St. Maarten

As it was, cruise ships would not return to St Maarten until 4 December when the 930-passenger ‘Viking Sea’ berthed. The following day, Marella Cruises (formerly Thomson Cruises) called with its vessel ‘Marella Discovery’.

And the initial reaction of these pioneering passengers? Mr Gumbs told Caribbean Maritime: “They were amazed with the swift rebound and with the courtesy of our citizens, merchants and tour operators. A lot of these passengers committed to spreading the positive word among their friends and family. The ratings from the various cruise lines also gave an indication that the island had returned to its pre-Irma situation.”

Normality

By Christmas things were starting to get back to some sort of normality and St Maarten welcomed five ships with around 10,000 passengers (and crew) which called on 25 and 26 December.

So where does Port St. Maarten go from here – a destination that in the past has seen over 2 million cruise passengers in a single year?

Mr Gumbs said: “From a passenger arrival perspective, it is dependent on inland developments, the overall recovery and the availability of tours. We expect to return to more than 1.5 million passengers in the 2019/2020 season. In 2018 we will receive approximately 1.2 million passengers. By contrast, cargo is over-performing as the build-back efforts and a construction boom commences.”

Normal services restored

In Sint Maarten it was not just the port area that was badly hit. Princess Juliana International Airport (SXM) was equally affected – and is still affected. Temporary air conditioned arrival and departure lounges have been erected pending the reconstruction of the main terminal building, which is not due to reopen until late this year or early 2019.

But, in testament to the work of the local authorities and the Dutch government, electricity had been restored to 95 per cent of the island by the first quarter of 2018 and most people had water and telecommunications. Around 85 per cent of downtown Philipsburg is now open and 80 per cent of tours are running. Hotels have begun to reopen or announced firm plans to do so, but it’s a long road back for some. While the Oyster Bay Beach Resort began welcoming guests in April, two of Sonesta’s properties will not reopen until late this year or early next and the Great Bay Beach Resort, too, will reopen in early 2020.