By
Rebecca Gibson |
New Orleans is on schedule to complete a US$2.3 million renovation and expansion project at its Erato Street Cruise Terminal before Carnival Cruise Lines’ Carnival Dream arrives at the port on 14 April.
Weighing 130,000 gt and able to accommodate 3,646 passengers, Carnival Dream is the port’s largest homeporting ship to date and will sail seven-day, year-round eastern and western Caribbean itineraries from the so-called Crescent City. Replacing the 3,006-passenger Carnival Sunshine – which will be repositioned to Port Canaveral, Florida – the ship represents a 22% increase in passenger capacity for Carnival’s seven-day cruise programme from New Orleans.
In addition, the 2,052-passenger Carnival Elation will continue to sail year-round four- and five-day itineraries to Progreso and Cozumel, Mexico from New Orleans, making Carnival the only cruise line to operate two, year-round cruise ships from the port. The line is expected to carry more than 400,000 guests annually from the city.
“The Port’s investment to expand and upgrade amenities in the Erato Street Cruise Terminal underscores Carnival’s confidence in the strength of the New Orleans cruise market,” said Gary LaGrange, port president and CEO. “These upgrades will make an already first-class cruising experience even better.”
As part of the renovation project, New Orleans has relocated and extended embarkation counters to maximise passenger flow; installed additional X-ray and screening machines to accommodate increased passenger numbers and baggage; and relocated and tripled the Captain’s Lounge. The port has also refreshed the décor in the drop-off and ticketing areas, and has installed new audio/video way-finding and information systems to facilitate passenger flow.
To be able to accommodate Carnival Dream, the passenger gangway from Julia Street Cruise Terminal has been moved to the Erato Street Cruise Terminal. The Julia Street gangway, which was constructed in 2011, was designed to work with the Dream-class lifeboat configuration and also features dual telescoping extensions that connect to the ship’s weather deck. This enables the gangway to cater for higher passenger volumes. The former Erato Street gangway was repositioned to Julia Street.