The Territory welcomed the inaugural call of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Evrima to Virgin Gorda today, Friday, 16th December. The luxury cruise vessel is slated to spend the day in Virgin Gorda, before moving on to Jost Van Dyke to continue its call to the Territory.
The Evrima is currently on a seven-night cruise from Phillipsburg, St. Maarten to San Juan, Puerto Rico with 285 passengers and 212 crew members onboard. After the vessel departs the Virgin Islands, she will complete her itinerary and conclude the cruise in Puerto Rico.
The superyacht Evrima is the Ritz-Carlton’s first venture into the cruise industry which will be followed by two others, the Ilma in 2024 and the Luminara in 2025. The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection has mentioned that the company is committed to sustainable practices and implies that the superyachts will be designed with advanced environmental features and technologies to minimize ecological impact.
The welcoming of the Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection to the Virgin Islands highlights the Territory’s renewed focus on the cruise industry. Part of the cruise growth strategy involves focusing on smaller luxury lines that will spend multiple days in the Virgin Islands. This is important as the Cruise Lines Industry Association (CLIA) State of the Industry 2022 report indicates that 6 in 10 people who have taken a cruise say that they have returned to a destination that they first visited via cruise ship.
A plaque was presented on behalf of the Government and people of the Virgin Islands to the captain of the Evrima, Captain Duncan Holroyd commemorating the vessel’s inaugural call to the Territory. Present at the plaque exchange ceremony were the Acting Governor Mr. David D. Archer Jr., Premier and Minister of Finance, Dr. the Honourable Natalio D. Wheatley, Deputy Premier and Minister for Communications and Works, Honourable Kye M. Rymer, Junior Minister for Trade and Economic Development, Honourable Shereen D. Flax-Charles, Director of the BVI Tourist Board, Mr. Clive McCoy, Marketing Director for the BVI Ports Authority, Mrs. Natasha Chalwell, and port agents from the Romasco Group, Ms. Patricia Romney and Ms. Sabrina Koss.