Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line Making Waves in Grand Bahama Island
With the recent ribbon cutting, inaugural ceremony and voyage of its new ship, the MV Grand Classica, the CEO of Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line (BPCL), Oneil Khosa, hosted the official plaque exchange ceremony on Thursday, April 26th at the Freeport Harbour.
The ship, which has the capacity for 1,680 passengers, is the sister ship to the MS Grand Celebration, and now facilitates the newly implemented sailing schedule from West Palm Beach, Florida to Grand Bahama Island.
Currently, the sister ships are the only cruises to offer the option of a two-day cruise and stay, where daily sailings are expected to double business on the island.
Karen Seymour, Director, Ministry of Tourism & Aviation (MOTA), GBI, said, "Now that the Grand Classica has joined the Grand Celebration, instead of the thrice-weekly sailings, we can promote daily departures from West Palm Beach. This will increase visitor arrivals by BPCL for Grand Bahama Island to around 400,000 annually."
Photo: Derek Carroll
She added that, "These visitors will positively impact many of our industry service providers, and no doubt stimulates budding entrepreneurs to expand the number of unique vacation experiences that will differentiate Grand Bahama from the competing destinations in the region."
With daily trips to Grand Bahama Island, the refurbished 27-year old vessel is captained by Meinhardt Hansen of Faroe Islands, Iceland and boasts 10 decks, a large casino, spa, pools, eight dining options, live entertainment, shopping and a variety of lounges.
Captain Orlando Forbes, Port Director, Freeport Harbour Company, said, "As you would know, the tourism sector is struggling and the cruise has been our mainstay. The company has been consistent, and I think everyone understands, particularly since the passing of Matthew, how important Paradise Cruise Line has been to Freeport."
He noted that with two ships coming in daily, "It says that the company has a lot of confidence in Freeport...and as a stakeholder, we will certainly do our best to support them."
The MV Grand Classica arrived with approximately 650 passengers on board.
Members of the Ministry of Tourism & Aviation, Freeport Harbour Company, Bahamas Paradise Cruise Line, and the ship's captain and crew participated in the traditional plaque exchange.