On Saturday 7th August, 2021, St. Vincent and the Grenadines welcomed its first cruise line for the 2020/2021 season, after a hard hit to the cruise sector in 2020. Seaborn Odyssey, one of the world’s leading luxury cruise ships, visited the Grenadine island of Bequia with a fully vaccinated occupancy of 341 crew members and 81 passengers.
In addition to the warm Vincentian hospitality received by passengers and crew of Seaborn Odyssey, a short welcome reception was held to celebrate the momentous resumption of the cruise season. Seaborn Odyssey is expected to visit these shores bi-weekly until the end of October.
Passengers and crew who disembarked Seaborn Odyssey were a part of an organised ‘bubble’; where they were restricted to selected locations on island and their interactions were limited to only vaccinated service providers. The bubble is established to ensure that cruise lines abide by the prevailing precautionary measures outlined in the Cruise Tourism Protocols.
The first call of the Seaborn Odyssey was used as a trial run to assess the implementation of the Cruise Tourism Protocols for the upcoming Cruise Season.
According to Minister of Tourism, Civil Aviation, Sustainable Development and Culture Carlos James, the captain and crew of the Seaborn Odyssey expressed full satisfaction with the implementation of the Cruise Tourism Protocols during Saturday’s call.
“We have developed a comprehensive draft of the Cruise Protocols detailing how cruise passengers are expected to function within the bubble, and Saturday’s exercise was an excellent indication that with the Cruise Tourism Protocols the resumption of Cruise Tourism can work, despite the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic,” Minister James said.
Following the successful cruise call of Seaborn Odyssey, Minister James noted that the Ministry will be working closely with stakeholders to safely extend the bubble to include other tourism sites and establishments across St Vincent and the Grenadines.
“We have to ensure that all stakeholders benefit, inclusive of taxi operators, tour guides and vendors, providing that they are in compliance with the Cruise Tourism Protocols set by the Ministry of Health and the Ministry of Tourism. The safety of the general public remains paramount during the cruise season,” Minister James said.
The restart of the season is due to the support shown by stakeholders within the Tourism and Hospitality Industry; as the thrust and commitment to revitalize the socio-economic benefits of this lucrative industry is at the heart of many stakeholders.
The 2021/22 cruise season is projected to be the year of resuscitation for the hard hit sector, so far, 224 cruise ships are expected to call this season, when compared to no cruise calls last year.
