MS ‘Anthem of the Seas’ makes inaugural call on Gibraltar

MS Anthem of the Seas, one of the largest cruise ships in the world, and the largest ever to dock at North Mole, will be making its much awaited inaugural call at the port of Gibraltar on Saturday May 9. The arrival of this floating engineering marvel, culminates a week of hectic activity at the port with the visit of twelve cruise vessels in the space of barely seven days, three of which are inaugural calls. The 18-deck Quantum class cruise megaship will be met quayside by a spectacular fanfare provided by the band of the Royal Gibraltar Regiment. The Minister for Tourism Samantha Sacramento MP, accompanied by GTB CEO Nicky Guerrero will be present at the cruise terminal together with representatives of the Gibraltar Port Authority, who will attend the reception on board. Owned and operated by the UK company Royal Caribbean International, the Anthem of the Seas has a gross tonnage of 167,800, is 348 metres in length and a maximum occupancy just short of 5,000 passengers. The Britannia, MC Sinfonia, MV Azores, Silver Explorer and Viking Star have also made inaugural calls to Gibraltar since the beginning of the year. Minister for Tourism Samantha Sacramento MP has expressed her delight regarding the upcoming visit of the Anthem of the Seas, as it will serve to highlight the confidence of the global cruise industry in Gibraltar’s excellent professional shipping services and capacity to handle passenger megaships. The Minister said: “We would like to extend a warm welcome to Gibraltar, to the thousands of people on board the Anthem of the Seas who are visiting us this Saturday. “Our cruise sector is in fine shape and the hectic activity of the past week together with the latest inaugural calls, are further proof of its expansion and growth under the current administration. This year we will be delivering thanks to all the hard work of the previous Minister for Tourism Neil Costa in the past three and a half years. The fruits of his labour are now apparent. It also reflects our untiring commitment to continued development of the local shipping, tourist and leisure industries as vital components of our sustained economic prosperity. “We continue to work hard to further promote Gibraltar as the leading port of call for cruise ships in the Mediterranean and our aim is to keep attracting more passenger ships and more tourists to our shores. We do not rest on our laurels or in the well-deserved reputation that we have established, as this is a permanent commitment that we tirelessly pursue.” The local ship agent for the Anthem of the Seas is Incargo Shipping Services.