The cruise ship AMERA, first to visit Cantabria since the beginning of the pandemic This ship, of the Phoenix Reisen company, called today for the first time in the port with 603 passengers on board, mostly Germans. The regional and local authorities presented a plaque to the captain, Elmar Wilfried Muehlebach, as a tribute to the first visit of the ship to Cantabria. Santander 18-09-21. The ship AMERA, consigned by PEREZ & CIA and owned by Phoenix Reisen, an important German tour operator that also operates a fleet of cruise ships, has docked today at the North Margin dock of the port of Santander in what is the first visit of a cruise ship in Cantabria since the cruise activity was stopped due to the health crisis of the Covid-19. To commemorate the first call of this ship in the port of Santander and the arrival of the first cruise ship in nineteen months, the president of Cantabria, Miguel Angel Revilla, accompanied by the president of the Port Authority, Francisco Martin, the mayor of Santander, Gema Igual and the general director of tourism, Marta Barca, gave the captain, Elmar Wilfried Muehlebach, a commemorative plaque and some books of Santander and Cantabria for the library on board. For the president of the Port Authority this visit represents "an important step in the return to normality" and the recovery of traffic that supports the tourism industry "one of the hardest hit by the pandemic". Martín has also pointed out that both the 460 crew members and the 603 passengers traveling on the AMERA, are visiting the Autonomous Community with "the compliance of all the sanitary measures established", both by the shipping company and by the national and local authorities, so the Cantabrians "can be calm". The head of the APS has also highlighted "the necessary institutional collaboration" that occurs in this type of stopovers, highlighting the support that the port receives from both the regional government and the City Council to ensure attention to cruise passengers "of the highest quality". In this regard, he highlighted the creation of the brand Santander Cruise Deluxe under which operate the Port, Santander City Council and the Government of Cantabria, to promote Cantabria as a cruise destination, presenting the region as "a safe, sustainable and innovative destination" for both the most experienced cruisers and for those who look for the first time to this way of traveling. For his part, the president of Cantabria, Miguel Angel Revilla, stressed that the arrival of AMERA to the port of Santander after more than a year and a half is "a symptom of the return to normality in every way". Revilla has also pointed out that the data of the pandemic in Cantabria are beginning to decline "which makes us look at the horizon with optimism".The mayoress of Santander, Gema Igual, who also wanted to be present at this welcome to the cruise ship AMERA, said that this is "one of the first milestones of recovery due to the economic impact generated by cruise ships" and stressed the importance of institutional collaboration that occurs in the cruise sector. The ship AMERA, 205 meters long, arrived at port at nine o'clock in the morning from Ferrol and is scheduled to leave at five o'clock in the afternoon bound for the port of Le Verdon (Bordeaux). Among the 603 cruise passengers, mostly Germans, 200 will take a panoramic tour of the city to see its main attractions, while 171 will enjoy a combination between Santillana del Mar and Santander. This stopover represents the beginning of the cruise activity, which is expected to increase in the coming months, since, as the ships become more active, the shipping companies continue to plan new itineraries.