The Port of Santander, with 19 stopovers planned this year, promotes its cruise traffic in Miami.
Seatrade Cruise Global Miami, to be held between 25 and 28 April, is the most important cruise fair in the world and it will be represented industry professionals from over 100 countries.
The president of the Port Authority of Santander (APS) has stressed the need to make Cantabria visible as a destination for this type of tourism "for which our participation in what will be the epicenter of the decisions of the shipping companies for the coming years is essential".
The Port of Santander will participate from next Monday in the 37th edition of Seatrade Cruise Global Miami, the world's leading cruise fair, with its own exhibitor within the Ports of Spain Pavilion that coordinates Ports of the State and in which are also represented most of the Spanish ports that have this type of traffic, as well as the Spanish Tourist Office in Miami.
The president of the APS, Francisco Martin, said this morning that "being part of this meeting", in which more than 500 stands and industry professionals from over 100 countries will participate, is essential for "shipping companies to put our offer on the map". Martin explained that "competition in this type of tourism is fierce" and "we can not stand idly by while operators decide their future routes for the coming years as Seatrade Cruise Global Miami will be the epicenter of these decisions".
Thus, with the aim of promoting tourism to Cantabria and publicize the various excursions and activities that cruise passengers can perform during their stopover in this port, the APS will hold various meetings with major shipping companies and offer visitors graphic material of the Autonomous Community and the benefits of docking in the center of the city because, as stressed Martin, Santander "is the only port in northern Spain with a Maritime Station with such a location and also in 2023, will be used exclusively for cruise traffic". The president of the APS stressed that "this is a magnificent opportunity to orient this industry towards the luxury segment".
The head of the port has also stressed the importance of the agreements reached by the APS, the Government of Cantabria and the City of Santander to create the brand Santander Cruise Deluxe, which will be present at the fair and aims to "promote and care for this traffic so that Santander can become a reference port for cruises on the northern coast of the Iberian Peninsula".
Santander has 19 stopovers planned this year, a good number if, as Martin says, "we take into account that until 2019, the year in which 21 cruise ships called in Santander, the annual average ranged between 8 and 13 ships of this type and that, during the last two years, only 3 have visited the port due to the ban on docking of international cruise ships in state ports due to the pandemic."
The cruise season in Cantabria will take place, according to forecasts, between the months of April and October with the visit of nineteen cruise ships. The maximum capacity of these ships is 23,471 cruise passengers, although this may be reduced if the restrictions on this type of traffic continue.
Santander, a cruise ship destination.
The port of Santander is located in an area of the Atlantic Arc that is traditionally known as the "repositioning" area for cruise ships, i.e. the period when they move from the Mediterranean area to Northern Europe or the Caribbean. In fact, the tours that include the port are usually from Hamburg or South of the United Kingdom to Lisbon, the French ports, or from South to North. They usually have a duration of 8 to 12 days and the average stay in port is 6 to 8 hours.