Crystal Esprit, one of the luxury six star cruise ships was welcomed to the Galis Bay commercial port on by elected officials from the Collectivité, Port of St. Martin and St. Martin Tourism Office ahead of a scheduled cruise that began Monday.
The ship, the first cruise liner to dock on the French side since the recent hurricanes, will be home porting in St. Martin.
On hand to welcome the crew and passengers were First Vice-President of the Collectivité Valérie Damaseau, Port Director Albéric Ellis, St. Martin Port Authority Chairman Ambroise Lake, St. Martin Tourism Office Director Kate Richardson, President Daniel Gibbs’ Cabinet Director Hervé Dorvil and other partners.
Ellis in his opening remarks at the reception noted the Port Authority and St. Martin Tourism Office have been working for a few months with Crystal Cruises to secure St. Martin as the vessel’s home port.
The traditional inaugural plaque was presented to Captain Jan Rautavarra by Damaseau and Lake. The Captain turned out to be a musician and impressed the gathering with his skill on an instrument called a Chapman Stick.
Crystal Esprit has carried 62 passengers but on this cruise only 25 as there had been many cancellations due to circumstances following the hurricanes and changes in flights.
In the next week all the cruise already has 40 guests. Half of the passengers were from the USA, and others from the Netherlands, Israel, Mexico, and other countries.
There are about 80 crew members who are looking after 62 passengers when the ship is full, noted Guest Relations Director from Lithuania.
