Costa Mediterranea docks as cruise ship season opens |21 October 2019

Representative of a travel agency briefs a group of visitors at the port

The Costa Mediterranea, one of the biggest ships in the Costa Crociere cruise line, docked at Port Victoria yesterday morning.

The 292-metre vessel docked at the port at around 7am with over 1,961 passengers and 900 crew members.

The cruise ship from Italy is the first vessel to call into Seychelles’Port Victoria as the cruise ships season opens, a season which expects to see over 50 cruise ships from October till April next year – four more than last year.

The cruise ship committee representative, Ralph Charlette, said port workers had been working from 4am to make sure that the ship had a smooth arrival and the visitors were well taken care of when they went on land.

The last cruise season saw the congestion of cruise ships and cargo ships once they were at the dock with some unable to enter the port, but this year the Seychelles Ports Authority has introduced a set of measures to avoid this issue.

“We have talked to several of our stakeholders as well as prepared a new schedule to make sure that there is a flow between both cruise ships and cargo ships,” said Mr Charlette.

Upon arrival, visitors are greeted at a special reception area, accompanied by traditional music and artisanal kiosks before making their way to their tour bus to explore the island.

The Costa Mediterraneais expected to leave the dock at 1pm today when it will set sail to Reunion island.