Santa Rita followed Santa Inez in inaugurating Grace Line's service between New York through the Panama Canal to Buenaventura, Colombia and Guayaquil, Ecuador, the first direct passenger service to those ports, with Santa Inez departing on 20 April and Santa Rita due to depart 8 June. The planned run between New York and Buenaventura was eight days and Guayaquil twelve days. After those initial ports the ships were to call at South American West Coast ports as far south as Valparaiso.
