MOSSEL BAY NEWS - The Port of Mossel Bay's 2017/18 cruise season started on Sunday, 12 November with the arrival of the port's first international cruise liner of the season.
Phoenix Reisen's Albatros, captained by Dutch-born skipper Captain Robert Fronenbroek, sailed into port carrying 751 European passengers and 336 crew members.
Starting her mammoth 66-day voyage from Monaco to Genoa in Italy, the Bahamas-registered ship set sail on October 25 from Monaco and had a four-day stay in Cape Town before setting off for Mossel Bay and then Port Elizabeth.
The 28,518-ton, 812-passenger cruise ship, built in 1973, sails between popular destinations in Europe (Mediterranean and Baltic Sea), Asia, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, South America, Canada and New England. She will also call at East London and Durban.
Fronenbroek, who has been captain of the MS Albatros for the past two years, told the Herald Live he hoped to expand the visits from the current one to two a year.
"This is one of the nicer trips along the South African coast. We were lucky enough to see hundreds of dolphins, whales and seals on our way from Mossel Bay, We even saw albatrosses," he said after docking in the Port Elizabeth harbour.
Transnet National Ports Authority's (TNPA) acting port manager for Mossel Bay, Shadrack Tshikalange, said besides the Albatros the port was scheduled to receive calls by four different cruise liners this season between November and February, although the national season ran until April.
The first of a number of luxury cruise liners to call on the Port of Mossel Bay, the MS Albatros, carries 830 passengers, mainly senior citizens, and 340 crew members. The 28 518-ton ship boasts 10 decks - eight of them for cabins - and spans 205m. Photo: Dave van der Merwe
Tshikalange said passenger liner tourism was aligned with TNPA's vision of opening the port to people, thereby positioning Mossel Bay as a key tourism hub.
"The cruise season provides a major boost for the South Western Cape economy, allowing tourists on stopovers to leisure and wildlife experiences in and around our town.
"We're delighted that Mossel Bay continues to receive its fair share of cruise ships as more cruise line companies show confidence in our port, alongside TNPA's usual stimulus home ports of Durban and Cape Town," he said.
The four cruise vessels scheduled to visit Mossel Bay are Nautica (7 December), Boudicca (8 January), MS Europa 2 (28 January), and Seabourn Sojourn (14 February).
Chairman of the Mossel Bay Business Chamber, Fanus Truter, said it was extremely important for Mossel Bay that the port was used to its full potential.
"It is good to see that the passenger ships are calling at Mossel Bay. I just think the conditions for passengers to come here are not what they should be since they are ferried to town in smaller vessels.
"We would rather like to see the passengers disembark safely and be received at a proper reception area.
"As the business chamber we are in consultation with the municipality and with TNPA officials to see whether the reception area for tourists disembarking in Mossel Bay can be improved.
"Business in Mossel Bay believes the port should be the heart of the town and that ways to make the port more access to the public should be investigated. Just think what it would mean for Mossel Bay and the Southern Cape if a passenger vessel called here every week?"
More than 20 luxury cruise ships operated by 17 international cruise lines are expected to call at South Africa's six cruise ports during the 2017/18 season.
ARTICLE: NICKEY LE ROUX, MOSSEL BAY ADVERTISER NEWS EDITOR
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