blog post

Grand Turk, the newest Caribbean cruise destination, finished its inaugural season with 136 cruise ship calls and 295,000 passengers, far exceeding expectations for the number of visitors for its first year of operation (the port officially opened in Feb. 2006). December was a record month with more than 46,000 passengers arriving on 28 cruise ship calls. Twenty of the calls were made by Carnival Corporation & plc brands, including Carnival Cruise Lines, Holland America, and Costa Cruises; the remaining eight calls were by Silversea, Crystal, Regent Seven Seas, Oceania, Fred Olsen, Hapag Lloyd, and Ships of Discovery.

Currently, 90 percent of the port's shops are open, including the largest Caribbean-themed bar and restaurant, Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville. A wide variety of shore excursions have been developed - from snorkeling, scuba diving and deep sea fishing to biking, kayaking and horseback riding - with a daily capacity of up to 4,000 people. Additional shore excursions are being planned for the coming year.