Britain's biggest cruise liner will be spending Good Friday (April 18) in the port of Palma with thousands of passengers on board. MS Arvia is the flagship of P&O Cruises, a subsidiary of Carnival Corporation & plc. The keel was laid on 15 February 2022.
At about 184,700 gross tonnage, Arvia is the largest ship to be commissioned for the British cruise market. She was floated out on 27 August 2022. Arvia's normal operating capacity is 5,200 passengers even though her maximum capacity if 3rd and 4th berths are used is 6,264 passengers.
The giant vessel is expected to spend the day moored in Palma before heading off to continue with her Mediterranean cruise in the evening.
Arvia has over 30 bars and restaurants on board. Her onboard spa, available at extra cost, has several facilities, including a hydrotherapy area with a salt steam room, cold room, sauna and experiential showers.
She paid her first visit to the Port of Palma earlier last year. She will be the first of the big British cruise ships to visit Palma this year.
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A friend of ours used to more or less live on the QE2 - so much so that we were allowed on board when she berthed in Palma which is highly unusual for fear of stowaways. We took him - a multi-millionaire American jeweller - for a drive around the island which went well until he looked at his watch and realised that it was approaching tea time! Impossible for him to miss this obviously. Not saying that this is normal but I'd understand if I've effectively paid for a meal that I'd be reluctant to go into Palma and pay again....... So the benefits of 6000 tourists arriving might be less than would appear likely
And so ladies and gentlemen, we give you tourist masificación in one easy, polluting and horrific step. The streets of Palma will be swamped, cruise passengers eat on their ships (yep, pre paid) and spend very little. But the city suffers sickly air pollution (whilst the cruise liner engines tick over, spewing their poisons), suffers damage to sensitive coastal waters and suffers streets being swamped with ambling bodies. This is exactly why the locals hate mass tourism and wasn’t the numbers/size of these plague ships was supposed to be limited??? Time to learn from the lessons of Venice and Amsterdam, ban these monsters …. Before it’s too late!!
It would make a great artificial reef. Think of the amount of homes for all the little fishes . They would never have to go out into to the big dangerous world of the open sea.
Les ChaseFar too detailed and complicated for the MDB Les. I made a rare visit to the center of Palma yesterday, lawyers of course. Who else can afford offices in central Palma nowadays ? I thought the streets were remarkably easy to navigate, around San Miguel etc. No crowds, no pushing or shoving. Of course no cruise ships that day. No wonder. Note to self : check cruise ship listings when planning next visit.
I'd like to know from restaurants and stores whether they value the cruisers who tour around Palma from their docked ships. Do they spend? Are they making a useful contribution to Palma's tourist income? My suspicion is that they don't since Palma is just another port on their journey and by now cash may be tight, their meals are pre-paid and awaiting them back on the ship and there's only so many souvenirs you can buy and carry off at journey's end. If I'm right, several thousand cruisers descending on the centre more or less as a group for a few hours is of little benefit to businesses and residents alike and probably a re-think on the value of these colossal ships visiting Palma is called for.
Interesting article ! Looking forward to more such positive news and to watch the ship in Palma. Excellent opportunity for people on holiday to experience Palma and for businesses in Palma.
Up to 6000 Passengers !!! Not for me. These Ships are too big. Need large stabilisers. Will be He'll to sail in during major storms. Should they hit something, I dread to imagine their evacuation. So stay well clear of other vessels and Ice Bergs.
Thanks for the heads up Jason. I’ll make sure I’m nowhere near Palma that day.
This is a cruise ship and not a cruise liner. The only operating liner in the world currently is the QM2. Liners are designed for speed across the oceans port to port, and are built a lot tougher for the real heavy ocean seas and speed. These cruise ships operate a lot slower. QM 2 can go up to 30 Knots but cruise at 26, where as the maximum for most cruise ships the speed is around 22 knots. The old QE2 used to be able to go at around 34 knots and astern a lot faster than most cruise ships can go forwards.
Good for who? Certainly not for residents of Palma who have to suffer the pollution and overcrowding