BASSETERRE (22nd April, 2021): St. Kitts & Nevis is pleased to announce its inclusion on the itinerary of the Seabourn Odyssey, a ship in the ultra-luxury Seabourn cruise line, which resumes Caribbean sailings late July, 2021.
The 7-day itinerary includes Antigua, Barbados, the British Virgin Islands, Dominica, Grenada, St. Lucia and St. Maarten.
The Odyssey will be calling in St. Kitts every week and is our first scheduled port of call for the phased re-opening for cruise tourism, announced Lindsay F.P. Grant, Minister of Tourism, Transport and Ports today.
“We look forward to welcoming Seabourn Odyssey to St. Kitts. The benefits of the cruise industry have been vital to the economies of St. Kitts & Nevis and we are delighted to welcome our first vessel back, as we begin our phased approach to resume cruise tourim,” said Lindsay F.P. Grant, Minister of Tourism, Transport and Ports. “
It has been a long 13 months and the re-opening of cruise signals the continued rebuilding of tourism and our economy. We see our cruise industry returning with a fervor and we are working hard to ensure it happens safely, proficiently and promptly.
While not the official opening of the cruise sector, which is projected for October 2021, later this year, when St. Kitts and Nevis would have achieved herd immunity. The minimum protocols for any cruise ship, visiting in St. Kitts & Nevis include:
The Ministry of Tourism and St. Kitts Tourism Authority are currently working with all taxi/tour operators and attractions, to ensure compliance with the vaccination requirements, health and safety protocols for cruise to be Travel Approved.
“We continue to work with our stakeholders on the resumption of cruise, just as we did for the phased reopening for Stay Over on October 31st, 2020,” said Racquel Brown, CEO of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority. “Safety of our nationals, residents and visitor remains a top priority for us and we are working to ensure passengers can enjoy the exceptional and diverse attributes of the destination and can have a memorable shore experience while being confident in their safety.”
Seabourn is recognized as one of the world’s leading luxury cruise lines. Its boutique ships are known for their all-suite accommodations and their industry-leading service. Known for providing its guests with unique experiences, selecting St. Kitts as a destination on its itinerary reinforces the island’s position as an attractive destination that offers guests one-of-a-kind experiences.
St. Kitts & Nevis closed its borders on March 25, 2020 and reopened to international travel on October 31, 2020 with some of the most comprehensive travel requirements in the region. To-date, the Federation has reported only 44 confirmed cases of Covid, with no community spread and no deaths. As of today 11,848, people have been vaccinated.
In recent years St. Kitts has become a major cruise destination. The island’s attractions such as the UNESCO World Heritage recognized Brimstone Hill Fortress, the St. Kitts Scenic Railway, and Caribelle Batik where artisans maintain the ancient wax-dye method are unique experiences that continue to attract visitors.
]]>Basseterre, St. Kitts, April 07, 2021 (SKNIS): Chief Executive Officer of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority, Racquel Brown, said that being vaccinated is necessary in order to open a doorway of opportunities within the tourism sector in St. Kitts & Nevis.
Ms. Brown, during her concluding remarks on the April 06 edition of Leadership Matters, noted that it is realistic for all to understand that stay over tourism and film are opportunities for the destination to be showcased.
“There is a range of opportunities, however, no matter what the opportunity is, we need to have the vaccination. That is the only way we are going to allow persons to come into the Federation and to remain safe,” said Ms. Brown. “We have to stop and think about the health of our nation. We also have to think about how we are going to rebuild tourism and rebuilding tourism has always started with the vaccination process because we have seen how difficult it has been over the last year.”
CEO Brown hailed the success of the vaccination programme since its rollout in February 2021, noting that St. Kitts and Nevis is progressing well.
“It is interesting that there are many Caribbean nations who would love to have the vaccination quotas that we have, and we may be refusing to take the vaccine whereas they are struggling, and they need vaccines. So, we are very blessed in St. Kitts and Nevis because for the past year we have had no deaths, no community spread,” she said.
She added that to get to the point of reopening, to earn a living, or to restart earning, vaccination is important.
“The vaccination process is going to help us as a nation to be healthy. It helps us to have a resistant population; it helps us to not have to worry about persons having to go to the hospital; it doesn’t place any stress on our health system and it allows us not having to deal with those issues to have a healthy society,” said Ms. Brown.
She encouraged persons who are having doubts to come forward and be educated on the importance of being vaccinated. She also encouraged them to think about their children and of tomorrow as the COVID-19 virus will be around for a very long time.
]]>Basseterre, St. Kitts, March 15th, 2021 (ZIZ News) CEO of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority, Racquel Brown says it is critically important for persons in the hotel and tourism sector to get vaccinated in order for the sector to return to normal.
In an interview with ZIZ, Miss Browne said vaccination is the best option as it would pave the way for the sector to eventually allow visitors and tourism stakeholders to interact more freely.
She said the very nature of the federation’s tourism product encourages visitors to interact with stakeholders so vaccination is key to reviving the sector.
CEO of the St. Kitts Tourism Authority, Racquel Brown.
]]>Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 24th, 2021 (ZIZ News) St. Kitts has been featured three times on TravelPulse in the past week. St. Kitts and Nevis Protocols Ignite Tourism Relaunch published on February 22nd, 2021 Travel Restrictions: Safest Destinations To Visit in the Caribbean published on February 21st, and Win a Trip for Two To St. Kitts published on February 18th.
Yesterday, Brian Major, Managing Editor of TravelPulse, published his recent interview with St. Kitts Tourism Authority CEO Racquel Brown titled St. Kitts and Nevis Protocols Ignite Tourism Relaunch. Focusing on the reopening of the borders, Major queried CEO Brown about the establishment of the travel protocols and the status of tourism.
On Sunday, TravelPulse featured St. Kitts & Nevis in its roundup of safest Caribbean destinations to visit in 2021 noting that it is the only Caribbean nation to hold a Level 2 travel rating from the U.S. Department of State Bureau of Consular Affairs. Furthermore, it holds a Level 1: Low Covid Risk rating by the CDC.
The Federation has achieved this rating due to the current travel requirements and the “All of Society Approach” which has helped to keep Covid 19 case counts low, with no community spread and no deaths. Currently, only 28 nations worldwide hold a Level 2, or lower, rating from the State Department and St. Kitts & Nevis is the only Caribbean nation amongst them.
Last week, St. Kitts was also featured on TravelPulse after announcing the start of the #RetieTheKnot photo contest which will see a lucky winner from the U.S. receive a complimentary trip to St. Kitts to renew their vows in St. Kitts first ever Group Vow Renewal scheduled to take place in November 2021.
TravelPulse is a leading source of industry news, dynamic video content and important supplier and destination information that have allowed hundreds of thousands of travel agents to succeed. Their website averages 800,000 unique visitors every month and its content reaches approximately 90% of the U.S. travel agent market.
]]>Basseterre, St. Kitts, February 22nd, 2021 (ZIZ News) In a recent interview with online travel destination news outlet, Insider Travel Report, CEO of The St. Kitts Tourism Authority, Racquel Brown spoke with host Alan Fine about the details of traveling to the federation including testing and the “vacation in place” program, which brings activities and culture to guests at sanctioned hotels.
Brown said that the government has put policies in place to mitigate the risks of the Covid-19 virus spreading throughout the federation so visitors can feel safe during their travels.
She added that the arrival of vaccines from the COVAX facility by the end of this month will help the federation to become even more equipped with dealing with the virus.
The full interview can be viewed on the Insider Travel Reports website and YouTube channel.
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