Cruise ships, naval vessels, and tall ships from all over the world, will congregate in New York harbor on July 4th next year, to celebrate the centennial and unveiling of the Statue of Liberty, currently under renovation.

Accompanied by the grandest display of fireworks in history, vessels of every size and type imaginable are expected to pack into the harbor during the week, for the festivities.

According to Op-Sail ’86 coordinator Per Lofving, there will be anchorages for 52 large vessels, excluding tall ships, in the harbor. To accommodate the fleet of ships taking part in the Naval parade, the Navy will be given priority when anchorages are allotted, and is expected to occupy 35 – 40 of the anchorages, leaving the rest for cruise ships.

“As of now, eight of the ships that normally operate out of New York will be in the harbor during the festivities,” said Neil Osborne, fleet operations manager at Cunard, and involved in allocating terminal space.

Both airlines and cruise lines report heavy losses due to the terrorist incidents. TWA, the largest trans­-atlantic air carrier, has reported losing $20 million in the third quarter .

Heavy discounting and incentives may be expected from the lines that sail in the Eastern Mediterranean to lure passengers back next summer, in addition to stronger security measures being implemented.

South Pacific/Orient/South America/North Cape

So far, peripheral cruise markets have reported slight increases in bookings. Whether this is due to a shift away from the Mediterranean, or more intensive marketing efforts by the lines that operate in these regions, remains to be seen. Lines cruising in regions such as the North Cape and Baltic, have reported no changes so far.