The Hanseatic Nature cruise ship visits for the first time the Port of Santander
The regional and local authorities presented a plaque to the captain of the ship, the German Ulf Sodemann, as a tribute to the first visit of the ship to Cantabria.
For the president of the Port Authority, this visit has meant that the port has the potential to attract new cruise ships "despite the fact that the sector is experiencing a complicated year due to the pandemic".
Santander 07-10-21. The ship Hanseatic Nature, consigned by Marmedsa and owned by the shipping company Hapag Lloyd, has docked today at the Raos 2 dock, in what is his first visit to the region, with 116 passengers on board, mostly Germans, and 151 crew. After the cruise ship AMERA, which did it last September 18, it is the second ship of these characteristics that visits 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, the president of Cantabria, Miguel Angel Revilla, accompanied by the president of the Port Authority, Francisco Martin, the director general of Tourism, Marta Barca, the Councillor for Social Revitalization of the City of Santander, Lorena Gutierrez and the director of the Port Authority, Santiago Diaz Fraile, gave the captain, the German Ulf Sodemann, a commemorative plaque and some books of Santander and Cantabria for the library on board.
The president of the Port Authority of Santander (APS), Francisco Martin, stressed that the port "will continue to analyze the market and try to bring new cruise ships" because "we have to be in the imagination of the shipowners to not lose the horizon of 25 cruises per year that we set as a goal". Martin has also pointed out that "we have many attractions and potential" and that, "in a year so complicated because of the pandemic is great news that we have had new customers who have decided to climb in our port".
The port leader has also highlighted that "the continuous growth of activity in the port" makes the Maritime Station is "continuously" occupied by the ferry "so that the cruise has docked at Raos". Martin has stressed that "although in this location cruise passengers are perfectly served" with the construction of the new ferry terminal, the Maritime Station "much more pleasant for tourists" will be used "exclusively" for cruises.
The President of Cantabria, Miguel Angel Revilla, has also referred to the growth of the port and the "spectacular change of appearance" that will occur in this with the planned investment of 100 million euros.
Revilla also emphasized "the need to continue promoting the port as a port of call for cruise ships and ferries", as they provide an "excellent" image for tourism.
The Hanseatic Nature, with 138 meters in length, entered the port at eight o'clock in the morning, coming from Cherbourg (France) and is scheduled to depart for Leixoes (Portugal) at five o'clock in the afternoon.
An important part of the cruise passengers of this ship, built in 2019 and considered luxury, will take advantage of their stay to make excursions to Santander, Santillana or the Altamira Caves.
On the other hand, next October 15 will take place the visit of another cruise ship that will visit the port for the first time, the Spirit of Adventure.
This ship, from the British shipping company Saga and consigned by Pérez y Cía, will dock at the Cantabrian port, coming from the port of Le Verdon (France) and bound for the port of Leixoes (Portugal) at five o'clock in the afternoon.
The ship, 236 meters long and 31.2 meters wide, left the German Meyer Werft shipyard last year. Its maximum capacity of 1,000 passengers is reduced due to COVID measures to a maximum of 800 and it will have 550 crew members. It is a luxury ship and offers some of the largest suites in the industry.
For the organization of stopovers and the promotion of cruise tourism, the APS, the Government of Cantabria and the City Council of Santander have created the brand Santander Cruise Deluxe. The objective is to attract new traffic to the region.