Monday, April 12, 2021 - 09:57 by ce-press
The Port of HaminaKotka is releasing more space for cruiseship berthing due to the expected increase in calls once cruising resumes in full.
From the beginning of this year the Hamina port area is being made available to the cruiselines and has already received bookings for the coming seasons. Petra Cranston, project manager cruise business Port of HaminaKotka, says: “Some days we need all the space we can get to secure berthing possibilities for cruiseships on their way to or from St Petersburg.”
“The Port of HaminaKotka is the only port other than Helsinki that can take the large/megaships in Finland. The demand in the eastern part of the Baltic Sea is very high due to the limited capacity of suitable berths. Also the logistics are perfect.”
Hamina is easy to reach by ship independent of whether arriving from the south, east or the west. It is seven hours sailing from Tallinn, seven from St Petersburg and six hours from Helsinki.
There is one berth in Hamina available for cruiseships. It is 609m long and has a swept draught of 11.2 to 13.2m. It is only 10 minutes from the E18 motorway and the city centre and 20 minutes from Kotka itself.
Cranston explains that while cargo ships do call, the port area is clean and safe. “During cruise days we use 25,000m2 of space for making a ISPS area that can handle all the logistics and passengers that a megaship needs. And we need space also for greeting our guests when arriving with a special event number.”
In addition, the facilities in Kotka itself are able to accommodate one megaship and two smaller ones at the same time.
Hamina is a small circular town on the Gulf of Finland near St Petersburg on the Finnish side of the border. The destination offers the cruise passengers a combination of history, culture and nature with a diverse range of shore excursions and individual tour possibilities.
“Over 100 events through the season, amongst them The Maritime Festival and The International Military Music Festival Hamina Tattoo, provide an inspirational welcome,” says Cranston. “Friendly local people greet the cruise guests with open arms.”
