LAST CRUISER IN 2018 YEAR SEASON ARRIVED IN BAR CRUISE PORT
The ship "Artania" of the German company Phoenix Reisen visited Bar for the first time yesterday -(18.11.2018) and brought 1.054 tourists and 527 crew members. On this occasion, a official ceremony of exchanging plaques was organized in the presence of Mr.Emil Kukalj, Director of Tourism Organization Bar, as well as representatives of ship’s agent of Boka Adriatic and Bar Cruise Port.
Emil Kukalj, director of Tourism organization Bar said:
“Today we have come together with our old partners to summarize the results and officially close the cruising season in Bar. I have to say that this year's season was a successful one and I would like to thank everyone who contributed to this joint success especially Port of Adria JSC. The fact is that cruising began to develop in Bar with the arrival of the Global Ports Holding and with the efforts of the Allegra agency, through which the first cruise ship arrived, and it simply leaned on the existing resources of our Municipality. Cruising tourism as a part of nautical tourism has grown into a financially powerful tourist industry in recent years. World maritime cruise market recorded growth in all markets and according to estimates, it shall be an increasingly larger part of world tourism. That is why we are especially pleased that Bar has become a destination for cruise ships, and in particular we are looking forward to positive announcements for the future. Selective forms of tourism such as cruising contribute to the promotion of destination, higher employment, and one of the positive effects is the likely return of part of the guests to the destination as stationary tourists. I believe that Bar, having in mind its attractiveness and competitiveness of its offer, shall succeed in doing so”.
Tanja Novović, Cruise acitivities coordinator in Bar Cruise Port said:
“Today, we have officialy closed 2018 cruise season. Ship “Artania” is the 16th cruiser with a total of 22.500 tourists who visited Bar this year. Comparing the previous two seasons, we can see a significant increase both in the number of ships and in the number of tourists. For 2019 season, we have announcements for 25 cruisers, which shall bring about 26,000 tourists. The companies that send their cruisers to Bar are satisfied primarily with safety and security in the port, port facilities, infrastructure and service, but also with Bar as a tourist destination, which offers the possibility of various excursions tour. I would like to express my satisfaction with the excellent cooperation that we have continued but also significantly improved with the local self-government, Tourism Organization Bar, the Cluster of Tourisam and Creative Industry , Economics and Catering High School and the Maritime Faculty Kotor. We are pleased to contribute and work on expanding the opportunities for both tourists and the economy with the support of our majority owner, Global Ports Holding, who expanded its portfolio with another port in Croatia, Port of Zadar”.
Mr. Morten Handson, Captain of "Artania" ship Morten Handson, has been coming to Montenegro for many years now. This was the second time he had the opportunity to visit Bar. Mr. Hanson, who has been working for this Company for 13 years stated:
"It is a great opportunity to have two ports in one day, Kotor and Bar. However, space in Kotor is limited, there is berth for one cruiser, and the other is on the anchorage. It is a small town, many people and we have to pay attention to it; therefore it is good that we have another port in Montenegro. If it is crowded in Kotor, we can choose Bar, and as far as I know it is not far to get tourists from Bar to Kotor by means the excursion programs - an hour’s drive. This is also an opportunity for tourists to see your beautiful country Montenegro."
In 2017, Bar Cruise Port accepted 9 cruisers, thorugh which 11.550 passengers arrived in Bar and Montenegro, whereas in 2016, Bar Cruise Port accepted 7 cruise ships and 8,660 passengers. When comparing 2017 with 2018 there is 96% increase in number of passengers, and forecast growh for 2019 in reference to 2018 is expected to be 16. With the arrival of this German cruiser, the tourist season in Bar was extended, which is certainly one of the priority goals.
Global Ports Holding, majority owner of Bar Cruise Port, operates in 9 countries with 17 cruises and commercial ports. By including the ports of Havana and Zadar, once again GPH confirms its status of the world's largest cruise ship operator, and it shall continue its growth strategy in North, Central and South America.
