JAMAICA welcomed 916,300 cruise passengers between January and September, a 10 per cent increase over the same period last year, a result of Disney and MSC cruise lines diverting from storm-affected islands.

“Both Disney and MSC came to Jamaica in summer, which did not happen last year,” William Tatham, head of cruises at the Port Authority of Jamaica, told the Jamaica Observer in a phone interview on Monday. “We got an additional 12,000 passengers based on the diversion from other Caribbean islands. We missed the storms this time, but others did not. We are very lucky this year to experience no disruptions. It resulted in four additional calls that we didn’t anticipate.”

Between May and September, however, the growth jumped to 20 per cent year-on-year. The bulk of the growth came from the Falmouth Cruise Pier, Ochi Rios grew slightly, and Montego Bay remained flat year-on-year.

Tatham said that the island remains on the “border” of achieving record arrivals this year.

Just this week, large attraction Dolphin Cove stated that the new calls resulted in increased profitability at the listed company.

“[The profit] reflected the continued growth in revenue as the group sought to maximise on the revenue to be derived from the additional cruise ships which arrived at Jamaica’s ports during the period,” said a just-released statement prefacing the financials signed by Stafford Burrowes, chairman and chief executive, and director William McConnell.

Dolphin Cove’s September quarterly profit jumped to $109 million or 14 per cent higher than a year earlier. The company’s year-to-date profit totalled $369 million, or one-quarter higher than a year earlier. Dolphin Cove also indicated that it benefited from currency movements during the first half of its financial year as it receives most of its income in US dollars. Depreciation of the Jamaican dollar was most rapid during the first six months of the year.

Another attraction, Chukka Adventures, indicated that it was “a top adventure choice” for Disney passengers with their newly expanded park at Chukka Good Hope in Falmouth.

“Falmouth was the perfect choice as Disney’s port with its long heritage, historic town and proximity to Good Hope Estate. Being chosen by Disney as their provider at the port is an indication of Chukka’s ability to deliver to discerning guests with an expectation of a high level of customer experience,” Chukka stated in a release last October.

MSC Cruise Line entered the island on and off for a decade, but it’s the first time it sailed during summer to Jamaica, while Disney entered the island last October for the first time.