Where Is John Wayne’s Yacht Wild Goose Today?

Eric DawsonByEric Dawson Boats & Cruises

For anyone asking where is John Wayne’s yacht Wild Goose today, the former actor’s vessel is berthed at 2431 West Coast Highway in Newport Beach, California. Wild Goose operates with the City Cruises Newport Beach fleet for private group events, special occasions and Newport Beach dinner cruises.

The 136-foot former U.S. Navy minesweeper became Wayne’s yacht in 1962 and joined the National Register of Historic Places on July 19, 2011. City Cruises lists group rates for parties of 20 or more, with offerings ranging from 1 hour to 5 hours.

Can You Visit Wild Goose?

City Cruises Newport Beach offers Wild Goose for private group events and special occasions. A reference account dated September 6, 2026, also describes Newport Beach dinner cruises open to the public.

The operator describes present cruise access as including informal tours of Wayne’s family staterooms, library, card room, and salon. Inside, the salon displays movie posters and paintings, while the Fireplace Room retains a naval-battle mural Wayne commissioned and framed movie posters. Visitors seeking a museum-style tour should recognize that the operator frames Wild Goose around cruises, private events, and special occasions.

Tickets for the Wild Goose experience can only be purchased onboard, according to the City Cruises page. Meanwhile, that page also displays a Check Availability function without explaining how the two instructions fit together. Direct confirmation with City Cruises at 1-800-459-8105 is the clearest route before making plans. Ticket Assurance allows a reschedule or refund up to 2 hours before boarding, except on select special events, holidays, and partner tours.

Dockside access has taken different forms over time. During 2011, Hornblower offered dockside tours for $25 per person, a historical price rather than a current quote. Those tours belonged to a local report’s account of that year. From May 1 through mid-June in 2024, a separate account described informal tours with Wayne memorabilia, photographs, and artifacts.

Access through the current operator centers on an active vessel, not a permanently open exhibition. Guests interested in tours aboard Wild Goose should contact City Cruises before travel, especially when seeking a particular tour format. Anyone using Ticket Assurance should check whether the selected experience falls within its stated exclusions.

City Experiences says the Wayne-era vessel has five staterooms and a saloon for up to 127 people. Renovation work added wood details, murals, a dance floor, and a bridal suite for future events. Original onboard elements remain alongside modern updates.

I would give the most weight to the current fleet listing when deciding whether a visit is realistic, because it describes how the vessel is presently marketed for events and group use. The older 25 dollar dockside-tour figure is useful history, not a planning benchmark, and the 2024 seasonal tour account does not prove the same access continues now. Beyond that, the onboard-purchase instruction also matters more than the availability button alone, so I would not treat an online availability result as a completed booking.

Where Is John Wayne’s Yacht Wild Goose Today?

Wild Goose is berthed at 2431 West Coast Highway in Newport Beach, California. Its reported coordinates are 33°37′9″N 117°55′19″W. City Cruises Newport Beach lists the former John Wayne yacht within its fleet, establishing the vessel’s current public-facing connection.

Fleet listing reinforces that connection. The earlier ownership detail distinguishes the visible operating brand from ownership language used elsewhere.

At the separate West Coast Highway berth described above, the listing frames this as a vessel specification rather than a promise for any sailing or shoreside gathering.

Originally built as a United States Navy Yard Mine Sweeper USS YMS-328 in 1942, Wild Goose reached Newport Beach after a long life. John Wayne bought and renamed the vessel in 1962. Later stewardship kept the 136-foot boat in commercial operation instead of converting it into a static display.

National Register of Historic Places listed Wild Goose on July 19, 2011, under reference number 11000431. That designation preserves the yacht’s naval and Wayne associations while the Newport Beach berth reflects its ongoing working identity. Unlike a docked exhibit, the vessel remains part of a commercial fleet.

Names surrounding Wild Goose reflect corporate and brand descriptions rather than a change in the yacht’s identity. City Cruises Newport Beach is the name on the fleet page, while City Experiences provides the operator’s historical account. Hornblower appears in accounts describing ownership and stewardship. Each label points back to the same Newport Beach vessel.

For readers seeking the Wild Goose yacht location, the street address offers the practical reference. The recorded berth and City Cruises affiliation place John Wayne’s yacht in Newport Beach today. Historical descriptions, fleet information and ownership references therefore converge on its California base, even though they use different names.

How to Check Tour Availability

Tour availability should be checked directly with City Cruises before travel plans are fixed. Its online vessel page provides a Check Availability function, but the same page says tickets are purchased onboard. That check is especially useful when the planned occasion has a fixed schedule or a set guest list.

Scheduling information on the operator page lists experience lengths of 1, 3, 3.5, 4, and 5 hours. Exact itineraries are not matched to those durations, so selected events should be confirmed before arranging transport. Group rates apply to parties of 20 or more.

Wild Goose Yacht Tour Availability

A short verification sequence prevents an availability display from being treated as a completed reservation.

  1. Open the Check Availability function and select the preferred date and group size.
  2. Use listed duration options to compare events, then ask which itinerary and boarding time apply.
  3. Call 1-800-459-8105 to verify the onboard purchasing instruction and practical arrival steps.
  4. Ask whether Ticket Assurance applies to the chosen experience, and clarify its terms before payment.

Requested details should include the planned date, party size, preferred time, and occasion. Clear information lets the operator address the appropriate experience rather than a broad inquiry. Notes from that exchange help keep later arrangements consistent with the answer received.

Booking decisions should follow a response from the operator rather than assumptions drawn from availability control alone. Separate arrangements for meals, invitations, or travel should wait for that response. Any change in party size or timing deserves a check before firm commitments are made.

Confirmation details should cover boarding time, ticket procedures, and any requirement affecting the group’s plan. Ticket Assurance permits a reschedule or refund up to 2 hours before boarding. Special events, holidays, and partner tours are excluded from that coverage.

Flexible plans suit gatherings with a set start time. For such plans, state the intended use during the inquiry.

From USS YMS-328 to a Private Yacht

Wild Goose began as USS YMS-328, a United States Navy yard minesweeper built during World War II. John Wayne turned the former military vessel into his private yacht after buying it in 1962 for $116,000, according to City Experiences.

Built for Mine-Sweeping

Ballard Marine Railway Co. of Seattle, Washington, built the ship as a YMS-1-class minesweeper in the YMS-135 subclass. Construction began on July 6, 1942, before the vessel launched on December 19 that year. Completion followed on May 26, 1943.

Measuring 136 feet long, USS YMS-328 had a 24-foot-6-inch beam and an 8-foot draft. Her wooden wartime hull used 3-inch vertical-grain Douglas fir, while two General Motors diesel engines powered two shafts. Naval records list a top speed of 15 knots and a displacement of 270 long tons.

During World War II, USS YMS-328 served in Alaska’s Aleutian Islands. Crews swept mines around Attu and Kiska, then carried out patrols from Adak. Japan’s surrender interrupted plans to prepare the ship at Dutch Harbor for the proposed invasion of Paramushiru Island.

From La Beverie to Wild Goose

Naval service ended when the Navy decommissioned USS YMS-328 and removed her from the Naval Vessel Register on October 29, 1946. Harold Jones, owner of Vancouver Tug & Barge, bought the vessel in 1948 and renamed her La Beverie.

After Jones died in 1956, Max Wyman became the next owner and changed the name to Wild Goose II. Wyman traveled aboard the converted yacht to Tahiti, Bora Bora and Hawaii. Wayne later purchased the vessel, dropped the Roman numeral, and kept Wild Goose for the final 17 years of his life.

John Wayne Wild Goose History on Board

During John Wayne’s 17 years with Wild Goose, the yacht served as a family retreat, social gathering place, and occasional escape from Hollywood business. Rather than treating the vessel as a formal showpiece, Wayne used it with his children, grandchildren, friends, and industry colleagues when younger relatives could join him.

Beyond its guest cabins, Wild Goose had a poker table and wet bar for guests. The saloon also suited family time and larger gatherings. Wayne’s remodeling raised ceilings for his 6-foot-4-inch height, added children’s rooms and staterooms, and included a wood-burning fireplace.

Political guests aboard included Lyndon B. Johnson, Richard Nixon, and Ronald Reagan. Entertainment friends Hugh O’Brien, Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and Jackie Gleason joined fishing trips, while Sammy Davis Jr. chartered the yacht for Catalina cruises. Onboard leisure included screenings of 16 mm versions of Wayne’s films, while a small Boston Whaler ski boat accompanied cruises.

Bert Minshall, the longtime first mate, recalled an atmosphere focused on family and esprit de corps, while Captain Pete Stein sent Wayne condition reports during voyages. His memories included water-skiing and children jumping from Wayne’s cabin, about 25 feet above the water. In April 1979, Wayne made his final Wild Goose cruise only weeks before his death, playing backgammon and gin rummy despite weakness.

During 1967, Wild Goose doubled as a Canadian spy ship in “The President’s Analyst.” Production on the 1968 film “Skidoo” used the yacht as Mother, filming its exterior, wheelhouse, cabins, engine room, upper deck, and lower deck. Minshall’s 1993 book “On Board with the Duke” provides another record of the yacht’s Wayne-era travels.

According to City Experiences, Wayne sold Wild Goose shortly before his death in 1979. Framed movie posters and a naval-battle mural commissioned by Wayne remain associated with the Fireplace Room, preserving parts of the yacht’s personal character.

John Wayne Yacht Specifications and Legacy

Wild Goose retains the working proportions of its naval past while serving as a preserved venue, giving it an unusual place among John Wayne artifacts. City Experiences describes a vessel whose historical character remains part of its present commercial identity rather than a museum display removed from use.

Dimensions and Accommodation

Measurements and machinery provide the clearest comparison between the former minesweeper and the yacht guests encounter today. Rather than disguising the ship’s origins, the published specifications preserve a record of its wooden construction, twin-engine arrangement, and naval-scale performance. Accommodation details show the later shift from military function to hospitality, with rooms intended for overnight stays and larger gatherings.

Feature Wild Goose detail Recorded by
Original identity USS YMS-328, a U.S. Navy Yard Mine Sweeper completed in 1943 City Experiences and the vessel reference chronology
Hull and size 136 feet long, with a 24-foot-6-inch beam and 8-foot draft Vessel reference chronology
Power and speed Two 880 bhp General Motors 8-268A diesel engines and a 15-knot speed Vessel reference chronology
Guest spaces Five staterooms and a saloon accommodating up to 127 people City Experiences
Historic designation Listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places on July 19, 2011, under reference number 11000431 Vessel reference chronology

Construction details also explain why the vessel has a different presence from a purpose-built pleasure yacht. Its form came from naval requirements, while later conversion work changed how people used the spaces aboard. That combination remains central to the John Wayne yacht specifications, pairing a working-boat structure with a social interior.

Historic Role

Heritage status supplies the formal side of Wild Goose’s legacy. The National Register entry gives the vessel a lasting public record beyond its connection with a Hollywood star. Recognition also places John Wayne Wild Goose history within maritime preservation, rather than limiting its meaning to celebrity memories.

Unlike a static collection piece, Wild Goose carries technical and hospitality records in the same physical structure. The comparison in the table separates those roles, showing the former military platform beside its later guest capacity. City Experiences supplies the accommodation information, while the vessel chronology records the naval measurements and designation.

Visitors considering a tour encounter that legacy in the ship itself, not solely through photographs or displays. A former minesweeper’s scale still shapes the rooms and decks used for present occasions. That continuity links World War II service, John Wayne’s ownership, and the vessel’s protected historic standing.

Wild Goose Yacht Restoration and Preservation

Wild Goose has undergone several reported renovations, but their dates, scopes and costs are not fully reconciled. Preservation now centers on an operating event vessel rather than a fixed display. Reported work preserved historic character while adapting interiors for social and event use over time. Maintenance reporting remains dated and limited here.

Wayne bought the former naval boat in 1962 and refitted it for family time and entertaining. His reported additions included taller ceilings, staterooms, children’s rooms, and a wood-burning fireplace. City Experiences says a subsequent renovation preserved original elements while adding woodwork, murals, a dance floor, and a bridal suite.

Patch places that work between $500,000 and $1 million, while a May 2024 account assigns $3 million to Wayne’s post-purchase renovation. Neither account provides an itemized breakdown, so totals cannot be matched to a shared list of work. Separate wording is essential because two claims describe Wayne-era changes differently.

Deil Gustafson later invested nearly $3 million in a refurbishment after the vessel spent three years in severe disrepair at Los Angeles Harbor during 1990. That work is distinct from the reported Wayne-era remodeling and should not be treated as the same project. Documentation identifies a later recovery, not a revision of the earlier estimates.

Hornblower’s connection also has two reported dates. City Experiences says Hornblower acquired Wild Goose in 1996. By contrast, a 2011 local report says Hornblower had managed the yacht since 1993 and added a third deck for weddings and corporate events. Their difference can reflect management before a later acquisition under the same company name.

Visitors should contact City Cruises directly before making plans, because the operator’s booking directions combine onboard ticket purchases with an online availability check. Confirmation is especially useful for private events, available sailing options and the Ticket Assurance terms. That step gives travelers the clearest current answer before heading to Newport Beach for a planned visit.

Frequently Asked Questions

Where Is John Wayne’s Wild Goose Yacht Docked?

John Wayne’s former yacht Wild Goose is docked in Newport Beach, California. Its reported berth is 2431 West Coast Highway, Newport Beach, California.

Can the Public Tour the Wild Goose in Newport Beach?

City Cruises Newport Beach offers Wild Goose for private group events and special occasions. On current cruises, the operator says guests receive informal tours of Wayne’s family staterooms, library, card room, and salon.

How Long Is John Wayne’s Yacht Wild Goose?

Wild Goose is 136 feet long. The vessel began as USS YMS-328, a United States Navy Yard Mine Sweeper built in 1942.

What Was Wild Goose Before John Wayne Bought It?

Before Wayne bought it, the vessel served as USS YMS-328, a YMS-1-class, YMS-135-subclass minesweeper during World War II. The ship carried out mine-sweeping at Attu and Kiska and patrolled from Adak in the Aleutian Islands.

How Many People Can the Wild Goose Saloon Accommodate?

The Wild Goose saloon can accommodate up to 127 people. City Experiences also describes the yacht as having five staterooms.

When Was Wild Goose Added to the National Register of Historic Places?

Wild Goose was added to the United States National Register of Historic Places on July 19, 2011. Its National Register reference number is 11000431.

References

Sources read in September 2026.

Eric Dawson

I'm Eric Dawson, and I write The Money Watch from north Columbus, Ohio. Most of what I cover comes from my own life: renting, a 2014 Honda Fit, parking, computers, food and the bills behind all of it. I spent four years in an apartment-property office and eleven on a distributor's operations desk, reading leases and invoices. Where you need real information, I research the maker's or agency's own page and independent sources and report what they publish. I don't give tax, investment, legal or medical advice.