It was a carnival-like atmosphere in Basseterre when the Wonder of the Seas, the world’s largest cruise liner, made its inaugural call on Port Zante, St. Kitts, on Thursday, 24th November, 2022.
The ship from the Royal Caribbean Group captained by Henrik Loy brought with it 6495 guests and 2259 crew.
At the customary plaque exchange ceremony whenever a ship makes its initial call, Prime Minister of St. Kitts and Nevis, Hon. Dr. Terrance Drew welcomed the captain, crew and guests.
“You have confidence in the destination by adding St. Kitts and Nevis to your now largest vessel the Wonder of the Seas with a passenger capacity of 6988,” said Prime Minister Dr. Drew. “We are immensely proud of what you do as a captain taking care of this.”
The wonder of the Seas is scheduled to bring a projected passenger capacity of 34,940 passengers for the current cruise season.
“We look forward to receiving the Icon of the Seas in 2024 as she will surpass her sister vessel in size,” Dr. Drew said. “We invite your passenger and crew to enjoy all of the destination and to venture deeper and experience the essence of our people and engage in authentic and enriching experiences. Welcome to St. Kitts and Nevis and you are always welcome to come back.”
Captain Loy thanked the Prime Minister and his “colleagues from beautiful St. Kitts” for all the hard work and preparation that went into making the maiden call of Wonder of the Seas successful.
“We are very happy to be here,” Captain Loy said.
Also, in attendance at the ceremony onboard were Deputy Prime Minister Hon. Dr. Geoffrey Hanley, newly appointed CEO of SCASPA, Ms. Adeola Moore, other officials from SCASPA, Delisle Walwyn and the Ministry of Tourism.