Over forty-two hundred passengers arrived in Antigua on Sunday with the late season inaugural call of Meraviglia, a vessel belonging to MSC Cruises.

The customary exchange of plagues between the local officials and the captain of the ship, Alessandro Galotto, took place on board.

The local representatives who participated in the ceremony included Geannie Joseph, Manager of Bryson’s Shipping, the local agents for the vessel,

Rawle Reynolds, Operations Manager of Antigua Cruise Port, Javier Jacobs, Operations Manager at the Antigua and Barbuda Tourism Authority, and Mario Browne, Cruise Liaison Officer of the Ministry of Tourism.

Captain Galotto shared his fond memories of the vessel and a two-week vacation he had spent in Antigua over thirty years ago.

The Meraviglia is a fairly new vessel, commissioned seven years ago, with a total capacity of 5400 passengers and 1650 crew members, making it a floating city with roughly seven thousand people on board.

With a length of 220 meters, width of 43 meters, and 19 decks, it boasts two main show lounges, four restaurants, a water park, slides, and covered pools among its many amenities.

Antigua was the final call for the vessel, which will spend two days at sea on its way back to its homeport in New York.

Captain Galotto expressed his desire to make another trip to the beautiful island next January, offering a longer cruise to provide New York-based guests with a different scenario.

Rawle Reynolds, the enthusiastic Operations Manager of Antigua Cruise Port, noted that the inaugural call in the late season is a testament to the importance of Antigua and Barbuda as a destination when cruises to the Caribbean are being planned.

He also indicated that the strength of Antigua Cruise Ports in negotiating with the cruise lines to stretch the season even further is evident, and they are now looking at a very busy summer period from May to October with between 20 and 30 calls, compared with less than ten in previous years.

The call of the Meraviglia shows that Antigua and Barbuda continues to attract new vessels, and this particular call is significant as it is the second-largest vessel to arrive there this season.

Reynolds added that since it is the last call for the cruise, the number of people who would come off the vessel to participate in some local activity should be very high.

Antigua and Barbuda is closing in on 500-thousand cruise visitors, with the count reaching 462-plus passengers, which means less than 40-thousand more to go to reach the target.