VesselAPI MCP Server

An MCP (Model Context Protocol) server that exposes maritime data from the VesselAPI to AI assistants like Claude Desktop, Cursor, Windsurf, and Claude Code.

Prerequisites

1. Sign up at dashboard.vesselapi.com
2. Create an API token in your dashboard
3. Use the token as VESSELAPI_API_KEY in the configuration below

Resources: Documentation | API Explorer | Dashboard | Contact Support

Features

• 23 tools covering vessels, ports, location search, emissions, and maritime safety
• Vessel search, positions (single and batch), ETA, classification, ownership, emissions, inspections, and casualties
• Port search, details, port events (arrivals/departures), and global port event search
• Geographic vessel search (bounding box and radius)
• NAVTEX maritime safety messages
• Manual pagination to control API quota usage

Hosted deployment

A hosted deployment is available on Fronteir AI.

Quick Start

No installation required — just configure your AI client with npx:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "vesselapi": {
      "command": "npx",
      "args": ["-y", "vesselapi-mcp"],
      "env": {
        "VESSELAPI_API_KEY": "your-api-key"
      }
    }
  }
}

Configuration

Add the JSON above to the config file for your client:

Client	Config file
Claude Desktop	~/Library/Application Support/Claude/claude_desktop_config.json (macOS) or %APPDATA%\Claude\claude_desktop_config.json (Windows)
Cursor	.cursor/mcp.json or ~/.cursor/mcp.json
Claude Code	.claude/settings.json or ~/.claude/settings.json
Windsurf	~/.codeium/windsurf/mcp_config.json

Tools

Vessel Tools

Tool	Description
search_vessels	Search vessels by name, IMO, MMSI, flag, type, callsign, year built, class society, or owner
get_vessel	Get detailed vessel information
get_vessel_position	Get current vessel position (lat/lon, speed, heading)
get_vessel_eta	Get vessel estimated time of arrival
get_vessel_classification	Get classification details (class society, surveys, hull)
get_vessel_ownership	Get ownership details (owner, manager, operator)
get_vessel_emissions	Get emissions data (CO2, fuel consumption)
get_vessel_inspections	Get port state control inspections
get_vessel_casualties	Get marine casualty records
get_vessel_inspection_detail	Get detailed information about a specific inspection
get_vessel_positions_batch	Get positions for multiple vessels at once (with optional time range)

Port Tools

Tool	Description
search_ports	Search ports by name, country, type, size, region, harbor size, or harbor use
get_port	Get port details by UN/LOCODE
get_port_events	Get arrivals/departures for a port
get_port_events_by_vessel	Get port events for a vessel
list_port_events	List port events globally with filters for time, country, port, vessel, or event type
search_port_events_by_port	Search port events by port name
search_port_events_by_vessel	Search port events by vessel name
get_vessel_last_port_event	Get the most recent port event for a vessel

Emissions Tools

Tool	Description
list_emissions	List global vessel emissions data with optional year filter

Location Tools

Tool	Description
get_vessels_in_area	Find vessels in a bounding box (with optional time range)
get_vessels_in_radius	Find vessels within a radius of a point (with optional time range)

Safety Tools

Tool	Description
get_navtex_messages	Get NAVTEX maritime safety messages

Pagination

All list endpoints support limit and nextToken parameters for manual pagination. When more results exist, the response includes a nextToken — pass it in the next call to get the next page.

Development

git clone https://github.com/vessel-api/vesselapi-mcp.git
cd vesselapi-mcp
npm install
npm run build

npm run build        # Build the server
npm run typecheck    # Type-check without emitting
npm run clean        # Remove build artifacts

Testing with MCP Inspector

VESSELAPI_API_KEY=your-key npx @modelcontextprotocol/inspector node dist/index.js

License

MIT