Thomas C. Famous. Photo: Provided

Royal Caribbean International’s Grandeur of the Seas, alongside Rhapsody of the Seas, at Cyril B. Romney Tortola Pier Park in the Virgin Islands in February 2021. Photo: VINO/File

“A cruise ship company yesterday announced that it will homeport a ship in Bermuda offering seven-day cruises to a private island in the Bahamas.

A report in The Maritime Executive says that the move by Royal Caribbean International will start on June 26 and run to August.”

Royal Gazette, March 24, 2021

“Bermuda...would offer cruise ships the chance to sail to any of the private islands in the Caribbean and back again within one week cruise or offer cruises to nowhere.”

Cruisehive.com

Industry Giants

After much behind the scene work, phone calls, video conferences then more work, more phone calls and more video conferences, the Minister of Transport, Lawrence Scott, aided by his Permanent Secretary Jasmine Smith, Section head of transportation planning Ms Stacy Evans and their Executive Assistant Theresa Ince, was able to proudly announce that Bermuda would become the Home Port for at least two cruise lines.

Cruise line Royal Caribbean, synonymous with Caribbean Cruises, will base at least one ship in Bermuda within a few months. Incidentally, this same ship, Vision of the Seas, is now docked in Virgin Islands waters. 

Another cruise line will also base at least one ship here for a few months.

What does this mean for Bermuda and Bermudians?

Economic Vaccination

The goal is that on a weekly basis a minimum of 2,300 visitors, all of who would have to be fully vaccinated, will fly into Bermuda in order to set sail on each cruise line for 7-day cruises.

These cruises will have different destinations.

Royal Caribbean will head to their private island, Coco Cay in the Bahamas.

All along the way, Bermudians will be able to benefit economically both directly and indirectly.

Every passenger landing or leaving Bermuda will have paid some form of passenger tax within their plane ticket. This revenue will be used to pay AECON / Skyport, which in turn, means that much less expenses the taxpayers will have to fork out, in order to meet the Minimum Revenue Guarantee.

As soon as these thousands of visitors step out of the airport, they will be in need of ground transportation, which means both taxi drivers and minibus drivers, starved of work for over one year, will finally see some much-needed income.

Bear in mind that they will need ground transport before and after each cruise.

Inevitably, there will be those visitors who will wish to spend time on our island before or after a cruise. This means that hotels, guest houses and Air Bnbs will begin to get bookings.

Other direct beneficiaries will be restaurants and bars.

Indirect financial benefits will be derived via several different taxes generated in the following ways:

• Head tax from Cruise Lines
• Tax on fuel used by cruise ships and ground transportation
• Payroll tax of service providers
• Tax on food and goods imported to stock up each ship weekly.

Essentially, we will have a sorely needed economic injection spread across the island.

Evolution

Bermudians must take the opportunity to go one step further and seek opportunities to actually work on the ships whilst they are operating out of Bermuda.

There are literally hundreds of people needed to keep these cruise lines “ship shape”.

Whether it be in the dining rooms, in the engine rooms or cabin rooms, there are jobs that young Bermudians can take up in order to broaden their professional careers.

Additionally, Bermudian entertainers can seek to ply their craft on the waters.

Local group Hindsight has had decades of experience working on cruise lines around the world.

Transformation

The reality is that the world we knew and all the norms that we have become used to have changed.

We have to seize every opportunity that we have, in order to not just revive but transform our hospitality industry and, as importantly, Bermudians must position themselves to be a part of this new norm.

Hopefully, when the season changes this fall, this same ship, and others, can possibly Home Port in Tortola.