As she gently glided into port, Holland America Line’s newest cruise ship, the 1,848 passenger Noordam, made history when she arrived at the Caribbean’s newest port facility – the Grand Turk Cruise Center, British West Indies –…
As she gently glided into port, Holland America Line’s newest cruise ship, the 1,848 passenger Noordam, made history when she arrived at the Caribbean’s newest port facility – the Grand Turk Cruise Center, British West Indies –on her inaugural call.
“I’m proud and honored to be a part of history with inaugural call at this worldclass pier and port facility. Grand Turk offers pristine beaches and magnificent waters and it will be a great destination for cruise ship guests,” said Noordam Captain John Scott. The new Grand Turk Cruise Center features a state-of-the-art pier that can accommodate two large Super Post Panamax vessels and a 13-acre complex that serves as a gateway to one of the Caribbean’s most beautiful islands.
Grand Turk has a glorious past as one of the world’s leading producers of salt. In more recent years, Grand Turk has been used as a base for the U.S. Navy and NASA, and served as the landing spot for Senator John Glenn’s splash down following his orbit of the Earth as part of the Mercury space launch.
“We are proud to establish this association with Carnival Corporation and are deeply grateful that Carnival decided to make this large investment on our island. We look forward to a very successful relationship with Carnival,” said the Honorable Floyd Hall, Grand Turk’s deputy chief minister of finance. “Our arms are open to passengers from all cruise lines and visitors who will be coming to our shores in the months and years ahead. The Noordam’s arrival earlier today represents an exciting new chapter for our island and we are just delighted with reaction from
cruise passengers.”
By March, the Grand Turk Cruise Center will welcome an additional vessel when Carnival Cruise Lines’ Sensation begins bi-weekly port calls to the island. Later, in June, the new Crown Princess of Princess Cruises, another Carnival Corporation brand, will visit the island as part of its Caribbean cruise schedule. Costa Cruises, a fourth Carnival brand, will include Grand Turk on its itineraries beginning in the fall.
Other cruise lines visiting Grand Turk this year include Crystal Cruises, Silversea Cruises, Oceania Cruises, and Radisson Seven Seas.
Theodore is the Co-Founder and Managing Editor of TravelDailyNews Media Network; his responsibilities include business development and planning for TravelDailyNews long-term opportunities.
