The issue of the controversial clash days during the cruise summer season was also addressed by ExCo in its end of September meeting. It was noted that the Falkland Island Tourist Board (FITB) is currently taking cruise ship bookings out to the 2026/27 season and intends to continue monitoring future clash days during the 2024/25 season.
The Falkland Islands Tourist Board has released its July newsletter in which it gives an update of what everybody is expecting to be a great summer season after a hiatus of two years because of the pandemic.
The Atlantic coast resort Punta del Este received on Saturday the first cruise vessel since the start of the pandemic. The expedition cruise Viking Jupiter was scheduled to travel to Buenos Aires, but since it had stopped at Cape Verde islands in Africa, Argentina is demanding a fourteen day quarantine before letting anybody in the country.
The first cruise ship to visit the Falklands since the 2019/2020 tourist season, Silver Explorer, was cleared on November 24 and in Stanley Harbor. The itinerary included visits to Bleaker Island and Bull Point. However, it is unknown how many other vessels will visit over the season.
The Falkland Islands will see the arrival of its first expedition vessel as part of a scaled down summer tourist season on Thursday 25 November 2021. The vessel, Silver Explorer, will call to Bleaker Island and Bull Point for the day and passengers will be permitted to disembark and visit the areas.
‘Clean’ expedition ships carrying fewer than 530 passengers will be allowed to visit the Falkland Islands this Southern summer under a new visitor policy approved by the Falkland Islands Government this week.
The Falkland Islands Executive Council considered this week a paper relating to the current Quarantine and Visitor Policy and its implications for tourism, given the global situation of the industry, and international connectivity. Lawmaker Mark Pollard admitted that under current circumstances the next tourist season in the Falklands will not be able to rely on international visitors.
Despite being cut short by the COVID-19 pandemic, 2019-2020 proved to be a record-breaking cruise season in the Falkland Islands. A total of 72,836 cruise passengers arrived in the Islands, up 16.5% on the previous season.
The 2019/20 tourist season is likely to be remembered as, “the one that fell off the cliff in March,” summed up Falkland Islands Tourist Board Executive Director Steph Middleton this week. But despite the impact of the pandemic it wasn’t all bad up until then confirmed, Mrs. Middleton and other industry members.
Margaret Williams and Michelle Pepper of Falkland Islands Holidays recently attended Experience Latin America in Canary Wharf, London. Organized by the Latin American Travel Association (LATA), this was the 5th event held where the primary aim is to bring together key suppliers from the Latin America region along with top influential buyers from within the UK and Europe.