Ports & destinations

Port Everglades celebrates grand re-opening for four renovated cruise terminals

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Written by Teijo Niemelä Teijo Niemelä

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 19 December 2012 19 December 2012

State and local public officials joined executives from Carnival Corporation and the six Carnival brands that sail from Port Everglades to celebrate the Grand Re-Opening of four fully renovated, expanded and modernized cruise terminals that opened in time for this year’s busy cruise season at the South Florida cruise port.

Cruise Terminals 2, 19, 21 and 26 are part of a $54 million renovation project that transformed existing facilities into modern, world-class, guest-friendly cruise terminals, capable of processing both debarking and embarking cruise passengers simultaneously.

Florida Gov. Rick Scott issued a press release saying that he applauded the Florida Department of Transportation’s (FDOT) investment of $9 million to reconstruct and modernize four cruise terminals at Port Everglades. Richard Biter, FDOT Assistant Secretary for Intermodal Systems Development, represented Gov. Scott at the ceremony on December 12 and told the crowd of about 200 people: “Florida is the cruise capital of the U.S. and ranked first in the nation for cruise industry expenditures with $6.7 billion in direct spending, accounting for 35 percent of total industry direct expenditures.”

During the ceremony, Carnival Corporation’s Giora Israel, Senior Vice President of Global Ports Development, presented a monetary donation to Pastor Paul Schweinler to purchase items for the Port Everglades Seafarers’ House Shoebox Christmas gift drive.

Port Everglades committed to modernizing the terminals as part of an agreement, finalized in April 2010, between Carnival Corporation and the Broward County Board of County Commissioners, the governing body for Port Everglades. The landmark agreement, one of the largest in Carnival's history, calls for a minimum of 25.5 million cruise guests from multiple Carnival Corporation brands to sail to and from Port Everglades over the initial 15-year term, which will potentially produce almost half-a-billion dollars in Port revenue.

“Carnival Corporation and its cruise lines that are here at Port Everglades – Carnival Cruise Lines, Cunard, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises and Seabourn – account for nearly half (43%) of the cruise business at Port Everglades. Carnival is an important business partner for Broward County and we are happy to celebrate your success,” said Broward County Vice Mayor Barbara Sharief. “The cruise industry is a major contributor to the economic health of our tourism-based community in Broward County. Not only do cruise companies such as Carnival Corporation bring jobs and revenue to our Port, but they also bring guests who visit our hotels and resorts, and support the small businesses and attractions that are the lifeblood of our economy. In Broward County alone, the cruise industry accounts for nearly 12,000 jobs and contributes $1.8 billion in local economic activity each year.”

Port Everglades Chief Executive & Port Director Steven Cernak, told the audience that the goal for the cruise terminal renovations was, “to deliver an expeditious and seamless curbside to ship guest experience.”

“Cruise ports today are challenged with the task of providing state-of-the-art facilities that can keep pace with and support their customers’ needs, and the cruise lines, as we know, are always on the cutting edge of the hospitality industry. Our cruise terminals must be efficient inside for quick embarkation and debarkation. Outside there must be an organized system for taxi, shuttles, buses and private vehicles to safely pick up and drop off cruise guests. We need state-of-the-art security facilities for U.S. Customs and Border Protection, enough room to lay down 2.5 pieces of luggage per person during debarkation, Wi-Fi for waiting cruise guests, clear directional signs and aesthetics that warmly welcome the more than 3.6 million people who start and finish their cruise vacations at Port Everglades annually.”

Broward County's Public Works Department, Seaport Engineering & Construction Division oversaw the renovations. Moss & Associates was the general contractor, and Bermello Ajamil & Partners, Inc. was the terminal architect and project construction administrator.

Construction work for the cruise terminal created an estimated 1,000 construction jobs, equating to $40.7 million in personal income and $3.7 million in state and local taxes, according to an economic impact study by nationally recognized maritime research firm Martin Associates.

Port Everglades is one of the leading cruise ports worldwide with more than 3.6 million passengers each year and homeporting more cruise ships than any other cruise port worldwide. Twelve cruise lines and 42 cruise ships sail from the South Florida seaport including: Balearia's Bahamas Express, Carnival Cruise Lines, Celebrity Cruises, Cunard, Hapag-Lloyd Cruises, Holland America Line, MSC Cruises, P&O Cruises, Princess Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, Silversea Cruises and Seabourn. The Port's wide-ranging fleet of cruise ships provides guests with an array of cruise vacation choices from the sunny Greater Fort Lauderdale area. Port Everglades, where the best cruise ships launch and the greatest getaways begin. Details on the latest cruise schedules from Port Everglades are available on the Internet at porteverglades.net.

Cruise and ferry industry injects €70 million a year to Rostock economy

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 05 December 2012 05 December 2012

The turnover generated by ferry and cruise tourists is markedly high at around €71 million or 13.5 percent of the total tourist turnover of around €523 million in the Hanseatic City of Rostock, states Prof. Dr. Martin Benkenstein from Institute of Marketing & Service Research at Rostock university.

The passenger vessel Black Watch of the UK shipping company Fred Olsen will visit the Baltic Sea resort of Warnemünde from 30 November to 1 December and complete this year's cruise season. The 205 m long cruise liner carrying 655 passengers is on a Christmas fair tour of the Baltic since 22 November during which the predominantly British passengers visit the pre-yuletide cities of Copenhagen, Tallinn, St. Petersburg, Rostock-Warnemünde and Kiel. The port city of Southampton in the south of England is the start and end point of the theme cruise 'Baltic Christmas Markets'.

'This is the first cruise liner we are able to welcome to Warnemünde at such a late time of year', says Ulrich Bauermeister, managing director of Hafen-Entwicklungsgesellschaft Rostock mbH, adding: 'There is still a lot of potential here. It would be nice if the business community involved and we were to succeed in bringing more passenger vessels to our very convenient but also expensive port facilities in Warnemünde during autumn and winter. By thus extending the season we would achieve a better annual utilization of the facilities. This would also be of considerable benefit to the local business community.'

With 181 port calls by 40 ocean cruise liners the passenger port of Rostock-Warnemünde again navigates ahead of all German cruise ports in 2012. 25 international cruise operators included this southern Baltic cruise port popular with passengers and crews alike, in their itineraries as their base port or as the starting point for excursions to the Hanseatic City, the holiday region of  Mecklenburg-Vorpommern and the German capital, Berlin. 

 

Forth Ports' Tilbury and Edinburgh cruise terminals expect strong 2013

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 05 December 2012 05 December 2012

Forth Ports, which owns the International Cruise Terminals in London (Tilbury) and two facilities on the Forth (Edinburgh), says it has closed the 2012 cruise season on a high and is looking forward to a bumper 2013.

 

The London International Cruise Terminal at Tilbury has seen 35 home port calls in 2011/2012, from Cruise & Maritime Voyages, Holland America and Noble Caledonia; and three tourist calls welcoming passengers from the UK, Spain, US, South America, Russia and Japan. The port also saw ten days of C&MV promotional events, including a number of overnight ‘cruise’ experiences. This activity has led to a footfall of close to 50,000 guests through the London International Cruise Terminal.

 

Tilbury provides easy access to all major airports and passengers can travel with ease to all the sites the city of London has to offer by high speed river-bus, road or rail.

 

The ports in Edinburgh and Rosyth have also had an extremely busy 2012 season, welcoming a wide range of cruise ships across the season. The Scottish ports have seen an impressive 76 cruise liners calling at the ports, allowing the teams to welcome around 80,000 passengers to visit the local areas. The Port of Leith in Edinburgh has been particularly busy, receiving calls from high-end luxury liners such as Seabourn Soujourn, the Azamara Journey, Silver Cloud and Silver Whisper.

 

Edinburgh holds fantastic potential as a home port in Scotland’s capital city, with all the culture and activities that it offers. Bookings for 2013 and 2014 are already strong with 68 vessels confirmed for the Scottish Ports and 40 in 2013 and 30 confirmed October 2014 for the London International Cruise Terminal at Tilbury.

Silversea Cruises to call at Honduran Banana Coast in 2014

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Written by Kari Reinikainen Kari Reinikainen

Category: Ports & Destinations Ports & Destinations

Published: 29 November 2012 29 November 2012

Silversea Cruises, the luxury cruise brand, says it is the first cruise line to sign on to call at Banana Coast, the newest western Caribbean cruise destination at Trujillo, Honduras. The 296-passenger Silver Cloud is scheduled to call Dec. 17, 2014.

Silversea has been recognized by leading consumer and trade publications as defining the ultra-luxury cruise experience. In the United States Silversea was voted "World's Best" by readers of Condé Nast Traveler nine times and Travel & Leisure seven times, and was awarded "Best Cruise Line for Luxury Small Ships" by Luxury Travel Advisor in 2011.

"We are pleased to have a high-end brand like Silversea Cruises be the first to commit to call at Banana Coast," said Michael Greve, president of Global Destinations Development, one of the companies partnering in the port project. "It's a testament to how we have carefully created a destination that is culturally and historically appealing to the most sophisticated travelers."

Greve said construction at Banana Coast, which began in August 2011, is now 80 percent complete, and the facility is expected to have a soft opening in January 2013. The port will be open to host ships throughout 2013 and beyond. "We have met with several other cruise lines and have hosted site inspections by cruise line executives," said Greve. "We expect that several lines soon will commit to adding Banana Coast to their itineraries."

Plans for Banana Coast Landing call for construction of a 50,000-square-foot shopping facility and transportation hub on 10 acres of beachfront land. Themed "Where the Rainforest Meets the Sea," the $20 million Banana Coast project currently employs 150 construction workers, engineers and architects. A future phase will see construction of a two-berth, post-Panamax pier.

In March 2012, the developers unveiled an ambitious and diverse shore excursion program designed to offer something for everyone, including cultural, soft-adventure and eco-tour offerings. The tours enable guests to explore the area from land, air and sea. In addition to the signature tour -- Campo del Mar Nature Park & Beach Break -- highlights include a VIP airplane ride to the Mayan ruins at Copan; a snorkeling adventure at a beautiful starfish bank, and kayaking in the pristine Guaimoreto Lagoon. Guests looking to stay on land have the chance to discover the port’s appeal through an exciting mountain ATV ride, a culinary tasting tour or a trolley ride through the colonial town of Trujillo.

Future plan phases include creation of the 100-acre Campo del Mar, which will incorporate an integrated heritage park, river park, wildlife park and nature park -- all easily accessible from Banana Coast Landing.