BC Ferries is hoping to launch a new route between Tsawwassen and Prince Rupert in 2011 with the M.V. Northern Expedition. (BC Ferries)

BC Ferries is looking to open up the north coast tourism industry with a new cruise-style ferry trip connecting Tsawwassen and Prince Rupert up the Inside Passage, CBC News has learned.

"What we are proposing is every two weeks in the summertime to have the Northern Expedition come down to Tsawwassen and bring the tourists up north," said spokeswoman Deborah Marshall.

The 30-hour ocean voyage, would depart from the Tsawwassen terminal south of Vancouver, stop over in Port Hardy on the northern tip of Vancouver Island, before heading up the Inside Passage to Prince Rupert on B.C.'s North Coast.

'What we want to do is tap into the Vancouver market and the Pacific Northwest of the U.S.'—BC Ferries spokeswoman Deborah Marshall

The trip, which would be BC Ferries longest route, would follow the first leg of the same scenic route up the Inside Passage taken by dozens of cruise ships carrying thousands of international passengers from Seattle and Vancouver to Alaska each summer.

Local market targeted

Unlike the cruise industry, BC Ferries marketing would be aimed at local residents looking for a quick summer get-away up the coast.

"What we want to do is tap into the Vancouver market and the Pacific Northwest of the U.S. and bolster the number of tourists who do head up north by bringing our ship down south," said Marshall.

On Friday, BC Ferries will pitch the idea to northern officials and then later this month they'll meet with the public in Prince Rupert and Port Hardy, and if all goes well, the new route could be in place by 2011, according to Marshall.

The trip would be on the M.V. Northern Expedition, a 150-metre vessel with 55 staterooms and several restaurants and lounges, which was launched earlier this year to service the the day-long route from Port Hardy up to Prince Rupert.

With files from Betsy Trumpener