Capt. Geir Lokoen, who has been at the helm of nearly every Norwegian Cruise Line ship during his 23-year career, successfully steered the 965-foot Norwegian Star into Nawiliwili Harbor Wednesday morning and promised to bring the ship to the island
Capt. Geir Lokoen, who has been at the helm of nearly every Norwegian Cruise Line ship during his 23-year career, successfully steered the 965-foot Norwegian Star into Nawiliwili Harbor Wednesday morning and promised to bring the ship to the island every week until further notice.
Weather permitting.
The Star begins seven-day interisland cruises this Sunday, with regular calls at Nawiliwili each Saturday (arriving around 7 a.m., leaving about 4 p.m.).
But strong winds could keep one of the world’s most sophisticated new cruise ships from making a safe entrance into the harbor. And in circumstances like that, harbor pilots, ship’s officers and crew, the Coast Guard and state Department of Transportation will make the collaborative call of either bringing or not bringing the ship in.
Lokoen welcomed Wednesday a group of around 30 business and community leaders invited aboard for a tour, lunc, and ceremonial exchanging of plaques between him and representatives of Gov. Ben Cayetano, Kaua’i County Mayor Maryanne Kusaka and Sue Kanoho of the Kaua’i Visitors Bureau.
Security remains tight around all cruise ships entering and leaving U.S. ports, with Coast Guard craft at sea and private, public and military security on the ground.
Lokoen thanked the state DOT “for providing us with a safe port.”
The Norwegian Star, the largest cruise ship ever to call on Nawiliwili, is less than two months old. It took three years and $400 million to build, at a shipyard in Germany.
The Star has a bit of history already. Lokoen explained that the shipyard is located around 50 miles from the ocean, so the ship had to sail down a river narrower than the entrance to Nawiliwili Harbor in order to reach the sea. That expeience helped him prepare for the exacting entrance to Nawiliwili Harbor, he said.
The Star completed an uneventful Atlantic crossing without passengers, spent several days in Miami, Fla., where “cruises to nowhere” were conducted with guests aboard, then took two weeks to sail from Miami to Los Angeles.
The Star also became the biggest ship ever to traverse the Panama Canal. Lokoen bemoaned the fact that he had to write a check for $208,000 for permission to cut through Panama on the way to Los Angeles.
The ship left Los Angeles, sailed to Ensenada, Mexico, then headed straight for the Hawaiian Islands, visiting Hilo and Kona on Big Island before coming to Kaua’i Wednesday. Next up were Lahaina Thursday and Friday, then Oahu Saturday for another overnight cruise to nowhere that is a benefit for several local charities.
Miss America 2001, Angela Perez Baraquio of Waipahu, is the Star’s “godmother” after christening the ship in Miami.
Norwegian Cruise Line chose Hawai’i before American Hawai’i Cruises’ parent company went bankrupt, leaving the islands without a weekly interisland cruise ship. “We see big opportunities here,” Lokoen said.
Good ports and stable weather make Hawai’i an ideal place to conduct cruises, he said.
The Star can accommodate nearly 3,000 guests and is registered for a capacity of 4,000 people. It has 10 restaurants.
Lokoen said he feels sorry for American Hawai’i Cruises and wishes they were still operating because he wouldn’t view them as competition.
Norwegian Cruise Line has eight ships. The Norwegian Sky and Norwegian Wind, which both made Kaua’i calls this year, are to return again in 2002, during the “shoulder seasons” of spring and fall, he said.
The Star’s cosmopolitan crew of around 1,060 are of 45 different nationalities. Theresa Gomes, who led a tour of the ship Wednesday, is from O’ahu and formerly worked for American Hawai’i Cruises.
Staff Writer Paul C. Curtis can be reached at mailto:pcurtis@pulitzer.net or 245-3681 (ext. 224).
