Carnival Corp is to become the first concession-holder to operate the Canary Islands’ and Mid-Atlantic’s newest cruise terminal at Tenerife.
This followed the signing of an agreement with the Port Authority of Santa Cruz de Tenerife, following a recent Board meeting.
Opened in 2016, during the Seatrade Cruise Med conference that took place in Tenerife, the terminal is claimed to offer passengers a comfortable experience and modern conveniences.
It can also accommodate ‘green’ cruise ships powered by LNG and will host AIDA’s ‘AIDAnova’, on her maiden voyage this month. She is claimed to be the world’s first cruise ship that can be powered by LNG both in port and at sea.
Welcoming 617,987 cruise passengers in 2017, Santa Cruz de Tenerife is one of the busiest cruise ports in the Canary Islands, the seven-island Spanish archipelago off the coast of Africa and Spain, and the first to attract an investment by a major cruise company.
Carnival Corporation also manages two other cruise terminals in Spain – the Helix and Palacruceros facilities in Barcelona.
Seven brands from Carnival Corporation – AIDA Cruises, Costa Cruises, Cunard, Holland America Line, Princess Cruises, Seabourn and P&O Cruises UK – call at Tenerife during the course of a year. Carnival Corp said that it expected to bring more than 300,000 passenger to the port in 2018 – half of all cruise passenger visits – with 130 calls by 31 different ships from the company’s cruise line brands.
“Carnival Corporation has long been a valued partner with the Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and the Canary Islands, and we are confident that they will be a wonderful steward of our recently built cruise port,” said Pedro Suárez López de Vergara, president of the Santa Cruz de Tenerife Port Authority. “Thanks in large part to Carnival Corporation ships, the cruise market generated an economic impact to the Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife and the city of Santa Cruz of €24 mill in the 2018 cruise season, an increase of €6 mill from the 2017 cruise season, and we look forward to continuing to share our beautiful island with visiting cruise passengers coming through this cruise terminal.”
The aim is also to extend the benefits to its other ports – Santa Cruz de La Palma, San Sebastián de La Gomera, La Estaca in El Hierro and Los Cristianos in Tenerife.
“Our ports are performing very well in the cruise business – last year we received nearly 1 mill cruise passengers and we are confident to increase this figure close to 2% in 2018. We expect the new partnership will boost the cruise business in the region,” he added.
“This concession and our ongoing investment is part of Carnival Corp’s long-term strategy to continue to develop the cruise industry in the Canary Islands,” said Carnival Corp’s Giora Israel, senior vice president of global port and destination development. “Our passion is to always provide the best possible experiences for our guests, and Tenerife is an extremely popular destination that offers something for everyone – including a storied history, beautiful beaches, exotic gardens, unique crafts and memorable cuisine. We look forward to ensuring that our cruise guests coming through the Port of Santa Cruz de Tenerife have a great experience, and we also look forward to expanding relationships with our friends in Tenerife.”
Santa Cruz Terminal joins eight global ports and terminals already operated by Carnival Corp and its cruise line brands. These include:
⦁ Barcelona (Helix & Palacruceros terminals) in Spain.
⦁ Savona in Italy.
⦁ Amber Cove in the Dominican Republic.
⦁ Puerta Maya in Cozumel, Mexico.
⦁ Grand Turk Cruise Centre in Turks and Caicos Islands.
⦁ Mahogany Bay in Roatan, Honduras.
⦁ Long Beach in California.
Carnival Corp also operates two private destinations in the Caribbean, Princess Cays and Half Moon Cay, and has a joint venture in Dubai for the future operation of two cruise terminals.
In addition, through another joint venture, Carnival Corp is a 50/50 operator with MSC Cruises in a Marseille terminal.
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