Wednesday, October 5, 2016 - 10:56 by ce-press
ABP Southampton was named Port of the Year at the Seatrade Cruise Awards in Tenerife on September 22.
The award was given in recognition of ABP’s investment in all four cruise terminals, through partnerships with both Carnival Corp & plc and Royal Caribbean International (RCI), as well as the recent re-securing of Southampton as the latter’s homeport. The seven-year deal with RCI is worth over £200m (€232m) to the local economy.
Alastair Welch, director ABP Southampton, said: “This is a fantastic achievement for the team and recognises how we continually strive to provide the best experience at our cruise terminal facilities. Two thousand and sixteen marks the latest stage of multi-million pound investment in our cruise facilities, where we’ve improved passenger flows, capacity and ship-to-shore access, offering some of the largest cruise vessels afloat exceptional terminal arrangements.
“Over 1.8 million cruise passengers pass through the port’s dedicated cruise terminals every year, so it’s vital that we enhance the embarkation experience. With our cruise partners we’ve facilitated next generation check-in and a kerb-to-gangway time of only 10 minutes - making it the fastest route from home to international adventures for holidaymakers.
“We’re also very proud of our partnerships. Continuing as the homeport for Carnival UK and RCI is a fantastic achievement and demonstrates the strength of our relationships with our cruise partners.
“Teamwork makes the Port of Southampton. From the stevedores to the local council, the passenger security teams to the port maintenance teams and all service partners that combine to make this a pre-eminent cruise port. It’s a huge team effort and this award is a testament to the strength of the community who make the port so successful.”
