement and operation of utility scale solar projects. Prior to joining PureGen in January 2017, he was the President of Recurrent Energy, one of North America’s largest solar project developers.

Mitch has more than 20 years of legal experience in hospitality, energy, project development, regulatory, finance, and mergers & acquisitions. Prior to serving as President of Recurrent Energy, Mitch served as its General Counsel, overseeing the company’s legal strategy across its operations. Prior to joining Recurrent Energy, Mitch was a partner with Morrison & Foerster LLP, where he represented energy, real estate, development, health care and technology companies in complex transactional, permitting and regulatory matters.

Mitch received a JD from University of California’s Hastings College of the Law and a BS from the University of Colorado at Boulder.

Phil Anzai
Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development

Phil Anzai

Senior Vice President of Strategy and Business Development

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A graduate of the University of Chicago Booth School of Business (MBA) and the University of Colorado Leeds School of Business (BS Finance), Phil is an experienced travel and hospitality professional specializing in customer experience, service operations, and strategy. From his time consulting with McKinsey & Company, Deloitte, and Hitachi Consulting, he has wide industry knowledge and practice across airlines, hotels, casinos, airports, OTAs, transportation companies, and experience operators. Prior to consulting, Phil started his career with The Walt Disney Company and Six Flags. Today, as Chief of Staff, Phil works across Hornblower’s businesses to set their long-term strategy and lead key strategic initiatives.

Michael K. Burke
COO Concessions & Park Services

Michael K. Burke

COO, Concessions & Park Services

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Mike joined Statue City Cruises as VP & COO at the start of 2008. Statue City Cruises carries 4.5 million passengers annually to the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island and on harbor cruises & charters. He directs all operations and fiscal affairs of Statue City Cruises. Commitment to safety & security, hospitality, guest service, innovation, and environmental initiatives has enabled Statue City Cruises to achieve results far exceeding industry standards. Mike is responsible for relationships with the National Park Service, U.S. Coast Guard, NYC Parks & Recreation, and numerous government agencies and not-for-profit partners.

In August 2020, Mike was promoted to COO, of Concessions & Park Services to direct Alcatraz City Cruises as well as Statue City Cruises. In addition to an expanded role with NPS and USCG matters, Mike is the liaison with the Port of San Francisco and the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy.

Prior to his current position, Mike served as CFO at BillyBey Ferry Company from 2005 to 2008. Mike was President and CEO at Circle Line-Statue of Liberty Ferry in 2000 and 2001, where he served as its first non-owner chief executive. He was also advisor and consultant to Circle Line from 1982 to 2000.

Mike is an active Board and Committee Member of NYC & Company, the Friends of Governors Island and various other organizations. He holds a US Coast Guard 100 GRT Captain License and is a Certified Public Accountant.

Mory DiMaurizio
COO, City Cruises Canada

Mory DiMaurizio

COO, City Cruises Canada

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Mory DiMaurizio joined Hornblower Canada in 2014. As Vice President & General Manager, he oversaw the successful startup, development and operations of Hornblower Niagara City Cruises. At the helm of Canada’s most iconic tourist attraction, Mory oversees the safe passage of over 2.4 million visitors per year. He is responsible for ensuring that his highly skilled team is focused on guest services, safety and environmental goals and objectives. As key liaison with the Niagara Parks Commission, an operational enterprise agency for the Ontario Ministry of Heritage, Sport, Tourism and Culture Industries, Mory ensures compliance with all financial and operating agreements.

With 25 years of experience in the hospitality industry, Mory sits on the Board of Directors for Niagara Falls Tourism as Treasurer and the Tourism Partnership of Niagara.

Prior to joining Hornblower, Mory was General Manager for Medieval Times Entertainment overseeing the Toronto operations at the Canadian National Exhibition from 2005 to 2013. Mory was General Manager for the Ontario Lottery & Gaming Corporation participating in Casino development, operations and 14 successful casino startup operations on time and budget within the Canadian gaming industry from 1996 to 2005.

Mory is a Certified Engineering Technologist (OACETT), is a graduate of Electrical Engineering with a double minor in Computers and Electronics from Niagara College.

Stephen Oddo
President, Walks & Devour

Stephen Oddo

President, Walks & Devour

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Stephen is a serial travel industry entrepreneur and founded multiple companies in the tours & activities sector since 2005. He founded WalksofItaly.com, an online travel company for visitors to Italy offering sightseeing tours and travel activities, in 2009. Walks of Italy soon became one of the largest operators of experiential travel services in Italy.

Walks is now a global brand and one of the largest operators of guided tours in the world, handling hundreds of thousands of passengers annually. Walks operates travel experiences in 20 cities across 9 countries. During the pandemic, Stephen led development of Walks’ virtual tour program “Tours from Home,” receiving tens of thousands of paid bookings and widespread acclaim in Travel + Leisure, Forbes, Skift, Boston Globe, and more. In early 2021, Walks joined City Experiences (Hornblower Group) to start the next chapter of growth and expansion. He also led the acquisition of Devour Tours, a leading global food tour company, closing in late 2021.

Dan Russell Co-COO, City Cruises U.S
Dan Russell
Co-COO, City Cruises U.S.

Dan Russell

Co-COO, City Cruises U.S.

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Dan Russell currently serves as Co-Chief Operating Officer of the City Cruises U.S. division, overseeing all areas of the business in 16 ports across the country.

Dan has been a Crew member of City Cruises for over 20 years and has lead teams in operations, sales and marketing, product development and general management.

Dan holds a BBA from Notre Dame and is a certified public accountant. He works out of the Chicago port and resides in the suburbs with his wife and two teenage children.

Scott Thornton
COO, City Ferry

Scott Thornton

COO, City Ferry

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Scott Thornton is the COO, City Ferry, where he leads the operations of all ferry systems it operates, including NYC Ferry, Puerto Rico Ferry, and more.

In his more than three decades with Hornblower, Scott has served at every level of the organization, beginning as a bartender onboard the California Hornblower in Los Angeles. In his time at Hornblower, Scott has exemplified the leadership and creativity that drives our growth and success, helping to lead each Hornblower start-up operation and ensuring the highest level of operational standards and focus on safety, quality, and crew development.

Prior to serving as COO of Hornblower Group’s Ferries & Transportation Division, Scott served as Chief Operating Officer of NYC Ferry. Since its launch in 2017, NYC Ferry – a new public transit option serving Manhattan, Queens, Brooklyn, and The Bronx – has served more than 17.5 million riders.

Before leading NYC Ferry, Scott was General Manager and Vice President of Operations of Alcatraz City Cruises, which, under his leadership, introduced the first ever hybrid ferry in 2009. Soon after Alcatraz City Cruises became the first triple ISO-certified passenger maritime operation, Scott also led the Alcatraz City Cruises crew to their highest level of annual ridership while maintaining a dedication to safety and quality which led to Alcatraz City Cruises being named the No. 1 landmark in the U.S. in TripAdvisor’s Traveler’s Choice award. In addition to this experience, Scott spearheaded Hornblower’s Statute City Cruises launch in New York City.

Scott is a certified Captain and resides in New York City.

Christine Metivier Co-COO, City Cruises U.S
Christine Metivier
Co-COO, City Cruises U.S.

Christine Metivier

Co-COO, City Cruises U.S.

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Christine Metivier is Co-Chief Operating Officer of the City Cruises U.S. division, overseeing all areas of the business in 16 ports across the country.

Christine has over two decades of sales and operations experience. She began her career at the Boston port of City Cruises before transferring to the New York City port. Christine held various positions throughout the organization including a position in Event Management, Sales Director, General Manager, and Regional Vice President.

Christine received her Bachelor of Science degree from UMASS Amherst and works out of the New York City office. She resides in New Jersey with her husband and labradoodle.

Nasi Peretz
President & Chief Technology Officer, Anchor Operating System

Nasi Peretz

President & Chief Technology Officer, Anchor Operating System

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A graduate of the University of Southern California’s Viterbi School of Engineering in Computer Engineering & Computer Science for both undergrad and grad. Created WestsideRentals.com along with Mark Verge and Kevin Miller, 70+ employees which after 15 years was sold to Apartments.com/Costar (CSGP on Nasdaq). Then created Ticketmob.com with Scot Richardson which was acquired in December of 2012 by Cvent (CVT on Nasdaq) and after 6 years of expanding that ticketing company moved to Ticketmaster/LiveNation where he created Taylor Swift’s ticketing platform for the largest concert series in Ticketmaster history. Now Chief Technology Officer at the Hornblower Group after serving as the Vice President of Engineering for two years.

History of the Company

Our story officially begins in 1980 when Hornblower Tours was purchased by Terry MacRae in Berkeley, California. However, the history of brands in our portfolio goes back nearly 100 years:
  • 1926 – Boston Harbor Cruises is founded in Boston, Massachusetts
  • 1951 – Gananoque Boat Lines is founded in Gananoque, Ontario, Canada
  • 1974 – Potomac Riverboat Cruises is founded in Alexandria, Virginia
  • 1978 – Spirit Cruises is founded in Norfolk, Virginia
  • 1980 – Hornblower Tours purchased by Terry MacRae in Berkeley, California
  • 1980 – 1987 – The company is known as Hornblower Party Yachts
  • 1984 – The company moves its headquarters to San Francisco, California
  • 1986 – City Cruises is founded in London, England
  • 1987 – 1993 – The company is known as Hornblower Dining Yachts
  • 1987 – Mariposa Cruises is founded in Toronto, Canada
  • 1991 – Odyssey Cruises is founded in Chicago, Illinois
  • 1993 – 2020 – The company is known as Hornblower Cruises & Events
  • 1993 – The company spins off Hornblower Marine Services (HMS), a marine management company focused on the operation of casino boats and ferries. HMS Ferries, Inc. expands to government contracting work and the development of high-speed ferry systems.
  • 1996 – City Cruises develops the first new purpose-built sightseeing boat on the River Thames in London
  • 1996 – Seadog is founded in Chicago, Illinois
  • 1997 – The company acquires Lake Tahoe Cruises, Inc. and adds ferry services across Lake Tahoe
  • 1998 – Mystic Blue Cruises is founded in Chicago, Illinois
  • 2004 – Hornblower Group acquires Adventures at Sea and becomes the largest private yacht fleet in Southern California
  • 2006 – Alcatraz Cruises, a Hornblower subsidiary, is awarded National Park Commission contract for Alcatraz Island in San Francisco
  • 2007 – Entertainment Cruises acquires Baltimore Harbor Cruises
  • 2008 – Hornblower Group awarded National Park Service contract for Statue of Liberty National Monument and Ellis Island Immigration Museum
  • 2009 – Seaward Services is founded in New Albany, Indiana
  • 2009 – Alcatraz Cruises designed and built the first hybrid ferry in the United States which reduces fuel consumption by 75%
  • 2011 – Cruising Excursions is founded in London, England
  • 2014 – Niagara Cruises begins tours in Niagara Gorge with two state-of-the-art catamarans
  • 2015 – Hornblower Group awarded the NYC Ferry contract by the New York City Economic Development Corporation
  • 2016 – Entertainment Cruises is formed with the merger of Odyssey Cruises and Spirit Cruises
  • 2016 – Entertainment Cruises acquires Potomac Riverboat Company
  • 2017 – NYC Ferry by Hornblower begins operations on May 1, 2017
  • 2018 – Entertainment Cruises acquires Mariposa Cruises
  • 2019 – The Gee’s Bend Ferry operates the first zero-emission, all-electric passenger/vehicle ferry in the U.S.
  • 2019 – Hornblower Group acquires Entertainment Cruises, Boston Harbor Cruises, Gananoque Boat Lines, and UK-based City Cruises under the Cruises & Events division
  • 2020 – The company is known as Hornblower Group, with Cruises & Events becoming one of the company’s four divisions
  • 2020 – HMS Ferries Inc. named operator of Puerto Rico Ferry Service
  • 2021 – Cruising Excursions is added to the company’s portfolio of businesses in January, expanding our footprint globally to 70 countries
  • 2021 – Shore Trips is added to the company’s portfolio of businesses in February, expanding our global footprint to more than 110 countries and territories
  • 2021 – In April 2021, Hornblower Cruises & Events, City Cruises, and HMS Ferries, Inc. rebrand as one master company, City Experiences. City Cruises and City Ferry are named sub-brands of the division
  • 2021 – As part of the expansion of land based activities Walks was brought on board in Q1 along with Devour Food Tours in Q4. The Walks platform brought in not only Guides from around the world but a technology platform to elevate the Hornblower Group.
  • 2022 – Venture Ashore launches as the newest addition to the City Experiences portfolio of brands in February, becoming the largest independent cruise excursions provider in the world