The Port of A Coruña welcomed five cruise ships, marking its highest daily passenger influx ever. This is the second largest multiple-ship call in the port's history, surpassed only by the arrival of six cruise ships on May 2, 2014, although those ships were smaller and carried fewer passengers.
This time, it is the MSC Poesia, with a length of 294 meters and 3,324 people on board, the Ventura, with a length of 290 meters and 4,314 people on board, the Balmoral, with a length of 218 meters and 1,614 people and the Amera a Calvo Sotelo Norte, with its 204 meters of length and 1,000 people on board.
The last to arrive, but also the largest and the one that will remain at the Transatlantic Pier the longest, is the Celebrity Apex, which visited A Coruña on April 11th and is returning with its 306-meter length and 2,975 passengers and 1,321 crew members on board. It will return next Sunday. In total, 14,548 visitors in a single day, including passengers and crew from the five ships.
One terminal at each dock
The Port Authority of A Coruña has been preparing the special arrangements for this five-port cruise ship event for several weeks. First, four passenger terminals have been set up. In addition to the existing terminal at the Transatlantic Dock, the one that normally serves as an alternative at Calvo Sotelo has been opened, and two more have been installed, one at Centenario Oeste and the other at San Diego. From these last two docks, a shuttle bus service of ten buses will depart to expedite passenger flow at the port entrances and exits. Seven of these buses have been chartered by Corunna Cruise Terminal, and the other three have been provided by the Tourism Consortium.
Furthermore, Ourense Square will serve as the arrival and departure point for passengers of the Amera, Ventura, Balmoral, and MSC Poesia; and visitors to the Celebrity Apex will use the entrance and exit at the Transatlantic Pier itself. In addition, there are a total of 40 excursions booked as scheduled departures arranged by the cruise lines.
This special operation, coordinated by the Port Authority of A Coruña for this five-port cruise, with a key role played by the Port Police, involves approximately 150 people, including port staff, additional security personnel, state security forces, Corunna Cruise Terminal, transportation, tourism services, supplies, and port services, among others. As an example, the Celebrity APEX has chartered seven trailers with various supplies to meet the ship's provisioning needs while docked in the port of A Coruña.
Record week for visitors
This will be a record-breaking week for cruise ships in the Port of A Coruña. From today until Sunday the 27th, the city will receive a total of 13 passenger ships and some 40,000 visitors across its various docks. In addition to the two cruise ships arriving today, Monday, with the Britannia docked at the Transatlantic Pier and the AidaDiva at Calvo Sotelo South, this week will see another triple call on Sunday (MV Ocean Albatros, Aidaluna, and Celebrity Apex), a call on Wednesday (Norwegian Star), and another double call on Thursday (Mein Schiff 3 and Spirit of Adventure).
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