Cruise ship passengers battle two-day sea storm to visit Kenya
The vessel which is the last to call at the port of Mombasa ends the high cruise ship season this year docked with 357 passengers and 396 crew members.
What you need to know:
- “The ship is not full because it embarked on around the world cruise on January 14, and was due to go through the Suez Canal but the itinerary changed in February, dictating we go around Africa to reach Europe due to insecurity concerns at the Suez Canal,” said the cruise ship director Ms Laurence Badese.
- This forced the cruise ship officials to give its guests who were uncomfortable with the new itinerary a chance to go back home. Normally, the vessel would be sailing with 640 guests.
Tourists and crew aboard MS Insignia, a cruise ship, weathered the cyclone Ialy sweeping across the Indian Ocean to dock at the Port of Mombasa.
The passengers said they encountered very choppy waters as the vessel sailed towards Mombasa from Seychelles.
The vessel which is the last to call at the port of Mombasa ending the high cruise ship season this year docked with 357 passengers and 396 crew members.
Cruise Ship MS Insignia that docked at the Port of Mombasa on May 22, 2024.
“The ship is not full because it embarked on around the world cruise on January 14, and was due to go through the Suez Canal but the itinerary changed in February, dictating we go around Africa to reach Europe due to insecurity concerns at the Suez Canal,” said the cruise ship director Ms Laurence Badese.
This forced the cruise ship officials to give its guests who were uncomfortable with the new itinerary a chance to go back home. Normally, the vessel would be sailing with 640 guests.
“We so much wanted to come to Kenya that we braved the storm that traveled between Madagascar and the Kenyan Coast. But we had a very rough two-sea days ahead of reaching Kenya. We are glad we made it on time and safely,” added Ms Badese.
The passengers who disembarked went on day-long safaris to Amboseli and Tsavo National Parks, before sailing off to Zanzibar on Thursday and make stop-overs in Mozambique, Durban and its final call in Cape Town ahead of going back to Europe through the West Coast of Africa.
Ms Badese lauded the local port authorities for the smooth clearance of the ship.
“A year ago, when we called at the port of Mombasa immediately after the pandemic, things were different. The process was a lot lengthy. We are pleased to report that nobody is sick on the board, the formalities were smooth,” she added.
Kenya Ports Authority (KPA) Managing Director Captain William Ruto urged more cruise ships to make the port of Mombasa their home port.
“This is a port that welcomes tourists, all the facilities we have put up including the cruise ship terminal are to attract investors to this sector. We are happy that the cruise tourism that the country has been yearning for is picking up,” said Capt Ruto.
He further urged the cruise ships to extend the one-day port stay to two to enable tourists to enjoy Mombasa’s nightlife and other tourism products to boost the industry.
Cruise Ship MS Insignia that docked at the Port of Mombasa on May 22, 2024. Kenya Ports Authority Managing Director Capt William Ruto and Kenya Tourism Board Chief Executive Officer Ms June Chepkemei pledge to market sector to attract more vessels.
“We assure you that the security at the port of Mombasa and the city is good. All tourists going on excursions will be safe. We are working with the Kenya Tourism Board to continue marketing the port of Mombasa to have more cruises docking here,” he added.
Mr Ruto said the port has not been affected by storm Ialy, however KPA has issued advisories to vessels sailing to the port in case the weather is not conducive.
Kenya Tourism Board Chief Executive Officer June Chepkemei said the government is working closely with all tourism stakeholders to boost the cruise ship sector recovery journey.
“We want to go back to the year 2,000 where we received over 19,000 tourists that docked at this port,” said Ms Chepkemei.
