MedCruise President and MedCruise Black Sea Director together with the Ukrainian Deputy Minister of Infrastructure, the Acting Head of Ukrainian Sea Ports Authority, the Deputy Mayor of Odessa and the General Manager of Odesa Port launched today in Odessa (Ukraine) the MedCruise Working Group on Black Sea.
The launching of this Working Group composed by MedCruise members from Black Sea region comes after the Action Plan signed by Port of Odessa, Port of Varna, Port of Constanta and Port of Burgas during the 52nd MedCruise General Assembly held in Malta in May 2018. This Action Plan highlighted the absence of the maritime cruise ships in the Black Sea in 2017 and the slow comeback of the cruise ships in the region on a three years period of time as well as the cruise itineraries that are already locked for the cruise session 2019-2020 and the election of Mr. Teodor Patrichi as MedCruise Black Sea Director during 51st Medcruise General Assembly held in Toulon in October 2017.
The Working Group has been attended by MedCruise President, MedCruise Director of Black Sea, MedCruise Secretary General and representatives from the already mentioned ports that signed the Action Plan as well as several local authorities and a representative from Black Sea Economic Cooperation. The attendees had the opportunity to discuss about the situation of the cruise industry in that region and also elaborate a sort of actions to be implemented in the following months to promote the Black Sea as a cruise destination by creating a unified brand and developing a marketing strategy altogether.
During his intervention, MedCruise President, Mr. Airam Diaz Pastor, referred to the Working Plan that he presented during the elections in Toulon, which includes a Director responsible of Black Sea region. Diaz Pastor highlighted the potential of this MedCruise region due to the increase of the number of vessels that will visit the Black Sea in the coming years. “The launching of this Working Group will have a positive impact at the cruise industry in the whole region and it will bring new opportunities to all MedCruise members from the Black Sea –Port of Odesa, Port of Varna, Port of Constanta, Port of Burgas, Port of Trabzon and Port of Istanbul- as well as the cruise-industry-related-companies that operate in the region”.
