BREAKING: Carnival Cruise Lines Pulls Out Of Antigua, More Cancellations Expected

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Carnival Cruise Lines have as of today March 13th 2019 cancelled ALL scheduled calls to Antigua, President of the cruise association Nathan Dundas has announced.

The announcement comes two weeks after Prime Minister Gaston Browne accused the Florida-Caribbean Cruise Association of exploiting the region.

The cruise line did not give a reason for its decision.

“So all four ships booked commencing next season November 2019 to 2020 – Breeze, Magic, Legend and Pride will be going to other ports,” Dundas said.


Dundas has warned of even more cancellations.

He said, “I am afraid that we may see more cancellations and it is indeed cause for concern  as these cancellations will impact everyone business from Store Owners to Tour  Operators and bars and restuarants etc.”

“OnceCarnival has started the cancelation, unfortunately, I expect  to see cancelaltions from all of its brands. I wouldnt  be suprised  to see Princess, Holland America, seabourn   and other European Lines making  cancellations going forward.

I will update you further as I get more information.

Two weeks ago Antigua signed a US$ 80 million agreement with global ports for the management of cruise facilities for 30 years.

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50 COMMENTS

  1. Who can’t hear will feel. People are more concerned with supporting a party than supporting what’s right.

    • I agree with you to some extent however the other 2 parties needs to get their act together and be more vocal.

  2. Is this the first causality of the new Global Ports Holding Agreement? Not good news at all. Government really needs to rethink and revisit this agreement before its too late….or is it already too late. We tend to do things backwards……finalize agreements and sign them, then we discuss with stakeholders afterwards. After all the hard work put in by the cruise tourism association to get major cruise lines here, now this. What a place!

    • You have to remember it was said that Carnival cruise proposed to invest in the port and after considering theor offer it was not best for Antigua. So the fact that they went wih GPH, carnival is probably retaliating, would not be good on their part. But since we need them very much something has to be done to resolve this matter.

    • Chupz not the first time Carnival Cruise Line did this crap. For those of u who have memory problems remeber the 6 tourist of refuse to pay the taxi and when taken the police they actually fight with the police before they pay the taxi man. After all was said and done what did Carnival Cruise Line do pull out the ship that came here weekly and Nathan Dundas who come from Guyana have the nerve to blame the taxi man the police and the government for it. He need to pull out with Carnival Cruise Line cause he anit going a great job.

    • As usual the MESSAGE would FLY right over the singers and kool-aid drinkers heads. This is NOT a DUNDAS issue take up your GRIPE with YOUR PRIME MINISTER. The ENTIRE deal is WRONG and we are now facing the error of our ways.

      • Peace,Where would you like to send me? I was born and bred here and still here,me na bang water nar cloud come ya.He (Dundas) should keep silent ,he dont make the rules here. Maybe you can GYPG with him also since you are his mouth piece.

    • Cant help but say this sounds like our prime minister. Right down his alley.
      Dundas I’m really not sorry for you in a sense. You played politics while UPP was in government

  4. At a glance, you need to be careful what you say. Cant always run your mouth Mr. PM. However, it is also clear that negotiations had already deteriorated behind closed doors. Sooo, what you do is maintain a premier destination. Sandals have not left, Carnival will be back before the year over. This is a bluff by the Cruiseline.

  6. ALL MIGHTY GOD, help us Dear Father. The people of Antigua/Barbuda are suffering under the hands of Prime Minister Gaston Brown. In the name of JESUS, AMEN!

  7. Just wonderful to live in this paradise isnt it?
    I wonder what the choir singers are going to say now, blame Dundas? You lose Carnival you might as well shut down shop.

    • Is it the first time CCL has pulled out of Antigua? Go back to the Luxury compartment days in 2009. Recall you still waving the UPP flag after carnival pulled out. Why to your mind is it worse now, considering the better state the economy (2009 vs now) is now vs then? Axe to grind making you blind?

  8. They are bullies. So PM has a concern. Yes they are probably exploiting us to the 10th power and they pull out to make us suffer. Typical ! I wont give them my money if that’s how they treat Antigua. Ill spend it else where.

  9. Today isn’t the 13th.
    But it does feel like friday the 13th as I do feel a sense of betrayal from all of the actors in this cruise ship/port authority/shipping agency/government debacle.
    Carnival is not at all on my list of preferred carriers and I now know why.

  10. What a mess!!! Sometimes you wonder if the Prime Minister thinks before he do things..always act like he can say wa he like

  11. And now we all wait for the PM to react to this decision by CC with an angry and defiant outburst of rage rather than a stately, reasoned and calm manner. Par for the course. Same every time. Think Sandals, Scotiabank, etc. My crystal ball tells me that the PM will today openly brand CC as economic terrorists making matters far worse.

  12. This has nothing to do with global ports tho. As the article said it was something the Prime Minister said it said nothing about global ports being an issue

  14. DUNDAS NEEDS TO PULL HIS GRO OUT OF ANtIGUA LIKE THR CRUISE LINER. GO BK WHERE YOU COME FROM AS SOON AS ANTIGUA HONEY STOP DRIPPING FROM THE CORNERS OF THEIR MOUTH THEM HAVE MOST TALK.GTFO JUDAS.fundas

  15. This isn’t Nathan Dundas Fault, it is the Prime Minister and his big mouth. This is just the tip of the iceberg.

    • @ Tato-What did the Prime Minister mouth do ? Should he sit back and allow all and sundry to do to us whatever they please? I hope you’ll realize just how dam backward and idiotic you’ll sound constantly defending those that do things to hurt this country,The Scotia Bank debacle and the Sandals debacle are two examples.. What are you’ll Slaves or Treasonist..

  17. Make them gwarn. World Boss is right. They exploiting the Caribbean. And you can see how they being bullies about it now. Trying to hold us hostage. Slavery days long done.

    • That’s no prayer. That’s a political statement, and God will not pay any attention to such so-called prayers! Don’t forget that GOD raises up leaders and he puts them down. For now, HE raised up the government we have. Again, that “prayer” is not Biblical and it seems to belittle the Almighty. Think about it.

      • @CErmle-Totally agree with you.Utter nonsense.They need to stop using God’s name in their hypocritical imagined cries for Justice and their thirst for power,which they will never see again..

  18. Me no kay. Despite the news on another note Dundas’ conflict of interest was something that should have been nipped long time but as we live in a society where even those in high places are involved in conflict the kettle cant call the pot black. With his likely fallout who knows what he is doing behind the scenes with his left and right hand connections!!!

  19. Thank you Carnival for putting the insanity of the GPH agreement in concrete terms. This is only the beginning. If you think other cruise lines will not follow guess again.

  20. No amount of name calling would help and it would serve us well if we could desist from tarnishing people’s character even if/when we disagree with their point of view.. Whatever the reasons for the pull out, it must be investigated and if possible corrected. When major cruise lines decide to pull up stakes, it is not a good thing neither it is time to castigate anyone. Rather it is time to do some serious soul searching to see how corrective measures can be taken so that the people of Antigua can be beneficiaries of having as many ships as possible calling at out ports. Let us be mature about this and desist from the character assassination.

    • Angel or is it Audley Phillip,you see nothing wrong with Dundas’s attitude towards this whole scenario right? Who is tarnishing whose name? And this have nothing to do with an opinion,this is a clear case of someone,in this case Dundas wanting his own way. No wonder Slavery lasted so long.SMDH.

  21. This leaves a bad taste in my mouth. I’m no fan of The Hon. Gaston Browne but I admire some of the leaps he makes. Trust me some dark things are hanging over the heads of the Cruise Tourism Association. Stand firm and see the Salvation of the Lord.

  22. How are they exploiting the region though?, the reason Mr Gaston Brown gave is very vague. This cannot be good, politically or economically. It would be interesting to know if they are the same with the other Islands, such as, Dominica, St. Lucia, Barbados. Can this be dissolved any other way?, as since a child, I know the saying, ‘ DON’T BITE THE HAND THAT FEEDS YOU ‘.

  23. They have already changed my cruise on the Magic February 29th week from Antigua to Tortola!!!! We love Tortola and going to the Baths for the day !!!

  24. The cartel (FCCA) has been playing the islands against each other for decades and now there are more docks than demand for them. It’s a bitter pill to swallow when you realize who the bosses are around here. We are no more independent than we were in the 70s. I wish Gaston could put this foot down without consequence but none of the other Caribbean countries will do the same. The FCCA are bullies and sadly, some will have to bend (over) in order to keep their business.

  25. Carnival cruises are not worth going on .Their standards has drop tremendously.Take it from a person like me who was a regula on those ships.The food is lousy.,the food u cook at ur home is better.Their ships are not fun ship no more.Their are better ships out there that will come to Antigua.Lets go Norwegian line.Also Celebrity.Just need the right people to sell Antigua.Thats all

  26. I do believe Prime Minister Gaston Browne is only trying to do what he thinks is best for our country. The consequences that occur as a result of standing up for Antigua and Barbuda is not his fault. These bigger countries and companies only act like sharks to show their strength. This reminds me of the recent Canadian Visa situation. However, our tourism sector is one of our main resources and I believe this is a momentary glitch. This too shall pass!

  27. When you speak the truth about the cartels they come after you but so be it….exploitation from man to man to make their billion dollar profit, they have set the bar so high that the rich just keep getting richer at the expense of the poor with a token of some cheap jobs.The divide and rule the islands, putting us competing against each other.so before you slash each others throat, try a little harder and look deeper at what is at play by the so called masters, nothing new under the sun…too fooly to learn and blinded by local politics.Widen the scope,nothing has changed under the sun, who dare this little black boy to challenge the masters.Do you want to sit up or stand up against injustice?Hmmm nothing comes good comes easy, are you willing to sacrifice? An attack and injustice against all of us and I mean the entire Caribbean.Tourism is our breadbasket. Today is Antigua and tomorrow it will be St Kitts. We must unite, take a stand to stop such madness.

  28. Seriously does all these enormous investment in infrastructure for the cruise industry justifies the benefits derived from the industry for the local and regional small economies? Maybe we need to relocate our resources to diversify this economy and be really self sufficient, too much blackmailing from the powerful dark entities.

  29. We have visited twice on Princess and really enjoyed swimming with the sting rays. We have recommended this to others. I have noticed a trend for the cruise lines to build their own ports, where they control access and the shopping. Although this is mainly greed on the part of the cruise line to keep more of the passenger’s money it is also safer. And with concerns around the world about safety this has a real appeal to passengers. On my last cruise from Florida I visited Key West, FL and Cozumel, Mexico. In Cozumel I did not leave the controlled access port area shopping. My next cruise, from Florida, will be to the cruise lines private island, St. Thomas, USVI, and San Juan, Puerto Rico. Do you see a trend here?

  30. I’m an Antiguan living in the US who has worked for over 50 years in the travel and hospitality industries both in Antigua and the US. I’m also an active member of ASTA, the American Society of Travel Agents and IATA, the International Air Transport Association. There are over 100,000 active members who make up the association of travel agents. This action is gonna cause a very severe blow to the tourism industry in Antigua because Carnival will be circulating a memorandum to all those agents about the ceasing of operation and all those agents will be advised to not book cruises to the island. Other islands will be happy to welcome Carnival to their shores. The government is fully accountable for this.

  31. High probability that new port manager plans on increasing port fees, probably substantially, which means a price increase for passengers.

  32. What you don’t realize is that by not stopping at your port, Carnival or any of their other lines will not hurt bookings. I’ve cruised the Caribbean many times to all the islands. While Antigua is pretty, it’s not a major port of call that would upset people if they missed it.

  33. I am an Antiguan living over seas and this does not sound good for Antigua. Is Gaston the Caribbean Trump?

  34. Next Jan. when I come back to Your Island I come as a guest should to your home. Respect, Manners and Treat all I meet with the Idea that I have come to a Land that is not mine. I get to see it share it for a moment and I have been blessed to meet friends again. Stay Strong The people who have met you will return with or without the Boat……

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