Ever since several Caribbean ports were hit by a devastating storm, the impacting islands have been working to get themselves up and running so that the cruise ships on which their economies rely so heavily could return. This week, Carnival Cruise Line updated passengers on when their ships would be returning to some of the ports.
Caribbean Ports Ready For Business
Carnival had already revealed that they would be returning to Grand Turk as of November 1, when the Carnival Ecstasy visits the port. They have since announced when they will be return to several other ports. So what’s the latest:
• The Carnival Conquest will be the first of the line’s ships to return to San Juan as a port of call, visiting on November 30.
• Beginning on January 9, 2018, the line will return to St. Thomas, with the Carnival Glory being the first ship to call on the port.
• Visits to St. Maarten will resume on January 15, 2018, with the Carnival Sunshine being the first of the line’s ships to call on the island.
Carnival also revealed that the Carnival Fascination will resume its year-round weekly sailings from San Juan on February 18, 2018. Until that time, the ship has been chartered by the Federal Emergency Management Agency to house relief workers.
Several weeks ago, Carnival’s President and CEO, Arnold Donald, took part in a conference call regarding the status of various Caribbean islands. During that call, he assured passengers that the ships would not be return to ports in question until the time was right. “The No. 1 thing is to exceed our guests’ expectations,” he explained. “So we’re not going to take them any place where they can’t have a great experience. The excursions that guests love have to be up and operating in a fashion that is going to absolutely exceed their expectations.”
For more on the region, visit CaribbeanIsOpen.com.
