THE cruise ship season has been “going very well,” the Falkland Islands Tourist Board Executive Director Steph Middleton told Penguin News this week.
Expedition vessels have changed their itineraries to factor in weather, “and we have had a few vessels change the date of their visit but no big cancellation days.”
This season there are 53 vessels operating in the Falklands, with a total of about 140 calls expected.
Last season there were 72,133 cruise passenger visits to the Falklands and this season “we are forecasting around 72,500 but that is very much weather dependent,” Mrs Middleton explained.
She said the season started with lower numbers than last year, “as Norwegian Cruise Lines had re-positioned their vessel; Celebrity Equinox, who didn’t make any calls last season, has returned and made up some of that shortfall but not all of it so our forecast is being quite optimistic.”
There are some very busy days coming up. On February 7 there will be visits from MS Vista (1200), Oosterdam (1964) and Sapphire Princess (2670). If all are at capacity this would total 5,834 passengers. However, vessels are generally only operating at about 80 percent capacity.
On March 4 there will be visits from Viking Jupiter (930), Celebrity Equinox (2850) and Fram (204). Again, at full capacity this would total 3,187 passengers.
Mrs Middleton said there would be some other days with just over 3,000 passengers, “but they are days when we have the Celebrity Equinox in with an expedition vessel.”
On January 12 Penguin News took a stroll to the Jetty Centre and chatted to cruise visitors from Celebrity Equinox, asking questions along the lines of:
Where are you visiting from?
What has been the highlight of your visit so far?
Has being here changed your understanding of the Falkland Islands in any way?
How would you describe the Falklands to people back home?
Sal from the USA told Penguin News, “It’s been wonderful.”
Sal was visiting with her husband and their tour had been booked via Sulivan Shipping, their guide was, “Brian Summers, a great guide who was really knowledgeable.”
Asked to describe the Falklands, she said, “Untouched beauty, amazing views and wildlife everywhere,” adding, “we didn’t mind there was no trees because when we went on the hike you can see a lot more.”
She said they would love to visit again if they had the opportunity.
Gerard and David were equally enthusiastic about their visit to the islands. They were visiting from New York City in the USA.
Bluff Cove was the highlight of their visit to the Falklands, they declared, describing it as “truly beautiful”, with “incredible wildlife.”
Asked if their visit had changed their understanding of the islands, they said it had. Prior to the visit they had only really known about the war with Argentina, “that was about it.”
Asked how they would describe the Falklands to people back home, Gerard said, “Amazing, good. It’s one of a kind.”
Sarah, Jeremiah, Dave and Lucas from Western Australia were also smiling and happy on their way back to the ship. They said they had enjoyed their time in Antarctica and that since landing in the Falklands they had been “fascinated” by a battlefield tour.
“Then we just walked through the streets and had some local beer, and I had some food, and that was really enjoyable too.”
Asked if their visit had changed their view of the Falklands, they said they were leaving with a greater knowledge of the islands.
They gave a special mention to their guide Simon Browning, saying, “our tour guide that took us out to the battlefields was really good – he had lots of information. He was really passionate about what he was doing as well.”
Asked to describe the islands, Lucas said, “Getting to experience that historical context was really impressive. I’ve read a lot about the Falklands and it was really great to see it myself and learn about it at the same time.”

They all said they would be happy to return if they ever had the opportunity.
Dan and Melinda from Nashville, Tennessee in the USA said seeing the penguins was the highlight of their trip to the Falklands.
They said the visit had informed them a great deal about the islands and described the place as unique, adding that the people seemed to be very “hardy” and also “kind and polite.”
Dan said he was fascinated by the presence of peat, saying, “I didn’t expect the peat. You need a lot of organic material to have peat, and I hardly see any trees so I was very interested in that.” He added that he was curious about the lifestyle, anticipating it might be a “difficult place to live over a long winter.”
They said, “yes we’d like to return – maybe tour some of the other islands.”
Doug from Florida said, “the museum was really great and I also took the bus tour.”
He said the visit had changed his view of the islands and described both the people and the scenery as “lovely.”
Asked if he would visit again, he said, “well it really is a long way from Florida but it’s not that I don’t like it.”
He reiterated, “the museum was the best.”
PN contacted Hattie Kilmartin at Bluff Cove to get a sense of the season so far for an operator. She said: “We are just pleased as we haven’t had any cancellations yet this season – despite the wintery weather.”