Norwegian Cruise Line today marked tis service resumption from Miami, with the Norwegian Gem sailing from the Florida port from Norwegian’s new terminal.
Marking the third of the company’s 17 ships to resume operations after Norwegian Jade from Athens on July 25, 2021 and Norwegian Encore from Seattle on Aug. 7, 2021, the Norwegian Gem set sail today on a week-long voyage to the Caribbean with calls to Costa Maya and Cozumel, Mexico; Roatan, Honduras; and Harvest Caye, the Company’s private resort destination in Belize.
“It has been an exhilarating few weeks as we relaunch our fleet, reunite with our shipboard families and welcome our guests back for their long-awaited cruise vacations,” said Harry Sommer, president and chief executive officer of Norwegian Cruise Line. “I’ve been impressed and proud of how our global team and partners have come together to safely bring back cruising, an over $55 billion-dollar industry that positively impacts communities around the world.”
Sommer continued: “Today is even more special as it is the first time we are relaunching from our hometown and from the new NCL Terminal at PortMiami. After many months, we are ready to deliver a safe and memorable experience for our guests at every step of their cruise journey.”
The new Norwegian Terminal at PortMiami can accommodate cruise vessels carrying up to 5,000 cruise guests.
The building was designed with sustainability at the forefront and was built to LEED Gold standards for optimizing energy, water efficiency, air quality and utilization of local materials and resources. In addition, approximately 90% of all subcontractors, vendors and suppliers were local to the region, reducing the carbon footprint of the project and encouraging local economic growth, according to a press release.
Parent company Norwegian Cruise Line Holdings Ltd. recently also announced a partnership with Miami-Dade County to make the new state-of-the-art cruise terminal “Shore-Power Ready” by fall 2023.
The Norwegian Gem is scheduled to sail a series of week-long voyages to the Caribbean and four-day cruises to the Bahamas through Oct. 17, 2021 before repositioning to New York for five to 11-night voyages to the Bahamas, Caribbean and Bermuda.
