Dockside Express in Tilghman Island, Talbot County, United States | Tours and Safaris

Welcome to Dockside Express Cruises and Tours, Tilghman Island, United States. Jerry and Kelley Cox formed Dockside Express Cruises and Tours in 1993, after Jerry retired from the State of Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Jerry ran a 50 Foot Research Vessel for the State of Maryland for 30 years. He was instrumental in the design and building of the Department's newest Research Vessel the R/V Discovery. Upon Retirement Jerry was looking for something to do, we started a small water taxi company out of Tilghman Island, Maryland. We offered pizza; ice and newspaper delivery to the boats in the nearby anchorage, as well as, water taxi transportation to local restaurants and marinas.

In the fall of 1994, we were offered an opportunity to expand into St. Michaels, and we took the offer. We operated the water taxi in St. Michaels through 1997. In 1997, we bought a 38 foot, 34 passenger tour boat and started running Environmental Cruises and Champagne Sunset cruises out of St. Michaels. In 1998 we purchased the hull of what was going to be the Express Royale. Jerry worked on refitting the boat and we finally christened the Express Royale on June 4, 2000.

When you join Dockside Express Cruises and Tours for one of our tours, you can experience the history through the eyes of a native. Kelley's ancestors have been in this area since the early 1600's when Edward Comins and his wife Elizabeth served as indentured servants of William Claiborne on Kent Island. Jerry's roots are from nearby Hooper's Island, where his great, great grandfather William Hooper was a Schooner Captain aboard the Florence Lee.