November cruise numbers rise high over 2018

| 30/12/2019 | 49 Comments
Cayman News Service
Tourists returning to their cruise ship by tender boat

(CNS): The number of cruise passengers visiting the Cayman Islands in November 2019 passed those recorded in the same month in 2018, according to the Department of Tourism. DoT reported that 173,373 passengers arrived last month, a 2% increase on last year, undermining government claims over the last few months that numbers were in a terminal decline. November 2019 is the third best November this century for cruise visitor, surpassed only by November 2005 and 2017.

The increase in cruise arrivals puts the annual total on course to reach around 1.8 million cruise passengers for 2019, which would make this year the second or third best year on record since 2000 for the cruise sector.

Meanwhile, the airport also welcomed record arrivals, with the number of overnight guests reaching 38,463, the best November since 2000. It comes as 2019 is set to be another exceptional year for the stay-over market. Even before the December figures are factored in, Cayman has already welcomed 448,551 stay-over visitors, a more than 9% growth on last year and the highest number of guests in an eleven month period in history.

“As we approach the year end, I am proud of the strategic efforts led by my ministry and department to continue growing visitation,” Tourism Minister Moses Kirkconnell said in a press release about the overnight guest numbers. “My tourism team and I are committed to the future success of our industry and wish everyone a safe and joyous holiday season.”


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Category: Business, Tourism

Comments (49)

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  1. Anonymous says:

    How will building a cruise pier benefit all Caymanians?

    How will building cruise pier benefit cruise ship companies?

    How will building a cruise pier benefit our Politicians?

    How will building our cruise ship pier benefit our environment?

    For whom are we building a cruise pier? Caymanians? Politicians? Jewelry store owners? Cruise Lines?

    I just need to know and I want honest answers…Sway me either way, I’m still on the fence..

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  2. Anonymous says:

    Moses, you better speak to Royal and Carnival and ask them to drop at least one ship a week each. This making us look bad man…we can’t keep telling the people the numbers are decreasing if they keep increasing…do something nah? how I ga wote yes now?

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  3. Anonymous says:

    You can’t make this $hit up..come hear what more lies Moses and gang are going to bring as soon as they set the new referendum date..

    Cargo going to be two feet higher so containers don’t wash away in Nor’westers.
    We need a cruise pier to increase our cruise passenger numbers…

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  4. Anonymous says:

    Voting yes to our dock 🙂

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  5. Stanley Hill says:

    To 10:18 am. Yes, the cruise companies said we will still get ships even if the piers are not built. But let’s also tell what they also said If piers are not built. Our passengers will dwindle because of the continuation of using small ships. Let’s stop being bias and tell the full story, please. I’m voting yes.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Ahhh right, the bigger ships that don’t yet exist and aren’t on the order book. SOLAS and LSA regs require all cruise boats to have standardized tender and lifeboat doors, and practice using them. Stopping in the Cayman Islands helps liners to comply.

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      • Anonymous says:

        A tender can unload a mega cruise ship in the same rightful way as a spoon emptying a lake.

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        • Anonymous says:

          We better hope tenders can do it faster than that because the lifeboats don’t have that many seats and that doesn’t make me feel safe getting on one.

          Trust me in an emergency, I would rather see a cruise ship tender alongside rather than a life boat..

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        • Anonymous says:

          Really? Like the c.5,200 passengers coming in today on the MSC Meraviglia?

      • Anonymous says:

        SOLAS means Safety of life at sea. LSA means Life-saving appliance code. Which doesn’t have anything to do with “Tenders”. If you want more details without the lies check this website. http://www.cruiselaws.com/Cruise_Laws_Solas_Regulations.html

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        • Anonymous says:

          You will read that since Titanic, the access doors on the sides of passenger liners have codes, standardized sizes etc – this is so that anyone in the vicinity of an emergency can lend a hand, and even while the boat is in motion at speeds up to 5kts. The lie is: falsely stating that there are any boats now or in the future that can’t tender or lifeboat. While they might prefer not to, they are all designed to comply with the same specs.

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        • Anonymous says:

          Dear Dunce: Lifeboats/Tenders are explicitly part of the LSA in Chapter 3 of SOLAS:

          https://www.dnvgl.com/news/solas-2020-updates-159370

    • Anonymous says:

      I think you main discontinuation of smaller (Carnival and RCL) cruise ships but with only 1 or 2 them operating now and very few coming online in the future, I think we will be just fine…Not everyone wants to travel on an oversized cruise ship with 6000 plus other people..Many people prefer smaller ships and are willing to spend the money for their sanity and privacy..

      They have one that stops in Jamaica and even with that our cruise ship passenger numbers surpasses the Jamaica numbers and they have 4 ports with piers and we have none..

      Don’t believe everything that come from foreign…

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  6. Anonymous says:

    Yup, because other destinations are still recovering from the recent hurricanes and the cruise itineraries are being re-routed. Enjoy it while it lasts.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Because some have had to change their itinerary due to Cuba no longer being an option for them.

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      • Anonymous says:

        Hmmm…which ones? Show me just one example…

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        • Anonymous says:

          How about ALL of the cruises that involved American passengers from June 2019?

          Cruises to Cuba Are Abruptly Canceled, After New Travel Ban
          A day after the Trump administration revised its travel regulations to Cuba, prohibiting cruises, companies began canceling sailings.

          https://www.nytimes.com/2019/06/05/travel/cuba-cruise-travel-ban.html

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          • Anonymous says:

            That was not my question…I asked how many of them have been rerouted here since Trump shut Cuba down..Name one, please?

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            • Anonymous says:

              MSC Armonia.

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            • Anonymous says:

              You are very aggressive for someone who is asking others for information. Unless you actually thought you were being smart?

              https://www.msccruises.co.uk/news/msc-cruises-cuba-update

              • Anonymous says:

                MSC Armonia operated here for 3 specific times only from June to October,,a ship coming for only 3 days in an entire 4 months hardly counts for 2% increase in passengers.

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                • Anonymous says:

                  You asked for just one example. You were given just one example above. The update shows the ship coming in 3 EXTRA times. The ship came in multiple times over the period. Cuba is not the only factor in the increase, but it does play a role. I don’t know what point you are trying to make. Facts are facts and we have received multiple visits from ships not originally intended to call here, which have brought passengers who did not plan their trip to include Grand Cayman.

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        • Anonymous says:

          Carnival Paradise. Just one example.

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        • Anonymous says:

          Empress of the Seas. Interesting that you are so sceptical. Why would you not trust what you are being told by people who may know something you don’t? And why not go and look into it for yourself?

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          • Anonymous says:

            RCL Empress of the Seas itinerary does not include Cayman…check out their website..You obviously haven’t looked it up for yourself..

            here you go, see if this will help..

            http://www.royalcaribbeanincentives.com/ship/empress-of-the-seas/itinerary/&sdate=2020-01-11&sdate=2020-01-19&sdate=2020-01-26

            • Anonymous says:

              You do realise that looking up future itineraries is no indicator of whether a ship has detoured to Cayman in recent months?? The Empress of the Seas made 5 stops between September and the end of November, 3 of them in November. I don’t need to look it up because I know it. But I do also do my homework and verify the facts and the facts are that more than 1 ship has detoured to Cayman over the last few months because of the situation with Cuba. If you choose to deny the facts then that’s all well and good, but it doesn’t make them any less true.

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            • Anonymous says:

              Duh! Check the Port Authority. You’ll find the almost 5K passengers brought in by the Empress of the Seas more than make up the 2% additional passengers.

      • Anonymous says:

        4:11 Cuba is the proverbial ‘elephant in the room’ that nobody wants to talk about. When that country opens up things are going to change big time round here and not for the better. When the Cubans get full access to funding from outside sources they won’t mess around debating what to do – they’ve got the manpower, resources and the real estate to build however many cruise docks and resorts companies like RCCL can pay for. And that’s the big danger. We sink (literally) our futures into the promise of mega-liners dropping thousands of visitors in GT and in a few years time find they’re all going to Havana – given the choice I know which I’d prefer.

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      • Anonymous says:

        …and are you hoping that Trump will change his mind and they will start going there again..that was short-lived because of Obama and until there is another Democrat President that won’t ever happen again and possibly not even then…get used to it, those ships will continue to come here and our numbers will continue to grow..we don’t need piers for cruise ship business to increase..it is quite obvious..

    • Anonymous says:

      Geesh that was 2 years ago excuses..Come on now please come with another “reasonable excuse”

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    • Anonymous says:

      Why do we need anymore than we are getting now? I don’t get this…Doesn’t anyone see that our infrastructure cannot handle this? We have one little strip of beach left for them to go get hassled on and Stingray City is so overcrowded the stingrays will soon quit and leave..

      Greed, nothing but greed…

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      • Anonymous says:

        They did today. I was on a Red Sail trip this morning. 23 boats were there with about 250 people. Lucky if there were half a dozen rays today. We are killing one of our best attractions but it’s all about the dollar.

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    • Anonymous says:

      Those ports knocked in 2017-2018 have all been back on line for months. Even Freeport is open.

    • Anonymous says:

      Name one port in the Caribbean that was damaged by a hurricane that has not re-opened…

  7. VOTE NO says:

    VOTE NO on Referendum Day and say no to this madness. Cayman does not need this cruise dock.

    The cruise lines have confirmed they will still come to Cayman because it is the key destination on the western itinerary for the Caribbean. Moses Kirkconnell, Alden McLaughlin, McKeeva Bush and their Cabinet members have misled the public and are spending public funds to lie to the people.

    Why are they desperate to push this dock down the throats of the people that have organised themselves and are clearly saying NO we do not need it?

    The Auditor General needs to follow the money.

    On Referendum Day VOTE NO

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  8. Anonymous says:

    This just goes to show just how much the Government and Cruise Lines have been lying to us..a 2% increase is an “increase ” and not a decrease..

    I’ll bet my bottom dollar that the numbers reported will show a loss as soon as the referendum date is set..They have to find something to lie about..

    Vote NO!

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  9. Anonymous says:

    Moses/Alden, this isn’t good news for the building of the cruise piers, Remember you and the cruise port (Verdant Island Group) said that our numbers would continue to fall.

    Caymanians, please understand that we are a jewel in the Western Caribbean. The Cruise Ships need us perhaps more than we need them. They have to go where their customers want to go not just where they want to put their ships..

    We don’t need a cruise pier. We have so many other pressing needs on this island and until this day no one can convince me as to how building this pier will benefit the majority of Caymanians.

    Please vote NO when the referendum happens!

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    • Anonymous says:

      It’s always pleasing when an enlightened Caymanian posts something like this. The dollar is a poor second compared to the future of your island. Massive kudos to you.

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  10. Anonymous says:

    Since our first trip to the island in1996, we have seen so many changes! We love the island and the people but now find ourselves thinking about no longer making our trips to Cayman. Your lovely island of the past is looking like a “Concrete Jungle”, which seems to be owned mostly by Dart.
    We no longer feel safe taking an evening stroll on the beach like we did in the earlier years as the crime rate seems to have skyrocketed. We have become friends with Caymanians, young and old who are sad to see their beloved island. Our hearts go out to you.

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    • Anonymous says:

      I am a long time visitor also ( over 20 years) and am also debating a new destination for future travel. I do not like the “ new” Cayman that has become congested and everywhere you look is cement buildings. Also, the skyrocketing prices of hotels since the hurricanes hit other islands can’t be justified in my mind as service and facilities have not improved ( just price). Even the less expensive hotels are closing in on $250.-$300 a night which is almost laughable for a Holiday Inn, Comfort Suites etc., And the prices for the Marriott per night with no beach?! There are many destinations with good weather, a beautiful beach, not congested, and low crime that are reasonably priced. Be careful Cayman before you lose your loyal tourists!

  11. Anonymous says:

    The needs of these two sets of visitors are largely diametrically opposed. Anyone witnessing the alcohol sales on Public Beach on Christmas Day morning by the children’s play area, the chairs jam packed, the crowds in GT on a busy day (take the 1st January 16K plus arrivals as an example) and the increase in hawking and begging should be able to clearly see the way this island is sliding. And it’s not positive. Kudos for getting stayover numbers up, but this can’t continue indefinitely and I’m meeting more and more people who say they plan to go elsewhere. Sadly, you just can’t have your cake and eat it (at least, not all of it without being very sick – and that looks like the way we are headed).

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    • Anonymous says:

      The hawking and begging on Seven Mile Beach is becoming like Jamaica.

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      • Anonymous says:

        The product of our good for nothing government encouraging importing cheap labor and handing out status like candy to get votes…

        When are we going to take Cayman back? We are going to hell in a hand basket..

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  12. Anonymous says:

    The only part of this that is astonishing is how the DoT Ministry and Minister continue to pretend they have factored at all in the multi-destination arrivals stats.

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  13. Anonymous says:

    And they want to build a dock

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    • Anonymous says:

      They have to..Our government has already been bought and paid for…No turning back now..

      $9M invested without one soul knowing until Alden blurts it out in one meeting and lord knows how much more since he let us know…I can’t believe that Carnival and RCL are just going to let all their money and time go to waste..Referendum or no referendum this thing has to happen…Follow the money people…Follow the money!!

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