The Bimini cruise port, developed by Resorts World Bimini, has officially welcomed its one millionth cruise guests. The lucky guests were aboard Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady, which called on the destination on Thursday, November 23, 2023. What an occasion to mark Thanksgiving!
One Millionth Guest Visits Bimini Cruise Port
George and Andrea Saucedo of Plantation, Florida were expecting an amazing Thanksgiving holiday cruise when they set sail aboard Virgin Voyages’ Scarlet Lady on Sunday, November 19, 2023 for a 5-night Riviera Maya itinerary. The ship visited Cozumel, Mexico on Tuesday, November 21, but it was the Thanksgiving Day visit to Bimini in the Bahamas that was truly exceptional.
When the Saucedos debarked in Bimini to enjoy the tropical destination, they were greeted with balloons and a champagne toast, marking their arrival as the one millionth cruise guests to ever visit the port.
In addition, the couple was presented with a gift certificate for a 2-night stay at the Hilton Hotel at Resorts World Bimini, including free ferry transportation to and from Fort Lauderdale aboard the Balearia.
This is an exceptional milestone for the cruise port, which only began welcoming guests just over two years ago. While other ports in the Bahamas are much busier – Nassau is the busiest in the Bahamas, welcoming more than 3.5 million guests annually – Bimini is growing in popularity and is a fine destination for cruise passengers to enjoy.
Cruising to Bimini
While the one millionth guests were traveling with Virgin Voyages, several other cruise lines also call on Bimini.
Carnival Cruise Line, Celebrity Cruises, Royal Caribbean International, and Holland America Line all have voyages that include Bimini, and other lines also occasionally visit the relatively new and intimate destination.
Bimini is included not only on Bahamas itineraries, but may be featured on cruises visiting other Eastern Caribbean or Western Caribbean destinations.
Ships departing from Miami, Port Canaveral, Jacksonville, Fort Lauderdale, and even as far away as Mobile, Alabama; Charleston, South Carolina; and Baltimore, Maryland, can all easily reach Bimini on cruises from 3-8 nights in length, with some longer and more specialized itineraries also including the port of call.
While visiting Bimini, guests can enjoy outstanding natural beauty, some of the world’s best snorkeling and scuba diving, pampering at world-class resorts, challenging sportfishing, and much more.
Read Also: 11 Ideal Things to Do in Bimini, Bahamas
Cruise Port Celebrations
Many cruise ports offer celebrations when reaching significant milestones of guests, whether they are ports of call or cruise ship homeports.
Just recently, the homeport of Jacksonville, Florida celebrated its 3 millionth cruise passenger, while multiple cruise ports – Fort Lauderdale, New Orleans, Victoria, and others – are expecting record numbers of travelers in 2023 or looking ahead to 2024.
Even private destinations, such as private cruise ports in the Bahamas – Royal Caribbean’s Perfect Day at CocoCay, Norwegian Cruise Line’s Great Stirrup Cay, and Disney Cruise Line’s Castaway Cay – are seeing record numbers of guests.
Some ports mark the occasion of a special number of guests with free gifts, media attention, live music, and greetings from local authorities. For other ports, the record-breaking milestones might not be noted until official passenger counts are tallied after ships have visited.
All these records and passenger growth numbers show the great boom throughout the cruise industry, and demonstrate how travelers enjoy the ease and convenience of cruise travel. Furthermore, new destinations are always popular as they offer new experiences and opportunities for both novice and experienced cruisers to try.
