Norwegian Pearl will be the first cruise ship back at Cape Breton’s Sydney following Hurricane Fiona
Nova Scotia’s Cape Breton, one of the places hit hard by Hurricane Fiona last Saturday, expects cruise calls to resume at Sydney Oct. 3 with Norwegian Pearl.
So far Sydney has had 13 ship cancellations due to Fiona, which arrived during Atlantic Canada’s peak cruise season.
With Norwegian Pearl, the regular cruise schedule will resume, according to Samantha Ash, manager, cruise & administration, Port of Sydney.
Fortress of Louisbourg closed until Oct. 10
‘Our island is getting cleaned up and a majority have gotten their power back. A lot of our operators have reopened. The Cabot Trail has reopened. Unfortunately, the Fortress of Louisbourg has been significantly impacted and will remain closed until October 10,’ Ash said.
‘We’re looking forward to welcoming back our cruise passengers,’ she added, noting that they can expect a good experience — however, there won’t be quite as many leaves on the trees after Fiona.
Celtic Colours International Festival is on
In another encouraging sign for Cape Breton’s recovery, the Celtic Colours International Festival is forging ahead next week, Terry Smith, CEO of Destination Cape Breton, announced Thursday.
Festival organizers have been monitoring conditions and restoration efforts all week, as well as consulting with volunteers, community organizations, venues and municipal officials. Based on the feedback they’ve received, the progress they’ve seen and the fact that the opening weekend is still a week away, the festival will go ahead
‘We don’t want to interfere in any way with restoration and recovery efforts still going on and we’ve heard the same from those visitors planning to attend,’ said Leanne Birmingham-Beddow, CEO of Celtic Colours International Festival. ‘However, we know that many communities from all over the Island rely on us for fundraising and municipal officials have told us that Celtic Colours is too important to Cape Breton’s local economy. Everyone has come together and said they will be ready to go ahead with festival events starting next Friday, October 7.’
