Cruise ship brings tourists for brief stop in Kota Kinabalu

16 October 2024

KOTA KINABALU: The Carnival Panorama cruise ship, carrying 3,607 tourists from 65 different nationalities, made a brief stop at Kota Kinabalu Port today.

This impressive 321-meter (1,055 ft) luxury vessel, featuring 14 passenger decks and staffed by 1,438 crew members, docked at 7 am and set sail for Manila, Philippines, at 5 pm.

Upon arrival from Phu My (Ho Chi Minh City), Vietnam, many passengers disembarked for a quick city tour and shopping excursion.

Senior state officials, including Mary Isidore Malangking, Deputy Permanent Secretary I of the Tourism, Culture, and Environment Ministry, Sabah Ports Managing Director Datuk Ng Kiat Min, and Sabah Tourism Board Senior Product Manager Halimah Hassan, boarded the ship to welcome its guests and tour the facilities.

Mary, Ng, and Halimah also took the opportunity to exchange plaques and mementos with the ship’s captain, Luca Lazzarino.

“We held a simple ceremony to exchange plaques to commemorate their visit here,” said Mary, who represented Minister Datuk Seri Christina Liew.

“Thank you for welcoming us. I’m very happy to be here in Kota Kinabalu,” said Captain Luca.

The cruise ship’s home port is in Long Beach, California, USA. It has made Singapore its home port for a 25-day Southeast Asia and Hawaii Transpacific tour from 12 October to 5 November.

Luca said he was impressed with Sabah, noting from the promotional videos that several major cruise ships, including Norwegian Jewel, Diamond Princess, Queen Elizabeth, Dreamer, Queen Mary, and others had visited Kota Kinabalu before the Covid-19 pandemic.

However, he recommended that Sabah Ports’ gangway, should be improved for the convenience of wheelchair passengers, allowing them to board the ship smoothly.