MIRI: The resort city of Miri yesterday morning welcomed its first cruise ship, the Star Clipper from Monaco bringing with it 81 passengers from countries like Germany, UK, and Australia apart from its 76-member crew.
The ship arrived at 8am and berthed about one nautical mile from Miri Marina.
On hand to welcome the cruise ship were Assistant Minister of Tourism, Arts and Culture Datuk Lee Kim Shin, Miri Marina’s owner Troy Yaw and Miri Port Authority (MPA) general manager Serawa Budol.
According to Lee, the cruise ship plies the route SingaporeKuching-Bintulu-Miri-Brunei and Kota Kinabalu, Sabah.
“According to initial plan, the passengers were supposed to visit Niah Caves today (yesterday) but they could not make it due to time constraint. Therefore, they instead went for a city tour and attended a Gawai Festival celebration event at Times Square Miri before continuing their journey to Brunei by 5pm today (yesterday).”
He said by the end of this month, another cruise ship will be calling at Miri and more are expected to come in October this year. Thus, Lee hoped local tour players will work closely with cruise operators to bring more cruise ships which will result in vibrant tourism activities for Miri.
Sarawak ID
