Cruise ships Azamara Quest and Crystal Serenity return to Key West Florida the morning of November 27, 2021. Time-lapse video shows arrival of both ships between 645am and 9am. Copyright 2021.
Boy did i miss this...love seeing those big beauties up close on cam!! Started my morning just about every day watching and waking up with some coffee.
I went to Key West in May while cruise ships still weren’t allowed back. It was real nice to not have to deal with all the extra people. Ducal St wasn’t overwhelmingly crowded.
A comment posted in July, below a Royal Caribbean blog announcing that the Florida legislature had overturned the Key West cruise ship ban "Economy in Key West is actually booming without cruise ships. We have the lowest unemployment rate in the state. Hotel occupancy is at an all-time high. In March we set an all-time monthly high for tourist tax revenue. During the most recently reported 6 months (Oct 2020-Mar 2021) total sales tax revenues have actually been higher than the same period a year ago - before the pandemic and when we still had 2 or 3 cruise ships a day."
That is correct. Legislature passed a bill that overturned home rule rights. This is happening all over the state, for all kinds of issues. A couple of years ago, the voters stupidly passed a constitutional amendment that if citizens introduce changes to the constitution, it must be voted on twice. But if the legislature does, it only needs to pass once.
Key West voted *medium and large* cruise ships over 1500 passengers (which are generally more mass-market) be banned. While the ban was overruled, these two luxe 700+ passenger ships would always have been welcome. I’ve been on both of these ships, Crystal Serenity is a knockout in nearly every detail.
@@showguyer You need only look briefly at any article on the topic. Mega-ship folks might buy an ice cream, crap tee-shirt or beer at Sloppy Joe’s but they’re not typically adding a shipload of revenue to the City’s coffers. Gone are many of the higher end galleries and boutiques. And the big ships create numerous environmental issues. Home and condo values in and near Old Town, the tourist hub, are crazy, mostly over $1,000 sq’. Rich folk don’t care that big ships may add a couple hundred service industry jobs in KW. Moreover they don’t want the hoi polloi continuing to spoil the view.
@@showguyer Living there, you too would likely tire of 5,000 to 7,000 people flooding your downtown several days a week. You may know, town is very compact and residents and second-home owners already live on top of one another in homes with typically small footprints. Equating snobby with rich is a cheap shot. All the wealthier folks I’ve known in that town over 37 years of frequent visits love and are supportive of the history, art and ever-quirky vibe for which the island has long been known. The reasons for local voters approving three referendums opposed to larger ships, each by more than 60%, are varied and valid. Clearly they felt the negatives of large ships outweighed whatever money comes in. Regardless, the point is moot: big ships are returning.
@@sidkarpav8655 "Living there, you too would likely tire of 5,000 to 7,000 people flooding your downtown several days a week". NOT if I owned a business there!!
Great for return the cruises at Conch Republic...!!! When I have gone by car to KW I have spent less than when I go on a cruise where I take a tour or rent a motorcycle etc. What they want with this measure of banning cruises is to destroy this beautiful city and plunge it poverty First time I hear that tourism is harmful for a tourist city...!!!
What public? If you mean the citizens of Florida, we have no say so when King DeathSentence decides he prefers money over the lives of his serfs. What is interesting though is that most government agencies and offices, such as our elected representatives, were closed until a few months ago.
@@sunniejjordan7389 Death Sentence is our play on words for Ron DeSantis, the governor. Acts like a king, making mandates that harm the citizens - not just related to covid but anything else that MAGAts want
@@LibbyRal Hi, Libby, from the Miami Herald, dated at end: Key West voters in November approved three referendums by 60 percent or more to restrict cruise ship operations on the island. They included banning the largest ships and capping the number of passengers that can disembark daily.Jul 9, 2021
Key West is so much nicer without the throngs of people pouring off these ships. Only a limited number of local businesses make any profit off of the polluting masses.
@@showguyer It was nice in Key West when the lockdowns were strong and no tourists were there. Just like it must have been nice in a place like Venice, Italy. I'm not saying it can be maintained that way just that seeing it the way it probably once was is refreshing.
@@showguyer Like I said, I know it can't be maintained, but It's nice to see things the way they could be or, better yet used to be. The way that made these places so popular in the first place. Imagine what it was like in Yellowstone or Yosemite 50 yrs ago. Now you have to stand on long lines to experience the peace and tranquility.
