St Maarten’s cruise rebirth is going strong, with more and more new calls to the island’s port. 

That includes five inaugural port calls in the last month, including two so far in January: AIDAbella and Celebrity Apex, which both visited St Maarten for the first time.

The five new ships are “a strong indication of the destination’s popularity among cruise lines being a port in demand in the Northeastern Caribbean,” Port St Maarten said in a statement. 

“The 2022-2023 cruise season is progressing very well,” said Alexander Gumbs, chief executive officer of Port St Maarten. “We are very pleased with the additional new vessels that have made inaugural calls so far for the season. We are moving forward with confidence as we continue to grow our cruise business.”

Last month, Viking Neptune made its first call, joined by Carnival Celebration and Azamara Onward. 

— CJ