Ships return to St. Thomas
Cruise ships will begin returning to St. Thomas on Nov.
10, less than two months after the island was devastated by hurricanes Irma and Maria, the government of the U.S. Virgin Islands announced Monday.
In a statement sent to media outlets, the Virgin Islands government said Royal Caribbean’s
3,114-passenger Adventure of the Seas will be the first cruise vessel to return to the island on a regular sailing since the backto-back storms.
Irma and Maria caused widespread damage across St. Thomas, knocking out power, ripping roofs from homes and stripping foliage. The government of the U.S. Virgin Islands has been racing to restore the top tourist areas so the territory can reopen to visitors. Tourism accounts for an outsize portion of the Virgin Islands economy, and the livelihoods of thousands of Virgin Islands residents are dependent on visitors, officials have said.
“Welcoming cruise visitors back to the U.S. Virgin Islands is key to our economic recovery,” tourism commissioner Beverly Nicholson-Doty said.
Royal Caribbean on Monday said it is working with the government to restore St. Thomas’ Magens Bay beach area in time for Adventure of the Seas’ arrival Nov. 10. Royal Caribbean also said it is committed to resuming cruise calls at the hurricane-ravaged islands of Puerto Rico and St. Martin by the end of November.