Luxury cruise liners set sights on Cuba
US cruise company Royal Caribbean docked its first ever ship in Cuba on Friday and became the fourth American cruise operator to sail to the island after the two countries re-established diplomatic relations in 2015
Royal Caribbean’s ship “Azamara Quest” docked at Havana’s harbour about 8:30 a.m. with more than 650 passengers on board.
“It was stunning coming through the harbour and seeing this beautiful city of Havana at sunrise,” Marie St. Clair, one of the cruise passengers, told Xinhua.
For this first voyage to the Cuban capital, many Royal Caribbean executives traveled to the island, including the company’s CEO, Adam Goldstein.
“The ships of our company visit almost 500 ports around the world. But there has been exactly one place where we have been wanting to go to for 50 years and that is Havana, Cuba. This really fills in an opportunity that we have wanted to provide to our guests for decades,” Goldstein told reporters.
Royal Caribbean joins other operators, Carnival, Pearl Seas and Norwegian Cruise Lines, who have already sailed to Havana and other Cuban cities.
“We put an emphasis on guest satisfaction and we look forward to making our Cuba cruises a wonderful cultural, historical and social experience for our guests,” added the Royal Caribbean top official.
Although US citizens are still officially banned from tourism in Cuba, they can visit the island through 12 categories which include people-to-people exchanges and cultural trips.
The ship was met by Cuban officials from the Ministry of Transportation, which highlighted the possibility of receiving more US visitors who could appreciate the island’s cultural and natural richness.