Emily Brontë first river cruise ship to moor in the harbour of Huizen

On Monday 18 December, the Emily Brontë was the first river cruise ship to moor in the harbour of Huizen. The municipality, the shipping company Scylla and the province of North Holland together invested 450,000 Euros in the facilities for receiving cruise ships of up to 135 meters long. Motorised charters will also be able to use the facilities.

The development of the new cruise destination has now officially started. On Monday morning at 8:00, while it was still dark, the 135 meters long Emily Brontë moored at the quay without any problems. In the afternoon, the alderman of Huizen, Marlous Verbeek, and a Scylla representative, along with fifty other guests, raised a toast. After the official opening, the guests were given a tour of the luxurious ship.

The intention is that in the future ships can double-moor in the harbour. “One mooring berth means no mooring berth,” Verbeek claimed in her speech. “The largest ship—135 meters long—that has ever moored here has now arrived from Cologne. A new chapter for Huizen and a new opportunity.”

Shore power

The expectation is that as of 2019, Huizen will be included in the travel programme of ship owners and will be visited by approximately 20 ships. Boat-bike holidays are also welcome. Scylla`s representative emphasised that the Emily Brontë was moored almost noiselessly thanks to the shoreside electrical power supply (Walstroom). He also welcomed other ship owners among the guests.

These partner companies have a great deal of interest in this new mooring location. “It is a great success. Our investment of 120,000 Euro in the mooring berths is an investment in the sector and is to everyone’s benefit,” he said. “The ships are becoming bigger and we are all building more ships.”

Willemstad

He was pleased to announce that it appears that by the end of the year, the single mooring berth will be expanded to three mooring berths. Unlike Huizen, Willemstad is already included in the travel programme. Huizen is now one of the eleven marinas in North Holland where ships can moor.

Louis van der Corput was present on behalf of Croisi Europe, a cruise ship owner with 40 ships on the European rivers. “The cruise sector is booming while there are too few mooring locations. Volendam has also dropped from the list. We are going to continue to develop this and in 2019 and 2020, this beautiful alternative will definitely be included in our catalogue.”