Boost for Invergordon as ship sails in

INVERGORDON is to receive a boost as a transatlantic liner is to pay its second visit to the port.

The Queen Mary 2, measuring 148,500 gross tonnes, arrives in to Invergordon on Sunday May 19 at 8am, paying its second visit to the Cromarty Firth.

An attraction in its own right, people flocked from far and wide to view the liner on its maiden voyage to Invergordon in 2005.

It will receive a special Highland welcome once more on Sunday, when its 2,553 passengers dock in the Cromarty Firth. Shops on Invergordon High Street are to open as well as the Invergordon Museum. Craft Fairs will be held at the Royal British Legion and at the Museum.

The return visit of ships like the QM2, as the ship is affectionately known, is good news for Invergordon and neighbouring Highland communities, all of whom benefit from the direct and indirect spend generated from such positive numbers of tourists.

Captain Ken Gray, Chief Executive and Harbour Master of the Cromarty Firth Port Authority said "We welcome the boost for the local economy that the cruise and tourism industry brings to the area."

The QM2 under the command of Captain Kevin Oprey, has an impressive itinerary. Having departed from New York on the 3rd of May, she has called at Southampton, Hamburg, Greenock, Dublin and Liverpool. After Invergordon her voyage takes her to Stavanger in Norway before eventually returning to New York on June 1.

She commands a sense of occasion both for those sailing aboard and for shore based spectators alike.

Amongst the facilities on board there is a two deck, 1,000 seat theatre as well as a casino and ballroom, all offered to the highest level of glamour and style.

Demonstrating the success story that the cruise industry has become for the Cromarty Firth, Captain Iain Dunderdale, Cruise Manager for Cruise Highlands Ltd added: "This year the Port of Invergordon is expecting 65 cruise ships, carrying almost 94,000 passengers.

"Whilst in Invergordon the Queen Mary’s passengers will visit Loch Ness and Inverness, Dunrobin Castle, Cromarty and the Black Isle, Glenmorangie Distillery and Royal Dornoch amongst others."

The ship will sail away at 6pm on Sunday the 19th.