Mumbai Port on Thursday hosted around 5,700 guests from 71 nations, who arrived on Spectrum of the Seas, the largest and most advanced cruise ship to port in India.
Royal Caribbean International’s newest ship has 16 decks and weighs 1,68,666 gross tonnes. To celebrate the maiden call, plaque exchanges were conducted between Spectrum of the Seas’ Captain Charles Teige and State Tourism Minister Jaykumar Rawal, Mumbai Port Trust chairman Sanjay Bhatia, and Keki Master, senior vice-president of shipping services company J.M. Baxi.
Next halt: Kochi
Spectrum of the Seas, after her debut in Barcelona last month, has called in at an Asian port for the first time. She is on a 14-night cruise from Dubai to Singapore, and Cochin will be her next port of call on May 11. Mr. Teige said it was one of the most beautiful ships in the world. “The lounge on the ship is worth $25 million. It took 528 days to build this ship. This is one of the most expensive ships, ever brought to the Asian market,” he said.
Mr. Rawal said, “It is a very historic moment for all of us. I am very proud to host the largest ship, to be ever cruising to Asia in Mumbai. Maharashtra Tourism is particularly looking forward to cruises, so we will take all the necessary steps to increase this type of tourism. We are ready to welcome more cruise ships to Mumbai.” He said the procedure of simplifying the procedures for cruising in collaboration with port authorities and customs was set in motion, he said.
Varun Chadha, CEO, Tirun Cruise Travel said, “We are very excited that Spectrum of the Seas will be calling on India. She will be the largest and most innovative yet to touch Indian shores and give some of our guests a sampler of the Royal Caribbean experience. Her deployment in Singapore in May and then in Shanghai from June onwards will give Indians access to the best of cruising while visiting exciting destinations in Thailand, Malaysia and Japan.”
Mr. Chadha said this is the second time the global cruise line was deploying a brand new ship to Asia for homeporting, which underscores its growing confidence in the region.
Speaking on home boarding a ship from India, Angie Stephen, managing director, Asia-Pacific at Royal Caribbean Cruises Ltd. said, “There is a desire from Royal Caribbean for home boarding from India. We would like the policies to be consistent across the different ports within the country. Also, we would like the GST to be a just amount. For that, we are also trying to work out with the customs.”
Ahead of sister ships
The first of the Quantum Ultra Class of Royal Caribbean ships, Spectrum of the Seas has a total capacity of 5,622 guests and is 1,139 feet long, which overtakes sister ships Quantum and Ovation of the Seas, both Asia’s largest.
The ship will debut her Shanghai season from June 2019, while Quantum of the Seas will return to Singapore for a six-month deployment from this November to next April with 34 sailings.
