The Port of A Coruña has welcomed over 4,000 passengers aboard two cruise ships that have called at the Transatlantic and Calvo Sotelo South docks. The larger of the two is the Koningsdam, from Holland America Line, carrying 2,500 passengers and 1,000 crew members. The ship, arriving from Portland, England, made its first stop in A Coruña as part of its inaugural voyages and will now sail to Porto.
To mark its first port of call in the city, a reception was held on board this morning. The captain highlighted the facilities provided by the Port of A Coruña for docking and disembarkation operations and noted that this was an important day for the shipping company and crew, as they inaugurated a new destination in a city of great beauty like A Coruña.
The Midnatsol, from the British shipping company Hurtigruten, will remain at the Calvo Sotelo Sur dock. It is smaller but has very unique characteristics, specializing in routes around Norway. It has 400 passengers and 150 crew members on board.
September is typically the busiest month for cruise traffic, with 18 calls and over 25,000 passengers expected this year. The number of first calls is particularly noteworthy, with most arriving this month. Today's call was the eighth of the year, and there will be nine in total. It was the Viking Star, which will dock on October 2nd, kicking off another busy month with 15 more calls expected. The remainder of September will close with four significant cruise ships, notable not only for their size but also for their quality, as they are flagship vessels in their respective fleets. These include the Britannia and Oriana from P&O, the Nautica from Oceania, and the Balmoral from Fred Olsen.
