WESTERN BUREAU – Montego Bay’s economy got an unexpected boost this week with the unscheduled visit of two cruise ships to the resort town. The calls brought 6,000 passengers and injected roughly $30 million in the local economy.

“This is really good news for us, and is definitely a boost to our summer season,” David Lindo, chairman of the Montego Bay Chamber of Commerce and Industry, told the Observer on Thursday.

The vessels – Caribbean Princess and Voyager of the Seas, each carrying 3,000 passengers and crew members – were diverted to the resort city because of the threat of hurricane Frances which was heading towards some eastern Caribbean islands.

“Caribbean Princess was not due into Montego Bay until September 14, but the hurricane blew it off track so it came here on Tuesday,” Lindo explained, adding that the Voyager of the Seas arrived on Thursday.

Ironically, Montego Bay lost roughly $17 million in earnings last month when the Carnival Conquest cruise line, which makes weekly calls to the resort town, had to be diverted due to the threat of hurricane Charley.

At that time, the vessel had 3,500 passengers on board.

On Thursday, Lindo stressed that the diversion of the Caribbean Princess and Voyager of the Seas had impacted positively on Montego Bay’s economy.

“Research has shown that the average cruise passenger spends about US$85 while ashore, so you can imagine the kind of positive impact the arrivals of the ships had on the local economy,” he pointed out.

“The attractions, tour operators, restaurants, beaches and souvenirs shops have all benefited,” he added.

Last year, cruise ship arrivals to Montego Bay surpassed the 300,000 mark for the first time ever, providing an estimated US$26 million to the local economy.

In 2002, there were roughly 190,000 cruise ship arrivals, which earned the resort town about US$17 million.

On Thursday, Lindo said that cruise ship arrivals since the start of this year are running between 40 and 50 per cent above last year figures.

“This year, too, is shaping up to be another record year for cruise ship arrivals,” the tourism official noted.