Jamaican Cruise Line Makes First Landing in Belize

At about eight o’clock this morning, Jamaican cruise ship MSC Divina called to port in Belize City.  The inaugural voyage to the Jewel departed from its home port in Falmouth, Jamaica three days ago, calling on Georgetown, Grand Cayman and Cozumel, Mexico before landing in Belize City.  Director of Destination Planning and Cruise, Valdemar Andrade said, “We welcome the new European cruise line, MSC Cruises, in their inaugural call to Belize. We are happy to have them as a new cruise line partner for our destination and we invite to discover how to be. The MSC calls are a part of initial calls to explore what the destination has to offer. The B.T.B. and the Belize Cruise Port are working with them to increase calls subsequent to these. We certainly see the cruise industry remaining robust and well above three hundred calls for the year at the Belize City Port. In 2016, there will also be an additional line calling as well.”   MSC Cruises is a division of the Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC). It officially began operating in the cruise business in 1988.  MSC Cruises grew by eight hundred percent between 2004 and 2014, becoming the leading cruise company in the Mediterranean. They offer a wide range of itineraries in Northern Europe, the Atlantic Ocean, the Caribbean, Cuba and Antilles, South America, South Africa, Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Oman. In 2008, they were the first cruise company in the world to be awarded the coveted “6 Golden Pearls” for outstanding standards in environmental protection, health and safety.