Following another record-breaking year for cruise arrivals, the Southern Caribbean island of Dominica officially opened its 2024-25 cruise season with a visit from Celebrity Cruises’ Celebrity Summit.
The 2,200-guest ship called at the island’s Roseau Cruise Port during her November 2, 2024 Southern Caribbean Holiday cruise from San Juan, Puerto Rico.
Dominica, not to be confused with the Dominican Republic, is located just south of Guadeloupe and north of Martinique. The small island is a fast-growing cruise port, and expects a record 375,000 cruise guests to visit in 2024-25.
A total of 235 cruise calls are scheduled, including maiden visits from AIDA Cruises’ AIDAbella, Explora Journeys’ Explora II, Princess Cruises’ Sapphire Princess and Majestic Princess, and Virgin Voyages’ Resilient Lady.
The island’s 2023-24 season also was a record-breaker, with 306,601 cruise arrivals, which represents an 11% hike from a year earlier and a significant 62% increase compared with pre-pandemic 2019-20.
The 2023-24 season turned out even better than port officials had predicted. They estimated the island would welcome around 270,000 cruise guests.
“As we welcome the new cruise season, I am filled with excitement and pride for our beautiful island. The remarkable growth in our tourism sector reflects our team and partners’ dedication and hard work,” said Marva Williams, CEO of Discover Dominica Authority.
“Each visitor gives us a chance to showcase Dominica’s rich culture, stunning scenery, and genuine hospitality. Together, we will create memorable experiences that inspire our guests to return and share their stories,” added Williams.
Cruise-tourism in 2023-24 was responsible for injecting about $20 million into the island’s economy through local businesses such as shops, restaurants, and tour operator vendors. Of the total 306,601 cruise arrivals, about 248,000 disembarked their ships, and more than half of that number booked shore excursions.
Known as “the Nature Island of the Caribbean,” Dominica is home to the pristine Morne Trois Pitons National Park, where three mountain peaks, small geysers, and mud ponds are among the natural resources cruisers can visit.
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Shore excursions offer adventure activities such as canyoning tours, whale-watching trips, river tubing, hot spring tours, and snorkeling, to name a few.
The Dominica Ministry of Tourism has recently completed projects designed to improve visitor experiences, including road and walking trail upgrades, and new reception facilities. New improvements in accessibility are slated to be added in 2025.
Major Lines, Luxury Brands Embrace Dominica
In addition to Celebrity Summit, other notable ships slated to call at Roseau in November 2024 include Royal Caribbean’s 2,500-guest Vision of the Seas, the 684-guest Oceania Insignia, Holland America Line’s 2,100-guest Eurodam, Disney Cruise Line’s 2,700-guest Disney Magic, and Carnival Cruise Line’s 4,100-guest Carnival Venezia.
Several luxury ships also will visit the island in the upcoming winter season, such as Cunard’s 2,700-guest Queen Mary 2; Regent Seven Seas Cruises’ 490-guest Seven Seas Navigator, 746-guest Seven Seas Grandeur and 700-guest Seven Seas Mariner; plus Wind Star’s 342-guest Wind Surf and 148-guest Wind Spirit.
Dominica is frequently included on Southern and Eastern Caribbean voyages. Royal Caribbean’s Vision of the Seas, for example, features calls at Roseau on her 12-day cruise sailing roundtrip from Baltimore on November 9, 2024.
Besides Roseau, the ship calls at St. Croix, USVI; St. Maarten; St. Lucia; and St. Kitts.
Cunard’s iconic Queen Mary 2 will call at Dominica as part of her 13-day Caribbean Celebration voyage roundtrip from New York on December 21, 2024. The holiday voyage will call at Roseau on December 27, 2024, and additional port calls feature St. Maarten, St. Lucia, Barbados, and St. Kitts.
