BASSETERRE, ST. Kitts – Over 17,500 cruise ship passengers visited St. Kitts for the first five days of the week of March 3rd, with over 2,000 more expected on Friday (March 7), the St. Christopher and Nevis Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA) is reported.
Statistician in the Port’s Marine Division, Mr. Ellenston Hendricks told the Communications Unit in the Office of the Prime Minister (CUOPM), that a total of 17,461 cruise passengers came aboard 9 cruise ships between Sunday 2nd March and Thursday 6th March. A tenth ship, the 2,642-passenger Carnival Destiny is scheduled to visit on Friday.
Three cruise ships berth on Sunday with 5,000 passengers, three arrived on Monday with 5,700 passengers; two ships berth on Tuesday with 4,600 passengers and one on Wednesday with just over 1800 and the Windsurf on Thursday with 215 passengers.
On Sunday, March 2nd, the Sea Cloud with 37 passengers and 60 crew arrived from St. Barths and departed for Antigua; the Explorer of the Seas with 3,243 passengers and 1,178 crew arrived from Barbados and left for St. Thomas; and Ocean Village with 1,735 passengers and 627 crew arrived from St. Maarten and departed for Antigua.
On Monday, March 3rd, the Crown Princess with 3,125 passengers and a crew of 1234 arrived from St. Thomas and left for Grenada; the Carnival Miracle arrived from St. Lucia with 2,163 passengers and 923 crew before going on to Florida and the Seven Seas Navigator arrived from St, Maarten with 436 passengers and a crew of 351 before going on to Virgin Gorda.
The Queen Mary 2, with 2,605 passengers and 1,290 crew arrived on Tuesday, March 4th from Tortola and then went on to Barbados. The Constellation arrived from St. Thomas with 2,035 passengers and 946 crew and later cruised to Barbados.
The Galaxy arrived on Wednesday from Dominica with 1884 passengers and 844 crew and later left for Tortola. On Thursday, the Windsurf arrived from St. Barths with 215 passengers and 189 crew and sailed for Nevis. The Carnival Destiny which should have visited Thursday will berth at Port Zante.
Most of the passengers on the three ship disembarked and went on sight-seeing tours via taxis, tour buses and the St. Kitts Scenic Railway; shopping, sun and sea-bathing, hiking, horse-back riding, snorkeling, golfing, kayaking and sailing.
Some 81,000 cruise ship passengers from 42 ships are scheduled to visit St. Kitts in March.
The 2007/2008 Cruise Ship Season is set to be the best ever in the history of the industry with the expected visit of over 400,000 cruise passengers. Over 60,000 passengers visited in December and January saw some 68,038. 33,357 passengers are expected from 19 ship calls in April.
Although the 2007/2008 Cruise Ship Season officially ends in April, the Carnival Destiny which is calling all-year-round will make six calls with an estimated 13,394 passengers in May; 10,568 passengers in June; 13,210 passengers from five calls in July, and 10,568 passengers in August and a similar number from four calls in September.
