Good Afernoon to all members of the media.
I am pleased to announce today that the Viking Cruise Ship Orion arrives in Bermuda’s waters this Friday, 21 May, two days ahead of the scheduled arrival of 23 May, and will remain at anchor in Great Sound for 6 days to complete its 14 day quarantine period.
Viking will arrive with a crew of 460 and intends to sail with a reduced capacity of 50% on their first cruise. We want to assure the public that the COVID testing protocol onboard Viking is the most superior compared to any other cruise line.
The Company has spent millions of dollars outfitting each ship to mitigate Covid-19.
I am also pleased to announce that the Orion will arrive in Hamilton on the 27th of May and the crew is intending to stay on board to ready the ship for their first ‘Bermuda Escape’ 8-day cruise on 15 June. The ship will visit all three Bermuda ports in Hamilton, Dockyard, and St George’s.
It is intended that the Bermuda Escape Homeporting itinerary will conclude on 3 August. We are hopeful that the success of this summer’s program will lead to an extension of the Viking’s Bermuda Escape itinerary in addition to Bermuda becoming a more regular port of call for years to come.
We welcome this much-needed stimulus to our economy. Homeporting will generate more airli& in and out of Bermuda. It will also bring additional business for local transportation, hotels, shore excursions, bunkering, freshwater provisioning, and garbage disposal services. It also creates the potential for pre- and post-cruise extension visits. We look forward to seeing a buzz with increased visitors during the summer months and beyond.
Like many industries in Bermuda, the Island Tour Boats and Charter Industry has struggled with reduced demand and reduced customer capacity during COVID.
Bermuda Tour Boat Association reached out to the Government to request assistance them throughthese harsh times and until they can operate tosome level of normalcy.
Their requests included relief from payroll tax, liquor licensing fees, and boat licensing fees. TheAssociation also requested to operate with a capacitygreater than the 25 persons maximum under the various Covid-19 related regulations over the lastyear.
Additionally, they requested that the current Fuel Rebate allowance for May to October be extended for the entire year and that a moratorium on charter and island boats be introduced. These two items are still under consideration since the Ministry prioritized the requests to address the most time-sensitive items.
Their requests were considered and while boat licensing fees were increased by 5% across the board for 2021/22, fees were not increased for the boat and charter industry.
The liquor licensing fee was also reduced by 50% this year and those who applied from the tour boats and charters industry received unemployment benefits.
The government has also revised COVID Guidelines for Commercial Vessels effective May 9th of this year to allow them to operate with reduced capacity per the COVID-19 Maximum Capacity Assessment under the Department of Marine and Ports.
This will be reviewed regularly and is subject to change as required based on Bermuda’s COVID status.
Lastly, as the weather gets warmer and more and more Bermudians and visitors take part in Bermuda’s active boating culture, we want to remind boaters and water-cra& users to be mindful of others and use care and caution.
Please be reminded that each of us has a role to play in stopping the spread of the coronavirus. Follow Public Health guidelines, wear a mask, practice good hand hygiene, maintain physical distance and download the WeHealth Bermuda app.
Do the research, talk with your doctor, and make an informed decision about getting the COVID-19 vaccine.
Thank you.